Mystery Melange

 

Walter Mosley has been named winner of the 2020 Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters from the National Book Foundation. He becomes the first Black man to win the foundation’s $10,000 lifetime achievement honor, which was first awarded in 1988. The author of more than 60 books, Mosley is best known for his mysteries featuring detective Easy Rawlins.

The Book Industry Charitable Foundation is mobilizing to help bookstore owners and staff affected by the wildfires in the western U.S. The foundation may be able to help owners or employees with personal household expenses related to the wildfires, assist with expenses directly related to the store in certain cases, and provide some expenses to help the store reopen more quickly after the threat passes. More information is available on Binc's assistance page.

Kings River Life profiled the Crime Writers of Color, a new organization of authors who support each other’s works and efforts. Author Elizabeth Wilkerson noted, "We’re a lively group with wide-ranging backgrounds and opinions, yet we share a passion: creating worlds that reflect our experiences and vision as observed through our own lens. I invite you to check out these upcoming books by CWOC authors. Ranging from cozy to cyber-thriller, the stories present a diverse and colorful universe."

Update on Uncle Hugo's Science Fiction Bookstore and Uncle Edgar's Mystery Bookstore in Minneapolis, which burned to the ground after the protests this summer following the murder of George Floyd by city police: Owner Don Blyly reported that after weeks of delays involving inexplicable water bills that had to be paid before a demolition permit for the site could be issued, a contractor will begin removing debris within a few days. Blyly has hired an architect and general contractor as well, and while he is still planning to rebuild in the same location, he has looked at a few other commercial properties for sale in Minneapolis and surrounding locations. Meanwhile, the store's GoFundMe campaign remains open, and Blyly adds that he's "eager to once again be a resource for new science fiction and fantasy titles as well as used science fiction, fantasy and mystery books." (HT to Shelf Awareness)

British crime author Ann Cleeves is financing the work of two bibliotherapists in northeast England who will connect people with books to help them with their mental health or chronic pain. The therapy service will be set up in five townships, including her own Northumberland, through the U.K.'s National Healthcare Service and the country's social prescribing system, which connects people to alternative treatment programs. General practitioners, nurses and other primary care professionals will be able to refer people to bibliotherapy if they are struggling with chronic pain, anxiety, stress, depression or loneliness

Publishers and authors are having to get a bit creative in the time of cholera the pandemic since book tours, signings, and in-person conferences are out. For instance, Pan Macmillan held a one-off virtual festival celebrating the publication of his Ken Follett's new Kingsbridge novel, The Evening and the Morning, for fans, bookshops and libraries around the world. The Kingsbridge Festival had Q&As, quizzes, partnerships with the Reading Museum and a virtual peek inside the Jorvik Viking Centre to immerse fans in the history of the book—including a virtual tour of the Bayeux Tapestry and a demonstration on Viking Weaponry. There were even downloadable “celebrate from home” packs.

Janet Rudolph, editor of Mystery Readers Journal, has put out a call for "Mysteries set in Ireland." She's looking for reviews (50-250 words); articles (250-1,000 words); and Author! Author! essays (500-1,000 words). Author essays are first person, about yourself, your books, and your unique take on "Ireland' in your work. For more information, head on over to Rudolph's Mystery Fanfare blog.

The winners of the annual Bulwer Lytton contest, (where www means "wretched writers welcome"), were announced, including the Crime & Detective winner submitted by Yale Abrams: "When she walked into my office on that bleak December day, she was like a breath of fresh air in a coal mine; she made my canary sing." For all the other yowlers, including another private eye bit that won the Grand Panjandrum's Special Award, check out this link.

Jenny Milchman, the Mary Higgins Clark award winning author of five psychological thrillers, applied the Page 69 Test to her novel, The Second Mother.

The latest crime poem at the 5-2 Weekly is "Enter the Dove" by Matthias Regan.

In the Q&A roundup, the Mystery People spoke with Joe R. Lansdale about his latest novel, More Better Deals, which takes a few cues from one of his influences—James M. Cain; and Writer Interviews chatted with Ellen Byron, author of Murder in the Bayou Boneyard: A Cajun Country Mystery, about coming up with titles for books and more.