We’ve reached the point of the year where conferences send out award nomination forms to attending authors and fans and where readers, recovering from holiday festivities, are ready to settle down with an enjoyable read. I don’t have a “published in 2025” novel to beg you to nominate or buy. Rather, because of my husband’s illness and death, my 2025 publications only were short pieces.
To my surprise, with all the juggling I was doing, 2025 still resulted in the release of a collection of my older award winning or finalist short stories (With Our Bellies Full and the Fire Dying – February 2025) traditionally published by White City Press and five new short stories that appeared in anthologies.
Two of the tales revolved around Cassandra Smith, an unusual older private investigator. It would be generous to say Cassie has been around the block over the years as she tried out careers ranging from acting to teaching to being a PI. In “Who Shot J.R.?”, which is contained in Sleuths Just Wanna Have Fun: Private Eyes in the Materialistic Eighties, Cassie is tasked with using her age and play-acting/costume skills to infiltrate the set of Dallas. Her mission is to discover, before the reveal episode runs, “Who Shot J.R?” How she humorously accomplishes her task and what she does with the information makes it a perfect cozy Agatha award story.
In “Candy Cane on the Case,” mature Cassie and newly minted private eye, Candace Cane, team up to infiltrate a casino operation to determine how good guy gamblers are being fleeced. “Candy Cane on the Case” was selected as the lead anthology story in Crimeucopia: The Frail Ladies Detective Agency. Like “Who Shot J.R.,” “Candy Cane on the Case fits the criteria Agathas are judged on.
The Anthony Awards, which are given at Bouchercon, often look for a more serious story. “Opera Dinner Club” is a Holocaust related story. It ran as a Mysteries to Die For podcast and was then included in its print anthology: Anything but Murder: Larceny and Lies. The key to the “Opera Dinner Club” was that not only did the members all love opera, but they also incorporated their passion into schemes to smuggle possessions and people from Nazi occupied Vienna to the safety of London.
I also was fortunate to have a more contemporary story, “Ezra and the Frat Boys,” published in SoWest: Danger Awaits!
Whether you nominate or read my stories, or those of someone else, your support of short stories not only is appreciated, but will be enjoyable for you.
Four anthologies! Good job, Debra!
Kathleen,
Thank you. It is actually 6…. plus a few that are carrying over into this year.
My love for short stories has been renewed this year, due, in no small part, to you! Best of luck in the nomination and award season. Any of your stories would have my vote.
Thank you. Feel the same about your novels.
It seems the reading world has swung back to the appreciation of short stories and anthologies. I know I’m one them, and yours are terrific!
You are too kind. Thank you.