Category Archives: Suspense

“Mystery/Suspense and the Beauty of Brevity” (by Trey Dowell)

Posted on August 18, 2021 by somethingisgoingtohappen

Yesterday, EQMM’s 80th Anniversary Issue (September/October 2021) went on sale. In it you’ll find Trey Dowell’s flash-fiction thriller “The Problem With Fish Markets.” (And yes, it’s possible to write a genuine international-intrigue thriller in one thousand words—though I might not have … Continue reading →

Posted in Fiction, Genre, Guest, Noir, Readers, Story, Suspense, Writers, Writing | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

“The Moment Expectations Change” (by Zandra Renwick)

Posted on September 16, 2020 by somethingisgoingtohappen

A dual U.S. and Canadian author, Zandra Renwick has had stories and poems published under several variations on her name (see also Alexandra Renwick, Alex C. Renwick, and Camille Alexa). She has over fifty short stories and thirty poems in … Continue reading →

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“Creepers and a Lifelong Love” (by David Bridge)

Posted on July 22, 2020 by somethingisgoingtohappen

I’m always interested to learn what childhood reading inspired the authors whose work I enjoy. In this post, David Bridge recalls how a young-adult novel changed his life. It’s a book I hadn’t heard of before, but I’m willing to … Continue reading →

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“Predicting a Pandemic” (by Kevin Mims)

Posted on June 10, 2020 by somethingisgoingtohappen

Last week on this site I expressed the opinion that most readers are not yet ready to read stories about COVID-19 for entertainment. But as Kevin Mims notes in the following essay, a number of publications, including the New York … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Characters, Criticism, Fiction, Genre, Guest, History, Suspense, Thrillers | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

“Great Beginnings” (by Sheila Kohler)

Posted on December 18, 2019 by somethingisgoingtohappen

Sheila Kohler’s work has been appearing in EQMM for a number of years. The distinguished novelist’s books include Dreaming for Freud, Becoming Jane Eyre, Cracks, which was nominated for the IMPAC Dublin Literary Award and made into a movie starring Eva Green, … Continue reading →

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“The Unlikely Ladies of Nineteenth Century Crime Fiction” (by Nancy Novick)

Posted on March 27, 2019 by somethingisgoingtohappen

Nancy Novick—a freelance journalist who writes about health, medicine, and the arts—made her fiction debut in Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine in the September/October 2018 issue, with “How Does He Die This Time?” The story went on to win the 2019 … Continue reading →

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“Doing the Twist” (by Laura Pigott)

Posted on August 23, 2017 by somethingisgoingtohappen

With our September/October issue just on sale, this morning we introduce a writer whose Department of First Stories debut appears in that issue. Laura Pigott works in the field of corporate communications, but she has been interested in mysteries since … Continue reading →

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“The Trials of Writing at 65 MPH” (by M.C. Lee)

Posted on August 9, 2017 by somethingisgoingtohappen

Fiction writers come from all walks of life, as this post demonstrates. And those who really have it in them to write will often endure many difficulties, even hardships, to make it possible. I’ve known writers who composed all their … Continue reading →

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“Radio Days” (by Kevin Mims)

Posted on May 24, 2017 by somethingisgoingtohappen

Kevin Mims is known to readers of the Dell mystery magazines primarily as a short-story writer. In 2013, one of his stories for EQMM received a nomination for the International Thriller Award, and he has also contributed memorable stories to … Continue reading →

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“The Mysterious Face in the Cloud” by E. Gabriel Flores

Posted on May 3, 2017 by somethingisgoingtohappen

The most recent winner of the Robert L. Fish Award for best short story by a new American author, E. Gabriel Flores did a post for this site in April, and she’s back this month with a post about a … Continue reading →

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