DERRINGER NOMINEES 2005

Nominees for Derringer Awards 2005

We are very proud to announce that stories from FMAM and DIME I have been nominated this year. Congratulations and best of luck to G. Miki Hayden (DIME I), J. K. Cummins (FMAM) and Jan Christensen (FMAM)! Be sure you get out there and vote.

The Short Mystery Fiction society (SMFS) announces the 2005 Derringer Award nominees. The annual Derringer Awards are presented for the best short mystery fiction published in English the previous year.

Nominees by category are:

Flash Fiction Stories - Up to 500 Words:

"Housesitter"
by J. K. Cummins
Futures Mysterious Anthology Magazine
Summer 2004

"Sand Scam"
by Nick Andreychuk
Crimestalker Casebook
Fall 2004

"The Big Guys"
by JA Konrath
SMALL BITES
edited by Garrett Peck and Keith Gouveia
Coscom Entertainment
2004

"Theda"
by Beverly Brackett
Flash Fantastic
November 2004

"Widow's Peak"
by S.A. Daynard
Riptide: Crime Stories by New England Writers
edited by Skye Alexander, Kate Flora, Susan Oleksiw
Level Best Books
2004

Short-Short Story - 501 to 2000 Words:

"Experience Required"
by Michael Giorgio
Lunatic Chameleon
(Print Edition) March 2004

"The Test"
by Mike Wiecek
Woman's World
30 November 2004

"Sweet Smell of Success"
by Beverle Graves Myers
Who Died in Here?
edited by Pat Dennis
Penury Press
2004

"The Big Store"
by Stephen D. Rogers
Hardluck Stories
Spring 2004

"Up in Smoke"
by Jan Christensen
Futures Mysterious Anthology Magazine
January/February/March 2004

Midlength Story - 2001 to 6000 Words:

"Brethren of The Sea"
by Joan Druett
Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine
November 2004

"Freddie Swings In"
by David Terrenoire
Fedora III
edited by Michael Bracken
Betancourt & Company
2004

"Hilly Palmer's Last Case"
by Duane Swierczynski
Plots With Guns
September/October 2004

"Phillie's Last Dance"
by Ray Banks
Shots Magazine
March 2004

"Viscery"
by Sandy Balzo
Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine
December 2004

Longer Short Story - 6001 to 15000 Words:

"God's Dice"
by David White
The Thrilling Detective Web Site
Spring 2004

"A Sunday in Ordinary Time"
by Terence Faherty
Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine
August 2004

"The Franklin Fiasco"
by Beverle Graves Myers
Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine
September 2004

"The Girl in Apartment 2A"
by G. Miki Hayden
Dime
edited by Babs Lakey
Quiet Storm
2004

"Secondhand Heart"
by Doug Allyn
Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine
January/February 2004

The Derringer Award was created in 1997 to honor excellence in the creative artform of short mystery and crime stories. The name "Derringer," after the palm-sized handgun, was chosen as a metaphor for a mystery or crime short story -- small, but dangerous.

Any English-language mystery or crime short story that appeared during the previous year in a publication which has an editor and an established procedure for submission, acceptance and rejection, is eligible for a Derringer. The publication does not have to pay in cash and may be a print magazine, an electronic magazine (ezine), or an anthology or collection published in book form.

The author does not have to be a member of SMFS to be considered. Nominees are determined by a panel of judges. Winners in each category are chosen by SMFS member vote.

For more information about the Short Mystery Fiction Society: http://www.shortmystery.net/

For additional information about this year's nominees:
Diane Grace, Derringer Awards Coordinator, graceathome@earthlink.net

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Derringer Winners 2003

Dorothy Rellas Wins Derringer Award for FMAM Story

Since 1998, the Short Mystery Fiction Society (SMFS) has presented their annual Derringer Awards to honor excellence in the creative artform of short mystery fiction.

We are extremely pleased that Dorothy Rellas received a Derringer Award this year for her story, "Notions of the Real World," which appeared in FMAM's Summer 2003 issue.

Nominations for the Derringer Awards are submitted by SMFS members and by editors and publishers of short mystery fiction. Stories published in print or electronic magazines and anthologies in book form are eligible. From the nominations, a panel of judges chooses the top five stories in each of four categories. Once the finalists are selected, SMFS members vote for the best in each category.

We are very proud that three stories from FMAM made it to the finals this year, including Dorothy's winning entry.

Congratulations, Dorothy! We're happy to have been a part of your achievement and we'll look forward to seeing more of your fine work in the future.

For more information about SMFS and the Derringers, go to their website at : http://www.shortmystery.net/

Here's the complete list of Derringer Award winners for Best Short Mystery Stories published in the year 2003.

Flash Stories - Up to 500 Words:

Michael Bracken
"All My Yesterdays"
Suddenly V, 2003

Short-Short Story - 501 to 2000 Words:

Rob Lopresti
"Nailbiter
Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine, Sept. 2003

Midlength Story - 2001 to 6000 Words:

Dorothy Rellas
"Notions of the Real World"
FUTURES Mysterious Anthology Magazine, Summer 2003

Longer Short Story - 6001 to 15000 Words:

Clark Howard
"The Mask of Peter"
Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, April 2003

 

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