Category Archives: Setting

“The Storied South” (by Brenda Witchger, aka Brynn Bonner)

Posted on June 5, 2013 by somethingisgoingtohappen

Brenda Witchger debuted in EQMM’s Department of First Stories in 1998 (under the pseudonym Brynn Bonner) with the story “Clarity,” a tale that went on to win that year’s Robert L. Fish Award for best short story by a new … Continue reading →

Posted in Characters, Fiction, Genre, Guest, Setting | Tagged characters, eqmm, fiction, genre, history, literature, locale, southern, storytelling, style, tone, voice | Leave a comment

“Writing to the Edge” (by Sandi Ault)

Posted on May 22, 2013 by somethingisgoingtohappen

Adventure is a mystery-crossover category that we haven’t discussed much yet on this blog, but we’re correcting that today. Sandi Ault’s series of novels featuring Jamaica Wild, a Bureau of Land Management agent, are chock full of adventure, as EQMM … Continue reading →

Posted in Adventure, Characters, Fiction, Genre, Guest, Setting, Writers | Tagged adventure, animals, characters, inspiration, landscapes, novel, research, setting, shortstory, suspense, technique, wild, wildlife | 21 Comments

“On Location in Paradise” (by Hayford Peirce)

Posted on April 24, 2013 by somethingisgoingtohappen

EQMM’s August issue, which mails to print subscribers a few weeks from now, contains a story set in French Polynesia—often said to be the most beautiful region in the world. Entitled “The Lethal Leeteg,” the story forms part of a … Continue reading →

Posted in Characters, Fiction, Guest, Historicals, History, Police Procedurals, Setting, Writers | Tagged elleryqueen, eqmm, exotic, fiction, hardboiled, short story, suspense, tahiti, technique, thriller | Leave a comment

“For Love of Gothic: When Home is the Most Mysterious Place of All” (by Laura Benedict)

Posted on April 3, 2013 by somethingisgoingtohappen

Laura Benedict’s first fiction publication was in EQMM in May of 2001. Since then, she has become a successful novelist with two dark suspense novels (Isabella Moon and Calling Mr. Lonely Hearts) to her credit, and, most recently, a modern … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Characters, Fiction, Gothic, Guest, Historicals, Setting, Supernatural, Thrillers | Tagged classic_mystery, fiction, foreign language, genre, gothic, historicals, literature, mystery, novel | 9 Comments

“History Mystery” (by Amy Myers)

Posted on March 27, 2013 by somethingisgoingtohappen

Ellery Queen thought the historical mystery the hardest of all to write. But he must have been drawn to the form, because he produced some of our genre’s most memorable stories involving history, such as “The President’s Half Disme,” and … Continue reading →

Posted in Characters, Fiction, Guest, Historicals, History, Setting, Writers | Tagged elleryqueenmm, eqmm, fiction, historical fiction, historicals, history, literature, setting, short story, writing_technique | Leave a comment

“Truth or Point of View?” (by V.S. Kemanis)

Posted on March 20, 2013 by somethingisgoingtohappen

I read a lot of unsolicited manuscripts and it sometimes seems to me as if everyone who ever earned a law degree at some point tries to write a mystery. The reasons are obvious: The law is meant to serve … Continue reading →

Posted in Characters, Courtroom Mysteries, Fiction, Guest, Setting | Tagged courtroom mystery, judges, jury, lawyers, literature, mystery, setting, themes, trial, writers | 3 Comments

“Murder, He Giggled” (by Jack Fredrickson)

Posted on February 27, 2013 by somethingisgoingtohappen

Jack Fredrickson, whose fiction-writing career began in EQMM’s Department of First Stories in 2002, has gone on to write a series of award-nominated novels featuring Chicago P.I. Dek Elstrom. He has a distinctive style, creating noir ambiance with wry prose. … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Characters, Editing, Fiction, Guest, Noir, Setting, Writers | Tagged humor, men of mystery, mystery, noir, novel, publishing, short stories, short story, tone, writers, writing_technique | Leave a comment

“The Bridal Gown Theory of Creativity” (by Doug Allyn)

Posted on February 20, 2013 by somethingisgoingtohappen

Several writers have told EQMM that they prefer writing short stories to novels because ideas come to them easily. The late Edward D. Hoch, for example, became impatient with the few novels he wrote because other story ideas had to … Continue reading →

Posted in Characters, Fiction, Guest, Setting, Writers | Tagged influences, literature, novel, short story, story ideas, writers, writing, writing_technique | 5 Comments

HOLIDAY SHORTS

Posted on December 19, 2012 by somethingisgoingtohappen

With Christmas less than a week away, I decided to repeat the search for new anthologies of Christmas mysteries I made two years ago and update my post about it from the http://www.themysteryplace.com forum. In 2010, the only new holiday … Continue reading →

Posted in Anthologies, Bookshops, Fiction, Setting | Tagged anthology, cozy, eqmm, holidays, mystery, noir, themed, whodunit | 1 Comment

“Something Is Going To Happen” (by Cheryl Rogers)

Posted on December 12, 2012 by somethingisgoingtohappen

In her post for us this week, Australian Cheryl Rogers describes herself as a new writer. That may be true in terms of the length of time she’s been at it, but she is already a well-recognized writer of short … Continue reading →

Posted in Characters, Editing, Fiction, Setting, Writers | Tagged elleryqueenmm, eqmm, literature, setting, short story, writers, writing_technique | 2 Comments