Art Taylor's Blog, page 42

Interview at Madam Mayo

Thanks to C.M. Mayo for interviewing me at her blog Madam Mayo—and for the too-generous introduction to me and my work!

C.M. Mayo is a great novelist, poet, essayist, and more—and a great supporter of so many of us in the D.C. area and beyond.

Hope you enjoy our chat here!

Facebook Event, Monday, May 25: The Beat of Black Wings

On Monday, May 25, Joanna Campbell Slan hosts contributors to The Beat of Black Wings: Crime Fiction Inspired by the Songs of Joni Mitchell at the Facebook group Joanna’s Readers. The event runs 7-10 p.m. EDT.

Josh Pachter, the anthology’s editor, will be helping to host, and participating authors include (in tentative order of appearance): Edith Maxwell, Stacy Woodson, Elaine Viets, John Floyd, Abby Bardi, David Dean, Alan Orloff, Tara Laskowski and Art Taylor (we’re slated to be in the spotlight 9-9:15 p.m.!), Brendan DuBois, Amber Sparks, and Donna Andrews.

“See” you there!

The First Two Pages: “Limited Liability” by Sarah Weinman

In April 2015, B.K. Stevens debuted the blog series “The First Two Pages,” hosting craft essays by short story writers and novelists analyzing the openings of their own work. The series continued until just after her death in August 2017, and the full archive of those essays can be found at Bonnie’s website. In November 2017, the blog series relocated to my website, and the archive of this second stage of the series can be found here.

I can no longer remember when I first met Sarah Weinman—at some Bouchercon most likely—but I’d long been following her work and have continued not only to follow her career but to be a devoted fan of her work, both her nonfiction and her fiction. In fact, I’ve regularly taught one of the collections she edited in my “Women of Mystery” course at George Mason University: Troubled Daughters, Twisted Wives: Stories from the Trailblazers of Domestic Suspense offers not only a terrific selection of stories but also an insightful introduction—both scholarly and entertaining—and Sarah graciously Skyped into class the first time I taught the collection, a highlight of that semester.

That book was just the first of Sarah’s successes. She also edited Library of America’s two-volume collection Women Crime Writers: Eight Suspense Novels of the 1940s and 1950s. She wrote The Real Lolita, which examines the true crime that may have inspired Vladimir Nabokov’s masterpiece and which was named a Best Book of 2018 by NPR, BuzzFeed, The National Post, Literary Hub, the San Francisco Chronicle, and Vulture in addition to winning the Arthur Ellis Award for Excellence in Crime Writing and the Macavity Award for nonfiction. And her latest book is coming out in July: Unspeakable Acts: True Tales of Crime, Murder, Deceit, and Obsession, an anthology that Booklist has already declared as “Essential reading for all true crime fans.”

In addition to her work in nonfiction—and I haven’t even mentioned the many (many, many!) articles and essays she’s written, including this recent piece on mystery audiobooks in the New York Times—Sarah is also a fine fiction writer, whose work has appeared in many anthologies and in both Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine and Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine.

Today at the First Two Pages, Sarah talks about “Limited Liability” from the current issue of AHMM. I hope you’ll enjoy this glimpse at the story and check out the new issue to read it in full. You can also find out more about Sarah and her work at her website and be sure to follow her on Twitter too.

Please use the arrows and controls at the bottom of the embedded PDF to navigate through the essay. You can also download the essay to read off-line.

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Jeez Louise!

I’ve found myself subscribed (likely through contests I’ve entered) to a couple of emails on cocktails and bartending, and a couple of recent emails from Liquor.com have spotlighted the Jeez Louise, a cocktail created by Chris McMillian at the Revel Cafe & Bar in New Orleans.

The first time it popped up in my inbox, I thought, “Cool picture, sounds great,” but we were out of Cynar, so… another time, right?

The second time it popped up, I thought, “Wait… Louise! I know a Louise!”

(I’m very slow on making these connections myself….)

One trip to the ABC store later (mask in place), I had my Cynar, plus a fun idea for a picture for Instagram—and now for here.

“Careful, Daddy! Make sure there are no cars coming! They’d destroy your book!”

All worked out well, of course. Hope you enjoy!

Bouchercon Anthology Stories Selected!

It was both an honor and a joy to select the final stories for this year’s Bouchercon anthology California Schemin’—a baker’s dozen of great tales from the 44 semi-finalists, out of more than 150 blind submissions overall!

Below is the official release from Bouchercon—and it was such fun to see several writers I know and admire revealed after I selected the stories. Congratulations to all! (And now on to the editing itself….. Stay tuned, authors!)

Bouchercon 2020 celebrates thirteen short story authors whose work was selected for inclusion in this year’s conference anthology, California Schemin’.

These stories will be published alongside short fiction by this year’s Bouchercon Guests of Honor—Scott Turow, Walter Mosley, Anne Perry, Cara Black, Catriona McPherson, and Anthony Horowitz.More than 150 authors submitted stories.

In a two-step blind judging process, first-round readers passed along 44 stories to guest editor Art Taylor for final consideration. Thirteen stories were selected, and we’re glad to reveal their authors here:

Jennifer Berg, “Schemes in the Dark”David Boop, “Call Before You Die”Chris Dreith, “Old Soles”Dixon Hill, “No Postman, No Doorbell”Kim Keeline, “California Fold’em”Ellen Clair Lamb, “The Assistant”Richard Koreto, “The Hollywood Gangster”Joyce Krieg, “Last Call at the Zanzibar”Eileen Rendahl, “A Spoonful of Poison”Christopher Ryan, “Hellhounds Hollywood Demons”Linda Townsdin, “Re-entry”Gabriel Valjan, “Elysian Fields”Carrie Voorhis, “The Fandancer’s First Murder”

“I loved the range I saw in all the semi-finalists I read, and especially in these final stories,” said guest editor Art Taylor. “The stories here span a wide range: from hard-boiled and noir, each historically associated with California crime fiction, to Hollywood hijinks to suburban domestic suspense. And the tones range too: from the deadly serious to the delightfully and determinedly irreverent. In short, there’s hopefully a little something for all readers in the mix here.”

Although in-person Bouchercon 2020 in Sacramento, CA has been cancelled, organizers are looking at ways to present some events in a virtual format.The anthology will be published by Wildside Press in October 2020 and will be on sale through major online booksellers.

The First Two Pages: Mortmain Hall by Martin Edwards

In April 2015, B.K. Stevens debuted the blog series “The First Two Pages,” hosting craft essays by short story writers and novelists analyzing the openings of their own work. The series continued until just after her death in August 2017, and the full archive of those essays can be found at Bonnie’s website. In November 2017, the blog series relocated to my website, and the archive of this second stage of the series can be found here.

In February of this year, the Crime Writers’ Association (CWA) announced that Martin Edwards had won the Diamond Dagger—the highest honor in British crime writing, conferred to writers whose careers are marked by “sustained excellence” and who “have made a significant contribution to crime writing.” Not only has Martin made such excellent contributions, but he’s done so in several different ways—as a novelist, as a short story writer, and as a scholar too—and this honor is the latest in a series that includes several CWA awards (the Dagger in the Library, the Margery Allingham Award, the Short Story Dagger), the H.R.F. Keating Award, an Edgar Award, an Agatha Award, two Macavity Awards, and the Poirot Award. He’s also served as both president and archivist for the Detection Club.

Last year, Martin kicked off a new series set in 1930s England with Gallows Court, and the follow-up, Mortmain Hall, was published in England in early April and will appear in a U.S. edition in September. (I ordered my copy of the new book through Book Depository and received it the day before it’s official publication—a simply beautiful edition. The U.S. edition, by Poisoned Pen Press, is also available for pre-order now as well.)

The opening page of Mortmain Hall is quick to catch readers’ attention—since it starts with the book’s epilogue, last things first! But as Martin reveals in his thoughtful and extensive essay here (combining his skills as both craftsman and historian), there’s some tradition of starting with epilogues and many reasons in his case for doing so, even if that wasn’t his original plan.

Like so many other writers, Martin found all of his book events cancelled amidst the continually unfolding pandemic crisis. I’m glad to host him here today and help spread the word about his terrifically entertaining new novel, and I’m grateful to him—ever the perfectionist—for submitting such a comprehensive and enlightening discussion of his craft choices. I learned a ton from reading his essay, and I’m sure my fellow readers and writers will too.

Find out more about Martin Edwards and his work at his website and do follow as well, always enjoyable and informative.

Please use the arrows and controls at the bottom of the embedded PDF to navigate through the essay. You can also download the essay to read off-line.

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Blogs In Several Directions!

This has been a busy week for me in the blogosphere—with two terrific blots hosting guest posts that I wrote and a third reviewing an anthology my wife, Tara Laskowski, and I contributed to, with a shout-out to our story!

Thanks first to Kristopher Zgorski at BOLO Books for his review of The Beat of Black Wings: Crime Fiction Inspired by the Songs of Joni Mitchell. Here’s an excerpt from the review about our story “Both Sides Now”:

Both Art Taylor and Tara Laskowski are multi-award-winning crime fiction authors, so the first-ever short story collaboration for this husband and wife duo is a hot commodity…and “Both Sides Now” is a perfect source of inspiration. Here, Tara and Art document a marriage in crisis. In alternating communication between a husband in prison for embezzlement and his wife holding down the fort on the outside, this epistolary story slowly reveals how surface image can often obscure the true reality hidden within. In a unusual twist, this writing couple leaves it up to the reader to puzzle out the truth behind the tale.

On the same day Kris’s review appeared, Deborah Lacy at Mystery Playground hosted me for the Drinks With Reads series, pairing a Violet Hour with my new collection The Boy Detective & The Summer of ’74 and Other Tales of Suspense—and I track down a couple of mentions on that phrase “violet hour” as well, including a mention in a famous scene in the James Bond novels (one about a different cocktail). Check it out—and mix a Violet Hour for yourself one evening!

Finally, Lesa Holstine at Lesa’s Book Critiques, graciously invited me to contribute a guest blog on any subject of my choosing—so I wrote about the specific challenges of writing about a place you’ve lived or a time you’ve lived through and how research can help jog memories or broaden perspectives. You can read that here.

Thanks to all three for the shout-outs and opportunities this week!

Saturday, May 9: “Absence of Malice”

Thanks to Jeff Cohen, Catriona McPherson, and Erin Mitchell for setting up what promises to be a fun virtual author extravaganza on Saturday, May 9—and for including me on the line-up too!

The program—”Absence of Malice”—takes place at Crowdcast beginning at 4 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time (adjust for your own time zone, of course).

Participating authors include the trio above, plus:

Cathy AceFrankie Y. BaileyEllen ByronKellye GarrettLee GoldbergAlexia GordonDru Ann LoveJeffrey MarksEdith M. MaxwellLori Rader-DayHank Phillippi RyanJulia Spencer-FlemingElaine VietsKristopher Zgorski

We’ll be telling stories about one another (yikes!) in addition to talking about our biggest breaks and our latest publications—with likely some more shenanigans as well.

Register here to save your place!

The First Two Pages: “Cold Blue Steel and Sweet Fire” by Donna Andrews

In April 2015, B.K. Stevens debuted the blog series “The First Two Pages,” hosting craft essays by short story writers and novelists analyzing the openings of their own work. The series continued until just after her death in August 2017, and the full archive of those essays can be found at Bonnie’s website. In November 2017, the blog series relocated to my website, and the archive of this second stage of the series can be found here.

Today’s essay completes a short series featuring contributors to the anthology The Beat of Black Wings: Crime Fiction Inspired by the Songs of Joni Mitchell. In previous weeks, four contributors have reflected on three stories from the collection: Greg Herren on “The Silky Veils of Ardor,” Abby Bardi on “Help Me,” and Emily Hockaday and Jackie Sherbow on their first-ever collaboration, “Talk to Me.” It’s a special privilege today to welcome a great writer and great friend to help wrap things up: Donna Andrews, writing on her story “Cold Blue Steel and Sweet Fire.”

Not only is Donna a longtime friend, but she and I have also been part of a writing group for around 10 years now—hard to believe! In fact, our writing group read the first draft of “Cold Blue Steel and Sweet Fire” in workshop one evening, and Donna prefaced that reading with an explanation similar to the one she gives in the essay below: This is not your normal Donna Andrews story. Fans of Donna’s award-winning Meg Langslow novels who come to “Cold Blue Steel and Sweet Fire” expecting the warmth and humor of that series will quickly find themselves in new territory, but as our group affirmed in workshop, Donna navigates that darker terrain with great skill and her same sure-footed storytelling. And we weren’t alone in that assessment: Just after the release of the The Beat of Black Wings, Robert Lopreti at Little Big Crimes chose this “classy” tale as his story of the week.

In addition to the contributors featured at the First Two Pages, The Beat of Black Wings, edited by Josh Pachter, includes stories by Michael Bracken, Carol Anne Davis, David Dean, Brendan DuBois, John Floyd, Barb Goffman, Sherry Harris, Matthew Iden, Edith Maxwell, Alison McMahan, Adam Meyer, Kathryn O’Sullivan, Alan Orloff, Josh Pachter, Christine Poulson, Mindy Quigley, Amber Sparks, Ricki Thomas, Marilyn Todd, Elaine Viets, and Stacy Woodson—and my wife Tara Laskowski and I also contributed a collaborative story, our first together.

Please use the arrows and controls at the bottom of the embedded PDF to navigate through the essay. You can also download the essay to read off-line.

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The First Two Pages: “Talk to Me” by Emily Hockaday and Jackie Sherbow

In April 2015, B.K. Stevens debuted the blog series “The First Two Pages,” hosting craft essays by short story writers and novelists analyzing the openings of their own work. The series continued until just after her death in August 2017, and the full archive of those essays can be found at Bonnie’s website. In November 2017, the blog series relocated to my website, and the archive of this second stage of the series can be found here.

“Talk to Me” in the anthology The Beat of Black Wings: Crime Fiction Inspired by the Songs of Joni Mitchell marks the first short fiction collaboration by Emily Hockaday and Jackie Sherbow, though the two have worked together in a couple of other capacities before. Both women are managing editors for Dell Magazines—Emily for Analog Science Fiction and Fact and Asimov’s Science Fiction and Jackie for Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine and Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine—and together they co-edited the anthology Terror at the Crossroads. But while the emphasis in each case there is on editing duties, both of them are writers as well—poets, in fact. Emily is the author of five chapbooks: Space on Earth, Ophelia: A Botanist’s Guide, What We Love & Will Not Give Up, and Starting a Life, as well as the forthcoming Beach Vocabulary. Jackie is the author of the chapbook Harbinger. So “Talk to Me” takes them into fresh territory not only in terms of collaboration but from poetry to fiction too.

In addition to Emily and Jackie’s story, The Beat of Black Wings, edited by Josh Pachter, features stories by a great line-up of writers, including Donna Andrews, Abby Bardi, Michael Bracken, Carol Anne Davis, David Dean, Brendan DuBois, John Floyd, Barb Goffman, Sherry Harris, Greg Herren, Matthew Iden, Edith Maxwell, Alison McMahan, Adam Meyer, Kathryn O’Sullivan, Alan Orloff, Josh Pachter, Christine Poulson, Mindy Quigley, Amber Sparks, Ricki Thomas, Marilyn Todd, Elaine Viets, and Stacy Woodson—and one other collaboration as well, with my wife, Tara Laskowski, and I working together on a story for the first time too.

Over the past two weeks, the First Two Pages has featured essays by Greg Herren on his story “The Silky Veils of Ardor” and by Abby Bardi on “Help Me,” and one final contributor will be discussing her story next week. In the meantime, enjoy Emily and Jackie’s essay below on “Talk to Me.”

Please use the arrows and controls at the bottom of the embedded PDF to navigate through the essay. You can also download the essay to read off-line.

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