I have a special affection for the short story. With only a few thousand words to play with, it’s possible to experiment in a way that might get irksome over the long haul of a novel. In my short stories I’ve more than once written from the point of a view of a man. I even wrote one story from the point of view of a fish. Having said that, writing a short story is not an easy option. In some ways it is more demanding than writing a novel. Every word counts.
Short Story News
‘St John’s Eve’ in Midsummer Mysteries: From The Crime Writers’ Association, edited by Martin Edwards (Flame Tree Press, 2024)
‘I’ll be Back’ in Happiness is a Warm Gun: Crime Fiction Inspired by the Songs of the Beatles, edited by Josh Pachter (Down and Out Books, 2023)
‘A Free Lunch’ in Reports from the Deep End, edited by Maxim Jakubowski and Rick McGrath (Titan Books, 2023)
‘The Shape of Australia’ in the US in Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, July/August 2022
Long-listed for the Margery Allingham Prize 2021
Short-listed for the 2023 Short Story Derringer
‘Some Other Dracula’ in Music of the Night: An Anthology from the Crime Writers’ Association, edited by Martin Edwards (Flame Tree Press, 2022)
‘Crumble’ in the US in Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, November/December 2020
Voted number 8 in the Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine Readers Award 2020
‘Teeth and Hair’ in The New Abject: Tales of Modern Unease, edited by Sarah Eyre and Ra Page (Comma Press, 2020)
‘The House by the Thames’ in the US in The Book of Extraordinary Impossible Crimes and Puzzling Deaths, edited by Maxim Jakubowski (Mango Publishing Group, 2020)
‘The Gallery’ in the US in The Beat of Black Wings: Crime Fiction Inspired by the Songs of Joni Mitchell, edited by Josh Pachter
(Untreed Reads, 2020)
‘Because You’re Worth It’ in the US in Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, January/February, 2020
Also online in the Barb Goffman series on the Black Cat Ebook Site published by Wildside Press
‘Fiction Addiction’ in the US in Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, November/December 2019
Voted number 10 in the Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine Readers Award 2019
‘Faceless Killer’ in the March/April 2018 issue of Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine.
‘Faceless Killer’ has been short-listed for the Margery Allingham Prize
‘Ashes and Pearls’ appears in the May 2018 issue of The People’s Friend
‘Secondhand Heart’ appears in the January 2018 issue of Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine
The Starlings & Other Stories
Featured story:
‘Weeping Queens’
Twelve pictures, twelve tales of crime and mystery. Written by Murder Squad and their accomplices, these page-turning short stories open up a world of intrigue, suspense and fear. With contributions from celebrated crime writers including Ann Cleeves, Cath Staincliffe and Martin Edwards, each tale has been inspired by the atmospheric and evocative work of Pembrokeshire-based photographer David Wilson.
The stories, all illustrated with the images that inspired their authors, include modern day love and betrayal, historical murder mysteries, and crime in the Welsh countryside.
Published by Graffeg: 2015
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Guilty Parties
Featured story:
‘What’s the Time, Mr Wolf?’
Severn House is proud to be publishing a collection of new stories from the glittering talent of the members of the Crime Writers Association: Frances Brody; N.J. Cooper; Bernie Crosthwaite; Carol Anne Davis; Martin Edwards; Kate Ellis; Jame Finnis; Christopher Fowler; Paul Freeman; John Harvey; Paul Johnston; Ragnar Jonasson; Peter Lovesey; Phil Lovesey; Christine Poulson; Kate Rhodes; Chris Simms; Cally Taylor; Aline Templeton; Ricki Thomas; L.C. Tyler; Yvonne Eve Walus; Laura Wilson.
Published by Severn House: 2014
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I.D. Crimes of Identity
Featured story:
‘Don’t You Hate Having Two Heads?’
This showcase of shorts from the CWA (Crime Writers’ Association) celebrates the ‘who’ in the whodunnit, the psyche behind the psychological profile. Husbands lead double lives, psychologists confuse perpetrators with ex-partners, neighbours reassess the people they thought they knew. It seems if there’s one thing you can’t classify or slap an ID card on, it’s the id.
Published by Comma Press: 2006
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Mystery Tour
Featured story:
‘Accounting for Murder’
Crime spreads across the globe in this new collection of short stories from the Crime Writers’ Association, as a conspiracy of prominent crime authors take you on a world mystery tour.
Highlights of the trip include a treacherous cruise to French Polynesia, a horrifying trek in South Africa, a murderous train-ride across Ukraine and a vengeful killing in Mumbai. But back home in the UK, life isn’t so easy either. Dead bodies turn up on the backstreets of Glasgow, crime writers turn words into deeds at literary events, and Lady Luck seems to guide the fate of a Twickenham hood. Showcasing the range, breadth and vitality of the contemporary crime-fiction genre, these twenty-eight chilling and unputdownable stories will take you on a trip you’ll never forget.
Published by Orenda Books: 2017
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The Mammoth Book of the Adventures of Moriarty
Featured story:
‘The Mystery of the Missing Child’
The Secret Life of Sherlock Holmes’s Nemesis – 37 short stories
We think of Sherlock Holmes and Doctor Watson, but far more seductive is the pairing of Holmes and Professor James Moriarty, ‘the Napoleon of crime’ – a rivalry unparalleled in the world of crime fiction. Fiercely intelligent and a relentless schemer, Moriarty is the super-villain as megastar.
This wonderfully diverse collection by writers such as Martin Edwards, Jürgen Ehlers, Barbara Nadel, L. C. Tyler, Michael Gregorio, Alison Joseph and Peter Guttridge reveals not just the evil side of Moriarty’s personality, but his humanity, his motivations and his human failings. Some of the stories are humorous, some scary, but all are hugely entertaining.
Published by Constable and Robinson: 2015
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Litmus: Short Stories from Modern Science
Featured story:
‘What If?’
This anthology draws out and distills science’s love of narrative from a wide range of scientific disciplines, weaving theory into very human stories, and delving into the humanity of theorists and experimenters as they stood on the brink of momentous discoveries.
Each story has been written in close consultation with scientists and historians and is accompanied by a specially written afterword, expanding on the science for the general reader.
Together, they bring vividly to life the stories behind the ‘eureka!’ moments that changed the way we live, forever.
Published by Comma Press: 2011
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M.O. Crimes of Practice
Featured story:
‘A Cabinet of Curiosities’
The second in this series of anthologies from the CWA (Crime Writers’ Association) picks up the primary scent of any investigation: the modus operandi; the signature that identifies any repeat offender, the ‘how’ that supersedes the ‘why’. From the ex-doctor tenderly administering a final prescription to his victims, the party of finishing school debutantes exacting revenge on their lecherous host… these stories demonstrate that, even with the most despicable of crimes, there’s methodology in the madness.
Published by Comma Press: 2008
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Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine
Featured story:
‘The Egyptian Cat’
Launched in 1941, Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine is credited with setting the standard for the modern crime and mystery short story. The magazine has been cited as “the finest periodical of its kind” by The Readers Encyclopedia of American Literature and as “the best mystery magazine in the world, bar none” by author Stephen King. EQMM has received more than 100 awards, including more than 20 Edgars from the Mystery Writers of America, and more than 40 Nobel, Pulitzer, and National Book Award winners have appeared in its pages.
Published by EQMM
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Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine
Featured story:
‘Roller-Coaster Ride’
The final issue of 2014 deals with families and relationships, and of course crime, mayhem, and suspense. The conflicts of home are brought across international borders in Christine Poulson’s white-knuckle adventure ‘Roller-Coaster Ride’, set in Denmark, where an English mother with two kids suspects she’s being followed by her ex-husband.
Also features stories from Joyce Carol Oates, Bill Pronzini, Miriam Grace Monfredo, Hilary Davidson, Allan J. Emerson, Michael Wiley, Kevin Wignall and René Appel.
Listen to Christine reading her short-story for Episode 97 of Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine’s Fiction Podcast.
Published by EQMM
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The Mammoth Book of Best British Crime: No 10
Featured story:
‘Vanishing Act’
42 fantastic stories from Britain’s best crime writers
A superb collection of the year’s most outstanding short crime fiction published in the UK. Jakubowski has succeeded, as ever, in showcasing the impressive breadth of crime writing, from cosy tales of detection to noir mayhem and psychological suspense and terror. There are puzzles to solve, nagging questions about the nature of the society in which we live, but, above all, there is an abundance of first-class entertainment.
Published by Constable and Robinson: 2013
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Phobic: Modern Horror Stories
Featured story:
‘Safe as Houses’
Where does fear lurk in 21st century life? In a technological age hardwired to keep information flowing and the unknown at bay, what irrationalities still linger for horror writers to tap into? This anthology – the first in a new series from Comma – offers 15 very different responses to the question. From ancient curses kept alive in internet chat-rooms to malevolent children’s TV characters acquiring lives of their own, Phobic shines a torch into the unlit areas of the modern subconscious and suggests the more we know, the more we realise how worried we really should be.
Published by Comma Press: 2007
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