Mystery Melange

 

The finalists for the Left Coast Crime “Lefty” Awards were announced this week. The fan awards, chosen by registered members of the Left Coast Crime convention, include the Lefty for Best Humorous Mystery Novel, Lefty for Best Historical Mystery Novel, Lefty for Best Mystery Novel, and the Lefty for Best Debut Mystery Novel. For all the nominees in the various categories, check out this list from the Left Coast Crime conference's official website.

John le Carré has been named the latest recipient of the $100,000 (£76,000) Olof Palme prize, an award given for an “outstanding achievement” in the spirit of the assassinated Swedish prime minister. In announcing Le Carré’s win, the prize organizers praised the 88-year-old author (whose real name is David Cornwell), “for his engaging and humanistic opinion-making in literary form regarding the freedom of the individual and the fundamental issues of mankind,” calling his career “an extraordinary contribution to the necessary fight for freedom, democracy and social justice.” Le Carré said he would donate the winnings to the international humanitarian NGO Médecins Sans Frontières.

The National Book Award finalists were announced and include The Nickel Boys by Colson Whitehead, based on the horrific events that transpired at the real-life Dozier School for Boys, in the Best Fiction category. The Best Nonfiction category nods include Say Nothing: A True Story of Murder and Memory in Northern Ireland by Patrick Radden Keefe and No Visible Bruises: What We Don’t Know About Domestic Violence Can Kill Us by Rachel Louise Snyder.

Coming up this weekend, Baltimore will celebrate the 211th birthday of the inventor of the detective novel and an early master of the horror genre, Edgar Allan Poe. Festivities include the free PoeZella Birthday Bash with food and a display of Poe-themed photographs (courtesy of the Baltimore Camera Club); a free Edgar Allan Poe House Literary Landmark Dedication; and the Edgar Allan Poe Birthday Celebration at Poe’s final resting place, Westminster Hall and Burying Ground, with the Poe Project’s “Poe-pourri!” staged adaptations of three of Poe’s works: “The Coliseum,” “Eldorado” and “The Raven.”

The Virginia Festival of the Book announced its full schedule this week including the annual Crime Wave. In addition to previously announced author Ian Rankin to be featured at the Crime Wave Brunch, mystery author Cara Black (Murder in Bel-Air) will be on hand, along with fellow crime writers Deborah Crombie (A Bitter Feast), Joe Ide (Hi Five) and many more. Check out the full schedule on March 20-21 here.

Ian Rankin is going to one busy fellow this year, as it was also announced he'll serve as the programming chair for Theakston Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival July 23-26 at Harrogate’s Old Swan Hotel, the venue synonymous with the 1926 disappearance of crime writing icon, Agatha Christie. Festival manager Helen Donkin noted that "the Programme Chair, which changes each year, is responsible for the various themes the discussion panels debate, as well as which authors sit on them. And by having a different chair each year this helps keep the festival fresh and exciting."

Capital Crime has launched a digital festival to showcase crime and thriller writers and offer readers can't attend the physical event an opportunity to connect with authors. The digital festival comes just three months after the success of the inaugural event in London, with Ian Rankin scooping two awards at the Amazon Publishing Readers’ Awards. Capital Crime co-founder Adam Hamdy said: "The Capital Crime Digital Festival is packed with fascinating video content. It features authors talking about themselves and their work, writing tips and book recommendations." The digital festival will features sessions with Mark Edwards, Claire McGowan, and Winnie M Li. Available is free to view worldwide.

The Debut Dagger deadline is fast approaching. The Crime Writers Association's Debut Dagger competition is open to anyone who has not had a full-length novel published by a traditional publisher and who, at the time of the competition closing on the last day of February, has not got a contract with a publisher or literary agent. Submissions are judged by a panel of top crime editors and agents, and the shortlisted entries are presented to publishers and agents. Entries should include the opening of a crime novel not exceeding 3,000 words and a synopsis of up to 1,500 words.

As I previously reported, after a seven-year hiatus, the All Due Respect zine is back with plans to release one story each month that will also be published in an anthology later this year. The vision remains the same as always: crime fiction from the perspective of the criminal. The very first story of the year is "Mad Dog" by Stephen D. Rogers, who's been a fixture in the short mystery fiction community for years, publishing more than 800 stories and the collection, Shot to Death.

The famous muscle car that Steve McQueen drove in the classic 1968 mob movie, Bullitt, gave birth to the modern-day car chase scene, but the 1968 Mustang GT also became a legend for another reason - it disappeared from the public for decades. Now, it's resurfaced in Kissimmee, Florida, where the rusted, dented highland-green car just sold for $3.4 million at auction.

This week's crime poem at the 5-2 is "I Died a Thousand Times: Death #556" by Richie Narvaez.

In the Q&A roundup, Jacqueline Seewald interviewed mystery author Jan Christensen about the latest in her Paula, PI series; over at the Do Some Damage blog, David Nemeth chatted with Matt Phillips about his new novel, You Must Have a Death Wish; Crime Fiction Lover quizzed Dreda Say Mitchell, a CWA New Blood Dagger award winner in 2005, about her latest psychological thriller, Trap Door; Jo Nesbø, author of the Harry Hole detective series, spoke with The Guardian about Tom Jones, the "Nordic noir" label, violence against women in fiction, and his soft spot for a crime cliché; and Peter May discussed Scottish crime fiction with the Press and Journal, offering up appreciation for William McIlvanney's influence in spurring an interest in crime writing in that country.