Tag Archive for: Paula Gail Benson

An Interview with Hank Phillippi Ryan

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by Paula Gail Benson

How do you possibly describe the multi-faceted Hank Phillippi Ryan? Intrepid, award-winning investigative reporter and winner of 37 Emmys? Creator of the Charlotte McNally Mysteries and Jane Ryland Thrillers? Author of short fiction, teacher of writing craft, recipient of 5 Agathas (the only author to win an Agatha in 4 different categories: Best First Novel, Best Novel, Best Short Story, and Best Non-Fiction), 4 Anthonys, the Daphne, and the Mary Higgins Clark Award? Bestselling author of mysteries, suspense, and thrillers? And whose 2019 novel  THE MURDER LIST just won the Anthony Award for Best Novel of the year?

Why is it not surprising that all of the above
apply, as well as enthusiastic encourager of writers and readers?

Today, it’s a great pleasure to welcome Hank to The Stiletto Gang for a few questions.

Hank,
you’ve had great success with series mysteries and thrillers and now are
excelling with your stand alone suspense novels. What drew you to writing crime
fiction?

Well that should be such an easy
question, but it really isn’t. First, thank you. What a lovely thing to say!
What drew me to writing crime fiction? Well, I always loved mysteries and
thrillers, and read like crazy my whole life. And although it had crossed my
mind to write crime fiction, it was never really a goal. But one day in—2005
maybe? I had a good idea for a mystery novel. I just knew it was a good idea,
and all I could think of was writing the book. I was obsessed! It was
craziness, because I had no idea how to do it, but I just deeply wanted to. And
that became Prime Time, my very first novel, which won the Agatha for best
first novel. And it’s still really selling!

I
was 55 years old  and had been a television
reporter for about 30 years then. So there was no reason for me to start
something new except for sheer desire. I guess I am the poster child for
following your dreams in mid-life. Yay.

What
led you to progress from series to stand alones?

Progress
from series to standalones.  Hmm. Well, I
look at it less as progress and more as change. The Charlotte McNally
books, beginning with Prime Time, a series of four, had a certain sensibility–first
person, fast-paced and fun.  But then I got the idea for a bigger
thriller, a multiple point of view heftier novel, and I knew that could not be
a Charlie McNally book. And that was my first investigative thriller, The Other
Woman, which won the Mary Higgins Clark award. So I wrote four more in that
series, and there’s another one under contract, and I’m very excited about that.

But
then I had another idea for a book that could not be a series book. It had to
be one of a kind, a standalone, a twisty psychological suspense. And I love
that – – the power of the standalone, where anything could happen! And I
started writing what  I call cat-and-mouse
psychological suspense. First was Trust Me, then The Murder List, then The First
to Lie.  And I am thrilled with that.

Do
you ever consider returning to your series?

Yes,
absolutely! I adore the Charlotte McNally books, and would love to write more
of those. And as I said, I’m under contract for another Jane Ryland. Hurray!
But I prefer, if I have a choice, to do whatever book is taking over my brain
at the moment. I just sent in my 13th novel, another cat and mouse
psychological suspense! Which doesn’t quite have a title yet.

Would
you ever want to revisit any characters in your stand alones?

Revisit
any characters… I’m thinking about that, and I have to say–no. The key part of
a standalone to me is that you’re witnessing the very most important thing that
ever happened in these people’s lives. Yes, they had lives before the book, and
their lives will continue after the book–some of them at least–but this
is all you need to know about them. When you write a standalone, it feels to me
that those people’s stories will be finished, and I absolutely would have had
to write the books differently if the characters are going to continue.

Many
of your books draw upon your journalism background. As a legislative staffer, I
enjoyed reading about Rachel North’s experiences with the Massachusetts Legislature
in The Murder List and figured you
incorporated some of your own knowledge from working in and covering
congressional proceedings. How has your own work in journalism and politics
influenced the ideas you want to develop in crime fiction?

Oh
my goodness, I am so lucky about that! I could never have written these books
without my own personal history being involved.  I worked in several campaigns for governor and
senator in Indiana, and then I worked on Capitol Hill as a legislative
assistant in a judiciary committee subcommittee. I learned so much, not only
about politics, but procedure and psychology and what goes on behind the
scenes. Then as a reporter, I learned how to write quickly, and take
complicated things and make them fascinating and interesting and distilled to
the essence. I also learned how to tell a story, right? Beginning, middle, and
end. And for years I had to write a new story every day! So there could
be no better training ground for writing fiction.

In particular, your stand alones have focused
on truth and justice, and on how those concepts affect family and personal
relationships. What do you find most compelling in exploring and entangling
these themes?

You
are so right! Truth and justice–in every realm of our lives. I don’t mean
to sound high-faultin’, but what is truth? Is it what we wish for, or what we
believe, or what someone tells us? Is there a true truth? Or does it depend on
who tells the better story. I think that is so fascinating. Justice, too, what
does that really mean? There are all kinds of meanings of justice–court
room justice, karmic justice, personal justice, the justice of the universe.
Does revenge count? Does that even work?  Making things right, I
often think about that. I have a feeling that we are put on earth to help make
sure things are right–and to support that process whenever we can. But how
do we know what’s “right”? And is right different depending on the situation?
You can see I’m going off on this now… But that’s my constant thought. I love
to explore why people do what they do.

Figuring
out characters’ motivations becomes a strong focus in your stand alones. How do
you develop the cat-and-mouse atmosphere while playing fair with readers?

Yes,
exactly! And I don’t completely know the characters’ motivations when I start–I really don’t know anything except one core idea. So I develop my cat-and-mouse
atmosphere by exploring what each character wants and how far they’ll go to get
it.

And
because what they want is diametrically opposed, that creates instant conflict.
And in  a cat-and-mouse game, only one
person can succeed, but I want the readers not to be quite sure who they’re
rooting for.  That’s exactly what we were
talking about before: What is good and what is right all depends on how you
look at it.  

So I
want to set up a situation where you think one person is good, and believe what
they say. And then you hear the same situation from someone else’s brain, and
you think oh– now I see the other side of the story. And isn’t that just
like journalism and politics? And that’s what I try to do in my books. And I
play fair, as you say, by telling the reader absolutely everything. It’s just
that…they may be thinking about those things in the wrong way–the way the book
suggests they should, not in the way that turns out to be real.

Boston
is another true character in your novels. What are its unique qualities that intrigue
you as a crime writer?

Oh, Boston! It’s so perfect. It’s old,
incredibly old, and incredibly new, with diverse and vibrant neighborhoods and
culture and ridiculous geography and impossible streets and crazy drivers and a
fast-paced brusque constantly-moving atmosphere. And the weather! Is completely
nuts. The harbor, and the history, and the food, and the clash of cultures– the Brahmins  and the newcomers and the aggressively territorial
neighborhoods. All wonderful for fiction.

What was the most challenging aspect of writing The First to Lie? What did you find most rewarding about crafting that novel?

The most challenging aspect?  In two
words: the middle. Okay, to go on a bit: I don’t want to give anything away for
those who haven’t read The First to Lie, and I’m crossing fingers you
eventually will. But most rewarding about crafting that novel is how it is
absolutely and supremely fair. Readers are given every single piece of
information. To be oblique about it, I had to very carefully keep certain
people away from other people in the novel. There are certain people who are
never in the same scenes, and there are certain people who never meet. And I absolutely applauded myself, briefly 🙂 when that worked.

What’s
next on your writing horizon?

I’m in the midst of the final edits of my new
book! I’m so thrilled about it–and that’s fun to say, because about a month ago
I was in despair.  It doesn’t have a title yet, but it will be published
by Forge on September 14. It is another cat-and-mouse standalone, I am happy to say,
about celebrity and fame and the vulnerability of people who are always in the
spotlight. 

One person asked me to describe it in 10 words
and I said: Fame. Fortune. Your perfect daughter. Can you keep one secret?

So. Crossing fingers! And thank you so much
for inviting me–I wish we could chat in person!

Thank you for spending time with us here at the Stiletto Gang. I really look forward to our next meeting in person! Best wishes for your continuing success!

Hank Phillippi
Ryan is the USA Today bestselling author
of 12 thrillers, winning the most prestigious awards in the genre: five
Agathas, four Anthonys, the Daphne, and for The Other Woman, the coveted Mary Higgins Clark Award. She is
also on-air investigative reporter for Boston’s WHDH-TV, with 37 EMMYs and
dozens more journalism honors. Book critics call her “a master of suspense,” “a
superb and gifted storyteller,” and she’s the only author to have won the
Agatha in four different categories: Best First, Best Novel, Best Short Story
and Best Non-Fiction. Her 2019 standalone, THE MURDER LIST, won the Anthony
Award for Best Novel, and is an Agatha, Macavity and Mary Higgins Clark Award
nominee. International bestseller A.J. Finn says, “exciting, explosive,
relentless,” and the Library Journal starred
review calls it “A must-read.” Hank’s newest novel: the chilling psychological
standalone The First to Lie. The Publishers Weekly starred
review says “Stellar… Hank Phillippi Ryan could win a sixth Agatha with this
one.” and bestseller Sarah Pekkanen says “Book clubs will gobble it up.”

Hank is a founder of MWA
University and past president of National Sisters in Crime. Visit Hank online
at HankPhillippiRyan.com, on Twitter @HankPRyan, on Instagram @hankpryan and on Facebook at HankPhillippiRyanAuthor.

 

 

Bethlehem Writers Roundtable Short Story Award

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 by Paula Gail Benson

My first published short story, “Nectar of the Gods,” appeared as the featured story in the February 2013 issue of the Bethlehem Writers Roundtable. The Roundtable, formerly a monthly and now a quarterly online publication, is the labor of love of the Bethlehem Writers Group, organized in 2006 to provide critiques and support for its own members as well as help other writers see their work in print. I saw the deadline to submit for that first story just as I had decided to put a renewed focus on my writing.

Charlaine Harris

After learning that my story had been accepted, I decided to submit to the Group’s annual short story contest. I was over the moon when my submission, “Long in the Tooth,” received third place with Hank Phillippi Ryan as the celebrity judge. The story appeared in the June issue and later was included in Let It Snow, a Bethlehem Writers Group print anthology.

My sci-fi/fantasy short “Apple’s Lure” was in the July/August 2014 issue. And, this year, I received the fabulous news that my “Cosway’s Confidence” won second place in the annual contest, with Peter Abrahams aka Spencer Quinn as celebrity judge.

I’ve learned so much from working with the BWR editors and I truly appreciate their confidence in me.

Beginning January 1, 2021, the BWR’s Short Story Award is open for submissions. The theme this year, interpreted broadly, is “An Element of Mystery,” and the celebrity judge is Charlaine Harris.

Submissions must not be more than 2,000 words and an entry fee of $15.00 is required for each submission. Check this link for more information.

Happy Thanksgiving all!

 

    

American Legion Oratorical Competition

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 by Paula Gail Benson

A few
years ago, a friend in the leadership of a local American Legion Post asked if
I would be a judge for its oratorical contest. I hadn’t previously heard about
this competition.

I knew
about the Boys State and Girls State programs the American Legion operated each
year, giving high school students a chance to learn about the branches of
government by becoming part of the process. In the past, these summer events
have taken place at our Statehouse where I work. I’ve found it inspiring to see
the young participants walking through the halls, making plans about proposed
legislation, and offering for mock elective positions. Hopefully, their experience
will encourage them to consider future participation in federal or state government.
Remember how President Clinton’s campaign proudly used his Boys State photo
visiting the White House and shaking President Kennedy’s hand?

Similarly,
since 1938, the American Legion’s oratorical contest has offered high school
students the opportunity to learn about the United States Constitution by
studying and preparing to speak about its provisions. Each year, the American Legion website lists the
selected subject matters for the competition’s focus. Students must present one
timed prepared speech without help aids. In the second round, they draw a topic
from a container and make an extemporaneous talk.

By
participating in the contest and placing in local, state, regional, and
national levels, students win scholarships. The year I participated as a judge,
we had only one student. We listened to her presentations so we could offer
suggestions for improvements as she moved on to the next levels in the
competition. She was phenomenal in the information she had compiled and her
poise in delivery. I was delighted to get to know her.

Since I
served as a judge, Heidi Schrek wrote and performed in a Broadway production
called What the Constitution Means to Me. The show was based on Heidi’s
own experiences going from one American Legion oratorical contest to another,
winning sufficient scholarships to pay her way through college. It ran both off
and on Broadway, winning the Obie award, being nominated for the Tony award,
and being a finalist for the 2019 Pulitzer Prize for Drama.

In the show,
Heidi channeled her teenaged-self participating in the oratorical contest. She
dynamically expressed constitutional principles by making
analogies to her own life. Midway through, she stepped away from the structure of
the contest to provide more detail about her personal and family situation, giving
additional insight into how the rights and privileges guaranteed by the
Constitution influenced the quality of her life. The show’s final portion had Heidi debate a high school student on the question: “Should the Constitution be
Abolished?” Each night, the debate was staged anew with the audience encouraged
to express its opinion (cheers or boos) about what it heard and, in the end,
vote which side won.

One of the
Broadway performances was recorded for a wider audience viewing. In addition, the
written play will be released on December 1, 2020. It’s particularly fitting
for this time of year as we consider and are thankful for our history and all
that has offers us.

In the performance, Heidi mentions the book she
used to prepare her oratorical presentations: Your Rugged Constitution
by Bruce Allyn Findlay and Esther Blair Findlay (Stanford University Press,
1952). I found a used copy of the volume and ordered it. While it does not
contain the most recent amendments, it remains a strong statement about the
“living” document that is the basis for our laws.


Luci H. Zahray, The Poison Lady

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by Paula Gail Benson

On Saturday, the Palmetto Chapter of Sisters in Crime was
delighted to welcome as its guest Luci H. Zahray, well known to Malice Domestic
attendees as “the Poison Lady.” Luci, who has a Masters degree in Toxicology
from Texas A&M, first came to Malice as a fan, but when she heard writers
asking how they might dispatch victims with poisons, she offered answers and
quickly became the source to be consulted. She has some interesting tales about
traveling with her poison “toy box” through airport security.

This year, Luci has been able to spread her excellent
information through virtual meetings. During her time with Palmetto Chapter,
she focused on household toxins such as methanol, tobacco, hand sanitizer, and
anti-freeze. The amazing part of her information was how little of a substance was
needed to produce blindness, illness, or death. She calculated based on how the
substance would affect a 170 pound man and referred to the amount as LD 50
(lethal dose 50%).

Here’s
a link
to where she visited The Stiletto Gang on September 11, 2009. Gloria Alden’s summary
of a Malice Domestic meeting (found in Writers Who Kill) indicated that Luci’s
topic that year had been lead. For another Writers Who Kill post,
Edith Maxwell mentions hearing Luci talk about using liquid nicotine, rosary
peas, Tylenol, and alcohol as poisons.

If you have an interest in poisons, you won’t want to miss one of Luci’s presentations.

 

Elaine Viets and the Art of the Short Story

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 by Paula Gail Benson

Photo: Elaine Viets from Type M For Murder Blogger

Murder on the Beach Mystery Bookstore, located in Delray Beach, Florida, has been offering an excellent series of online Zoom workshops called the FL Authors Academy. Over the past few months, the store has featured such terrific writers and teachers as John Dufresne (storytelling), Debra H. Goldstein (conflict), Reed Farrel Coleman (character), and Charles Todd (point of view). The series is very economical and sometimes provides a copy of the author’s work.

Recently, as part of the FL Authors Academy, Elaine Viets presented a program about writing the mystery short story. Author of four series of mystery novels ranging from dark to cozy to humorous, Elaine has won the Agatha Award for her short story “The Wedding Knife,” featured in her 2018 short story collection Deal with the Devil published by Crippen & Landru.

Elaine’s presentation offered great advice for moving forward with a stalled story (think small/more than four characters may be too many) as well as advice about what editors want: (1) a fresh voice, (2) an unusual location, (3) offbeat characters, and (4) an appealing opening. She provided online references and a list of publishing venues.

In particular, I want to try one suggestion Elaine offered. She said, if you’re having trouble getting your story on paper, try telling it to someone. Stories originated as tales told around campfires. Sometimes, telling a story frees the author to locate the true focus and theme the author wants to convey.

That might work for longer stories, too.

 

Meeting Yasmin McClinton: Winner of the Eleanor Taylor Bland Award

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Yasmin McClinton

by Paula Gail Benson

Each year, Sisters in Crime presents the Eleanor Taylor Bland grant to assist an emerging writer of color in that writer’s continuing journey.

Born in Boston on December 31, 1944, Eleanor Taylor Bland spent a good portion of her life in Chicago where her husband served in the military. Bland wrote a series of novels about Marti MacAlister, an African American police detective whose big city methods clash with those of her partner Polish-American Vik Jessenovik when she transfers from Chicago to a small town police force. The Wikipedia biography about Ms. Bland quotes Ms. Bland as saying that “the most significant contribution that [African American women writers] have made, collectively, to mystery fiction is the development of the extended family; the permanence of spouses and significant others, most of whom don’t die in the first three chapters; children who are complex, wanted and loved; and even pets.”

On Saturday, September 19, 2020, the Palmetto Chapter of Sisters in Crime was pleased to welcome the 2020 Eleanor Taylor Bland award winner, Yasmin McClinton, as a guest speaker and new member of the chapter. Readers and authors from England, Canada, New York, and California joined the chapter for the Zoom presentation. In particular, it was lovely to have Frankie Bailey in attendance. Frankie worked to establish the Eleanor Taylor Bland award when she served as President of Sisters in Crime.

Yasmin McClinton grew up in Virginia and began writing as an only child, whose companionship was from reading. She came to South Carolina as a military spouse. Following a divorce, she and her two daughters remained in Columbia to make a new start. She has since remarried and has two step-sons.

Throughout her life, she has continued to write. Her first novel was the story of four friends. Her second was a thriller based on background she learned from her parents who are immigrants. She said an agent asked why her thriller’s protagonist didn’t smile more, making her realize that agent was not the person to represent her. Our group agreed Lee Child probably did not field questions about Jack Reacher smiling more.

At the end of her presentation, Yasmin was asked what advice she would give to writers. She said to never give up, even if you feel as if you can’t go farther, try one more time. She said, that was where she was when she applied for the Bland award.

In the Sisters in Crime press release, Yasmin was quoted as saying, “Authors like Ms. Bland show me that women of color–writers of color–can be authors in any genre they want and really bridge gaps. I shared with my daughters that I won this award. My daughters have been through the hardest times of my life. And I wanted to show them that their overly protective, annoying mom has dreams from her childhood coming true, even today. And, she can be chosen for prestigious awards like the Sisters in Crime Eleanor Taylor Bland award. So, Girls, no giving up. Ever!”

Congratulations, Yasmin! We’re looking forward to reading your novels!   

A Writer’s Weekend

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 by
Paula Gail Benson

Sometimes
you have to dedicate time to your writing craft. In pre-Covid-19 days, that was
accomplished at writers’ conferences. You spend some time listening to master
classes and panels, then you learn what’s going on in the business by talking
with fellow writers in the hall and bar.

Now
that travel and in person gatherings are extremely limited, how do you
recapture the experience and energizing effects of a writing conference?

Fortunately,
virtual meetings have become the norm. By scheduling carefully, you can
piece together the perfect writing retreat. Just be sure to build in some
breaks so that you don’t exhaust yourself.

On
August 7 through 9, I stayed at a local Airbnb (more on that in tomorrow’s
WWK ) and set up to spend a day virtually with writing buds. I started with
Murder on the Beach’s presentation of John Dufresne’s “How to Write a Story.”
For $35.00, you got the program, plus the bookstore sent you Dufresne’s Storyville without shipping charges. I
found both to be extremely helpful and inspiring. The book is one to read brief
passages from each day to keep the encouragement going.

The following week, I attended Debra H. Goldstein’s excellent program on writing conflict. John and Debra’s events were part of what Murder on the Beach calls Florida Authors Academy Workshops. Future events are listed at this link. It’s a great and very economical series.

Next,
I attended the Triangle Chapter of SinC program to hear Lori Rader-Day talk
about “Turning an Idea into a Novel.” She spoke about her own journey in
writing The Lucky One and shared some
of her experiences in writing her current work in progress, a mystery based on
Agatha Christie housing children refugees during World War II.

Here’s a link to Triangle Sisters Website.

At the end of the
day, I joined the business meeting of Sacramento’s Capitol Crimes Chapter of
SinC. Hearing about how that chapter is regrouping and planning for the future
gave me ideas to suggest for our local chapter. Here’s a way to access the future events planned by Capitol Crimes. It has some great upcoming speakers.

What virtual programs have you been watching during the pandemic?

Short Story Update

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by Paula Gail Benson

The Palmetto Chapter of Sisters in Crime and the Southeast Chapter of Mystery Writers of America were delighted with the response to Mystery in the Midlands. We started off with a terrific panel on short stories featuring John Floyd, Tara Laskowski, and Art Taylor. Among them, those talented writers have been nominated and are recipients of the Agatha, Anthony, Derringer, Edgar, Macavity, and Thriller for their short stories. All of them have been involved with editing anthologies and preparing collections of their own work.

Listeners had many questions for this panel and links were left in the chat line to a number of excellent sources for short story writers.

Clockwise from upper right: Dana Kaye, Moderator, John Floyd, Tara Laskowski, and Art Taylor
The Short Story Panel from Mystery in the Midlands
Photo by Kathryn Prater Bomey, shared by Tara Laskowski

 A number of folks have asked to see a replay of the session. Here’s the link where you can access the entire program from Mystery in the Midlands:

Coming up in August is another great event for short story writers. Agatha winner Gigi Pandian is presenting “The Art and History of Locked Room Mysteries,” on Saturday, August 15 from 1:00 to 3:00 PM Pacific Time for the Sacramento-based Capitol Crimes Chapter of Sisters in Crime. Here’s the link to register:
Gigi Pandian
I hope you’ll be able to access these programs and enjoy!

Mystery in the Midlands ONLINE and FREE!!!! Saturday, July 25, 2020

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by Paula Gail Benson

For the last two years, the Palmetto Chapter of Sisters in Crime and the Southeast Chapter of Mystery Writers of America have sponsored a mid-summer conference for readers and writers in “famously hot” Columbia, S.C. While we had to cancel our in person gathering due to Covid 19, our third venture as an online conference, to be held on Saturday, July 25, 2020, looks to be a charm with a terrifically HOT lineup and a program offered free of charge (thanks to Sisters in Crime and Mystery Writers of America for generous support). Anyone can attend. You don’t have to be a member of Sisters in Crime or Mystery Writers of America to join in the fun!


All you have to do is register at this link, then click through to the Crowdcast link to save your spot.


REGISTER TODAY!!!!
Here’s the link again:



Today, Monday, July 20, 2020, is the last day to register! You don’t want to miss this fabulous program hosted by Dana Kaye with books available through Jill Hendrix’s Fiction Addiction Bookstore in Greenville, S.C.


Here’s the schedule for Mystery in the Midlands, on Saturday, July 25, 2020:

10:00 am to 10:15 am EST   Welcome
Dana
Kaye (moderator), Debra Goldstein (SEMWA), and Paula Gail Benson (Palmetto
Chapter SinC)

10:30 am to 11:15 am EST   Slip into Some Shorts
Dana Kaye (moderator) – John Floyd, Tara Laskowski, and Art Taylor
11:30 am to 12:00 pm EST  Mystery Writers Are Always Hot! Keynote
Charlaine
Harris
12:15 pm to 1:00 pm EST       Spectres
Rather Than Heat Mirages
Dana
Kaye (moderator) – Alexia Gordon, Toni L.P. Kelner, and Gigi Pandian
1:15 pm to 2:00 pm EST      Pages Burning Their Way to the Screen
Dana
Kaye (moderator) – Dana Cameron, Jeffrey Deaver, and Charlaine Harris
2:15 pm to 2:30 pm EST      Everybody in the Pool!

Dana Kaye
(moderator), Debra Goldstein (SEMWA), and Paula Gail Benson (Palmetto Chapter
SinC)

Here’s some information about our fabulous authors:

Charlaine Harris is a true
daughter of the South. She was born in Mississippi and has lived in Tennessee,
South Carolina, Arkansas, and Texas. After years of dabbling with poetry,
plays, and essays, her career as a novelist began when her husband invited her
to write full time. Her first book, Sweet
and Deadly, appeared in 1981. When Charlaine’s career as a mystery writer
began to falter, she decided to write a cross-genre book that would appeal to
fans of mystery, science fiction, romance, and suspense. She could not have
anticipated the huge surge of reader interest in the adventures of a barmaid in
Louisiana, or the fact that Alan Ball would come knocking at her door. Since
then, Charlaine’s novels have been adapted for several other television series,
with two in development now. Charlaine is a voracious reader. She has one
husband, three children, two grandchilden, and two rescue dogs. She leads a
busy life.
John M. Floyd’s short
fiction has appeared in Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine, Ellery Queen
Mystery Magazine, The Strand Magazine, The Saturday Evening Post, and many
other publications. Three of his stories have been selected for the
annual Best American Mystery Stories anthology (the 2015,
2018, and 2020 editions) and another was recently optioned for film. A former
Air Force captain and IBM systems engineer, John is also an Edgar nominee, a four-time
Derringer Award winner, a three-time Pushcart Prize nominee, a recipient of the
Edward D. Hoch Memorial Golden Derringer Award for lifetime achievement, and
the author of eight books. He and his wife Carolyn live in Mississippi.
Tara Laskowski’s debut
novel, One Night Gone, won the 2019 Agatha Award for Best First
Novel and was a finalist for the Mary Higgins Clark, Anthony, Macavity, and
Lefty Awards. It was hailed by Tana French as “a subtly but relentlessly
unsettling novel.” Tara is also the author of two short story
collections, Modern Manners for Your Inner Demons and Bystanders,
which The Guardian named a best book of 2017. She has had
stories published in Alfred Hitchcock and Ellery
Queen’s Mystery Magazines and has won both an Agatha Award and a Thriller
Award for her short fiction. She was a longtime editor of the flash fiction
journal SmokeLong Quarterly. Tara earned a BA in English from
Susquehanna University and an MFA from George Mason University and lives in
Northern Virginia with her husband, writer Art Taylor, and their son, Dashiell.
Art Taylor is
the author of the story collection The Boy Detective & The Summer
of ’74 and Other Tales of Suspense and of the novel in stories On
the Road with Del & Louise, winner of the Agatha Award for Best
First Novel. He won the 2019 Edgar Award for Best Short Story for
“English 398: Fiction Workshop,” originally published in Ellery
Queen’s Mystery Magazine, and he has won three additional Agatha Awards,
an Anthony Award, three Macavity Awards, and three consecutive Derringer Awards
for his short fiction. He is an associate professor of English at George Mason
University.
Virginia native, physician by training, author by passion, Alexia Gordon writes the award-winning
Gethsemane Brown Mysteries, with Book 5, Execution in E, being released March
24, 2020. She is a member of MWA, SinC, ITW, and CWoC; blogs at
Missdemeanors.com and with the Femmes Fatales
(femmesfatales.typepad.com/my_weblog/); and hosts the podcast, The Cozy Corner
with Alexia Gordon. Find her on social media (Facebook: AlexiaGordon.writer,
Twitter: @AlexiaGordon, Instagram: DrLex1995) and visit her website (www.alexiagordon.net) to sign up for her
newsletter.
Toni L.P. Kelner/Leigh
Perry is two authors in one. As Leigh Perry, she
writes the Family Skeleton Mysteries. The sixth, The Skeleton Stuffs a
Stocking, was released in Fall 2019. As Toni L.P. Kelner, she wrote eight novels in the Laura Fleming
mystery series and three “Where Are They Now?” mysteries. Kelner also co-edited seven urban fantasy
anthologies with New Your Times best-seller Charlaine
Harris. Under both names she writes short fiction, including recent
publications in Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine and a forthcoming story in Shattering Glass. Kelner has won the Agatha
Award and an RT BookClub Lifetime Achievement Award and has been nominated
multiple times for the Anthony, the Macavity, and the Derringer.
http://tonilpkelner.com/


Gigi Pandian is a USA Today bestselling and Agatha
Award-winning mystery author, breast cancer survivor, and accidental
almost-vegan. The child of anthropologists from New Mexico and the southern tip
of India, she spent her childhood traveling around the world on their research
trips, and now lives in California with her husband and a gargoyle who watches
over the garden. Gigi writes the
Jaya Jones Treasure Hunt mysteries, Accidental Alchemist mysteries, and
locked-room mystery short stories.
Dana Cameron writes
across many genres, but especially crime and speculative fiction. Her work,
inspired by her career in archaeology, has won multiple Anthony, Agatha, and
Macavity Awards, and has been nominated for the Edgar Award. Dana’s Emma
Fielding archaeology mysteries were optioned by Muse Entertainment; the third
movie, based on More Bitter Than Death,
will premier on the Hallmark Movie & Mystery Channel in January, 2019. When
she’s not traveling or visiting museums, she’s usually yelling at the TV about
historical inaccuracies.
http://www.danacameron.com/


A former journalist, folksinger and attorney, Jeffery Deaver is an international
number-one bestselling author. His novels have appeared on bestseller lists
around the world, including the New York Times, the Times
of London, Italy’s Corriere della Sera, the Sydney
Morning Herald and the Los Angeles Times. His books are
sold in 150 countries and have been translated into over twenty-five languages.
He has sold 50 million books worldwide. The author of over thirty-five novels,
three collections of short stories and a nonfiction law book, and a lyricist of
a country-western album, he’s received or been shortlisted for dozens of
awards around the world. His book A Maiden’s Grave was
made into an HBO movie, his novel The Bone Collector was
a feature release from Universal Pictures, and in 2019, NBC picked up a series
called “Lincoln,” based on his books. Lifetime aired an adaptation of his The Devil’s Teardrop.



We hope that you’ll all join us for Mystery in the Midlands, Saturday, July 25, 2020!




 

Announcing Release of the Heartbreaks and Half-truths Anthology!

/in /by

by Paula Gail Benson

I’m very proud to be among the authors whose stories are
in Heartbreaks and Half-truths, an
anthology selected (from over 100 submissions) and edited by Judy Penz Sheluk,
noted for her novels, for her anthology The
Best Laid Plans (2019), and for recently being elected the new chair of
Crime Writers of Canada Board of Directors. Available on June 18, 2020, Heartbreaks and Half-truths features
tales from different time periods and locations, all considering how half-truths
contribute to heartbreak and often lead to other consequences.

Here’s the description of the anthology found on Amazon,
where it may be pre-ordered as Kindle or Paperback:
“Whether it’s 1950s Hollywood, a scientific experiment,
or a yard sale in suburbia, the twenty-two authors represented in this
collection of mystery and suspense interpret the overarching theme of ‘heartbreaks and half-truths’ in their own inimitable style, where only one
thing is certain: Behind every broken heart lies a half-truth.
“And behind every half-truth lies a secret.”
Following are brief summaries for each story, just to
pique your interest!
KM Rockwood, “Burning Desire”– a jilted
bridegroom gets a 50th birthday party and hopes for cash gifts to
pay off his gambling debts
Peggy Rothschild, “The Devil’s Club” — a woman
being blackmailed by the man who helped her get rid of her abusive husband must
now find a way to be rid of the blackmailer
John M. Floyd, “Blackjack Road” — a man who lost
his family meets a stranger who makes him question his fate
James Blakey, “The Greatest Secret” — a PI
hired to track down a crime boss’ wife’s lover finds it difficult to reveal the lover’s
identity
Edward Lodi, “So Long” — the story, told in a
series of phone messages, reveals the relationship between a woman and a doctor
intent on making her into his greatest experiment
Kate Flora, “Afterlife” — a new widow watches
out her window as a love triangle develops between two lobstermen and a
beautiful woman
Buzz Dixon, “Tongor of the Elephants” — a “lost”
film in a movie archive reveals an actor’s death and more
J.A. Henderson, “The God Complex” — people
plugged into a quantum computer have the opportunity to relive the past, or a facsimile
of it
Christine Eskilson, “For Elizabeth” — unrequited
high school love has higher stakes when the two remain friends later in life
Robb T. White, “See You in Court” — a down on
his luck defense attorney has to prove his client’s innocence after refusing to
be involved in a deal
Rhonda Eikamp, “In the Halls of Mercy” — the
chief psychiatrist becomes another inmate in his ward of patients
Sharon Hart Addy, “Near Warrenton” — a woman
hopes for some monetary support by tracking down a former lover
Tracy Falenwolfe, “Exposure”– a former cop
turned PI is hired to find another suspect in a murder case, but he may have
some secrets closer to home
Paula Gail Benson, “Living One’s Own Truth,” — in 1931, lives change at a boys’ school due to a teacher’s daughter bred
to be a heartbreaker and secrets among the faculty
Susan Daly, “Deep Freeze in Suburbia” — a new
member of parliament has no time to enjoy her success before a secret from her
past comes to light
Chris Wheatley, “The Angel of Maastricht” — a
reporter revisits a case as the convicted murderer completes his sentence
Joseph S. Walker, “Pink Hearts Pierced by
Arrows” — after promising her mother never to let a man make a fool of her, a
woman tries to help her friend with a cheating husband
Blair Keetch, “Deadly Cargo” — a pilot
narrates his strategy for killing his wife, but reality deviates from his plans
Steve Liskow, “Ugly Fat” — two women, both
dumped by their husbands, confer over the yard sale of one ex-husband’s
personal items
Gustavo Bondoni, “Checkmate Charlie” — a
computer gaming system helps a wife to get rid of her husband
James Lincoln Warren, “The Short Answer” — two
1950s Hollywood PIs are mixed up with blackmail and murder

Judy Penz Sheluk, “Goulaigans” — a man returns an
empty canoe to the trading post owner, who stole the man’s wife

Judy Penz Sheluk

Whether you’re sheltering in place or taking a
vacation, this volume is the perfect summer reading companion. Just pick up a
copy, relax, and enjoy it with your favorite beverage!