I'm a member of the Short Mystery Fiction Society, an informal association of writers, publishers, and fans that has kept mystery & crime short stories in the public eye since 1996. On April 4, the Society announced the finalists for its 2019 Derringer Awards. A vote of the membership will determine the winners, to be announced in May.
In the meantime, I'm inviting the finalists for interviews. If you'd like to participate, email me your answers to the same following questions.
Janet Raye Stevens is a finalist for Best Long Story (ranges 4,001–8,000 words) with "The Vanishing Volume" originally published in Darkhouse Books' September 2018 library-themed anthology Shhhh...Murder!
Describe your story in up to 20 words.
January 1943: A ruffian pilfering books from the collection bin for the troops? Not if librarian Emily Applegate can help it!
What were the most difficult and most enjoyable parts of writing the story?
The difficult part of writing any story for me is getting the mystery to work the way I want it to. Sometimes clues and suspects stick their noses in where they’re not wanted. But oh, how I enjoyed creating Miss Applegate, a spinster librarian with a lot of sass and WWII-era We Can Do It! spirit.
Do you have a juicy story about how your story came to be published?
Nothing unusual about "The Vanishing Volume"’s road to publication. I saw the call for submissions for an anthology of library-themed stories to be published by Darkhouse Books and I decided to take a chance. I suppose the juicy part is my lovely editor, Andrew MacCrae, decided to take a chance too and selected my story for inclusion.
How does it feel to be a Derringer finalist?
Jeepers, it feels swell! Sorry, slipped into 1943 vernacular for a moment, but I guess it’s apt, given the era in which my story’s set. And it does feel swell. Also surprising, surreal, stupendous, and a whole lot of other adjectives beginning with S. This is my first nomination for a published piece of writing and I’m walking on air.
In the meantime, I'm inviting the finalists for interviews. If you'd like to participate, email me your answers to the same following questions.
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| Janet Raye Stevens |
Describe your story in up to 20 words.
January 1943: A ruffian pilfering books from the collection bin for the troops? Not if librarian Emily Applegate can help it!
What were the most difficult and most enjoyable parts of writing the story?
The difficult part of writing any story for me is getting the mystery to work the way I want it to. Sometimes clues and suspects stick their noses in where they’re not wanted. But oh, how I enjoyed creating Miss Applegate, a spinster librarian with a lot of sass and WWII-era We Can Do It! spirit.
Do you have a juicy story about how your story came to be published?
Nothing unusual about "The Vanishing Volume"’s road to publication. I saw the call for submissions for an anthology of library-themed stories to be published by Darkhouse Books and I decided to take a chance. I suppose the juicy part is my lovely editor, Andrew MacCrae, decided to take a chance too and selected my story for inclusion.
How does it feel to be a Derringer finalist?
Jeepers, it feels swell! Sorry, slipped into 1943 vernacular for a moment, but I guess it’s apt, given the era in which my story’s set. And it does feel swell. Also surprising, surreal, stupendous, and a whole lot of other adjectives beginning with S. This is my first nomination for a published piece of writing and I’m walking on air.
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