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.
Peter DiChellis is a finalist for two Derringers this year. His Winter 2018 Flash Bang Mysteries story "Listen Up" is up for Best Flash Story (ranging up to 1,000 words), and his Malice Domestic 13: Murder Most Geographical story "The Belle Hope" is up for Best Short Story (ranges from 1,001 to 4,000 words). This post will include his answers for both stories as they come in.
Describe your story in up to 20 words.
"The Belle Hope": A private eye tracks down two undersea treasure hunters who’d disappeared while seeking a fortune in long-lost gold coins.
“Listen Up”: Two detectives must decipher wacky clues to solve a liquor store robbery. Humor abounds.
What were the most difficult and most enjoyable parts of writing the story?
"The Belle Hope": I became interested in undersea treasure hunting after reading some non-fiction articles and books on the topic. So it was fun to turn that interest into a mystery story. But the story also required some additional fact checking—the geography of specific coastal areas where salvageable shipwrecks have occurred, the effects of seawater on different kinds of sunken treasure, the history and current value of specific types of gold coins, and so forth. It was challenging to find an entertaining way to convey only the parts of this info I thought would engage readers in the story.
“Listen Up”: I find writing short whodinit and howdunit mysteries difficult and enjoyable because it requires planting clues readers can catch only in hindsight. I read once that a satisfying mystery solution must be, at the same time, both surprising and inevitable. A tough but fun combination.
Do you have a (juicy) story about how your story came to be published?
"The Belle Hope": Only that I jumped up and down cheering when I received the acceptance notice.
“Listen Up”: This was my third story published in Flash Bang Mysteries, so when I received the acceptance notice I attempted a triple-somersault. It didn’t go well. Not even close.
How does it feel to be a Derringer finalist?
It rocks. I feel lucky to find myself alongside such a talented group.
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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| Peter DiChellis |
Describe your story in up to 20 words.
"The Belle Hope": A private eye tracks down two undersea treasure hunters who’d disappeared while seeking a fortune in long-lost gold coins.
“Listen Up”: Two detectives must decipher wacky clues to solve a liquor store robbery. Humor abounds.
What were the most difficult and most enjoyable parts of writing the story?
"The Belle Hope": I became interested in undersea treasure hunting after reading some non-fiction articles and books on the topic. So it was fun to turn that interest into a mystery story. But the story also required some additional fact checking—the geography of specific coastal areas where salvageable shipwrecks have occurred, the effects of seawater on different kinds of sunken treasure, the history and current value of specific types of gold coins, and so forth. It was challenging to find an entertaining way to convey only the parts of this info I thought would engage readers in the story.
“Listen Up”: I find writing short whodinit and howdunit mysteries difficult and enjoyable because it requires planting clues readers can catch only in hindsight. I read once that a satisfying mystery solution must be, at the same time, both surprising and inevitable. A tough but fun combination.
Do you have a (juicy) story about how your story came to be published?
"The Belle Hope": Only that I jumped up and down cheering when I received the acceptance notice.
“Listen Up”: This was my third story published in Flash Bang Mysteries, so when I received the acceptance notice I attempted a triple-somersault. It didn’t go well. Not even close.
How does it feel to be a Derringer finalist?
It rocks. I feel lucky to find myself alongside such a talented group.
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