Podcast interviews, author bios and notes—we’re busy preparing for our 5th anthology, In the Spirit of 13. And there’s more in August when the virtual writers’ festival, When Words Collide happens.
And now for the pièce de résistance:
Ta-da! Our Cover for In the Spirit of 13
In the Spirit of 13
Many thanks to Sara Carrick for creating this marvelous cover image!
AUTHOR INTERVIEWS FOR IN THE SPIRIT OF 13
Watch for more author interviews throughout July and August on Donna Carrick‘s Dead to Writes Podcast featuring stories In the Spirit of 13. In this interview, Rosemary McCracken talks about her story “The Fur Coat Conundrum” and the fascinating real-life events inspiring her to write it as well as updates about her Pat Tierney mystery series.
COMING UP! WHEN WORDS COLLIDE
August means the When Words Collide Festival for Readers and Writers. Once again, the festival will be held online. And once again, Mesdames will be participating on the panels. Watch for more details soon.
Another fabulous interview by Donna Carrick. This time our brilliant and inspirational grande dame, Rosemary Aubert, zooms in on her short story “The Phone” to be published in In the Spirit of 13. She and Donna also share thoughts about Rosemary’s novels, other short stories and poetry. This is the 99th episode of @DeadtoWritesPod. All episodes are now available on both YouTube and Apple Podcast.
Long-time Mesdames and uber-talented author Catherine Astolfo joins us on @DeadToWritesPodcast to share news of her story “The Spirit of St. Lewis”, which will appear in In the Spirit of 13, coming this fall from the Mesdames of Mayhem!
Join us this week @DeadToWritesPod for Donna Carrick’s excellent interview with Madona Skaff ! Madona talks about her story “Moving On”, which will appear in In the Spirit of 13 this fall.
June is proving to be the busiest month of 2022 for the Mesdames of Mayhem with the Toronto International Festival of Authors, Word on the Street, Dead to Writes podcasts and reading events – not to mention new book publications and story sales.
And big congratulations to Cat Mills on the release of her new documentary and to Melissa Yi for winning a contest for middle-grade manuscripts held by the International Thriller Writers.
THE MESDAMES ON SCREEN
Cat Mills
Cat Mills’ a new documentary for Al Jazeera launched on May 25th.
The Billboard Squad is about a local activist ‘s fight against illegal billboards in Toronto. Check out this terrific film on Youtube.
Donna Carrick‘s Dead to Writes podcast is now on YouTube.
Every Wednesday, Donna interviews one of the authors in the Mesdames’ upcoming anthology, In the Spirit of 13, due out this fall.
Check out her interviews with authors Lisa de Nikolitis, Lynne Murphy and Caro Soles. And in June, interviews with Rosemary McCracken, M. H. Callway, Madona Skaff and Rosemary Aubert.
FABULOUS EVENTS!
TORONTO INTERNATIONAL FESTIVAL OF AUTHORS: June 3 to 5th
This June, TIFA is focusing on crime writing. Sixty internationally known authors discuss their work and aspects of crime writing, among them the legendary Walter Mosely, Val McDermid, Mark Billingham and Denise Mina. They are joined by leading Canadian authors, Linwood Barclay, Peter Robinson, Kathy Reichs, Ian Hamilton and Shari Lapena. Tickets are available here.
The Crime Writers of Canada has a dedicated tent in the public area where readers can meet authors and buy their books. Also readings are scheduled each day! The Mesdames are well-represented both days, Saturday, June 4th and Sunday, June 5th.
Saturday, June 4th
11 am to 3 pm: Sylvia Warsh, Caro Soles
3 to 7 pm: Madeleine Harris-Callway, Blair Keetch
Saturday Readings, 6 to 7 pm: Madeleine Harris-Callway, Blair Keetch
Lisa De Nikolits
Exciting news: Lisa De Nikolits will be interviewing international crime authors, Chris Brookmyre and Antii Tuomainen on Saturday, June 4th at 4: 30 pm. (Note: This is a ticketed event.)
Chris Brookmyre is a Scottish author of crime and historical fiction, whose work has been described as Tartan Noir.
Antii Tuomainen is one of Finland’s most acclaimed crime fiction writers. His books have been translated into 25 languages.
Sunday, June 5th
11 am to 3 pm: Rosemary McCracken
3 to 7 pm: Lisa de Nikolitis, Lynne Murphy, Rosemary McCracken
Sunday Readings, 2 to 3 pm: Lynne Murphy, Lisa de Nikolitis, Caro Soles, Rosemary McCracken
QUEER NOIR AT THE BAR: June 8th, 7 pm
In celebration of Pride, hosts Jeffrey Round and Hope Thompson present the inaugual Queer Noir at the Bar, an evening of queer crime fiction readings, on Wednesday, June 8th at 7pm.
Authors include Mme Caro Soles and a reading by actor Greg Campbell from Greg Kramer’s bestselling mystery novel, The Pursemonger of Fugu. Books will be available for purchase and signing.
The Word On The Street returns to the streets of Toronto with a new (old) home. The 33rd edition of Canada’s largest open-air book and magazine festival takes place June 11-12th on Queen’s Park Crescent from Bloor to Wellesley Street.
WOTS features readings by 100+ authors and an outdoor marketplace showcasing a wide range of Canadian and Indigenous books, magazines, comics, and more for readers of all ages. And the Mesdames will be there!
Caro Soles
Caro Soles is hosting The Mesdames of Mayhem booth in Writers Block, Number WO2 on northwest corner of Queen’s Park Circle.
She will be joined by Lisa De Nikolits, Blair Keetch, Rosemary McCracken, Lynne Murphyand Sylvia Warsh.
NEW BOOKS and STORIES
The Crime Writers of Canada 40th anniversary anthology, Cold Canadian Crime, is up on Amazon. Print copies should be available shortly.
The collection features stories by Melodie Campbell, Lisa De Nikolits, Blair Keetch, Rosemary McCracken, Lynne Murphy and Sylvia Warsh.
M. H. Callway had two story acceptances in May!
Her dark comedy thriller “Must Love Dogs – or You’re Gone”, was accepted by UK publisher, Red Dog Press for their upcoming anthology, GONE. The book will be published in November 2022.
Red Dog Press is an independent publisher, focused on great crime, mystery and thrillers from unique voices.
And Madeleine’s ice-cold thriller, “Last Island”, has just been sold to Mystery Magazine. Publication date to be announced.
The story features characters from her novel, Windigo Fire. Danny Bluestone and Corazon Amorsolo must deal with a rogue bounty hunter in the freezing cold of border town Fort Frances.
Caro Soles’ latest Merculian mystery, The River District, is now available on Amazon.
An alien evil threatens the fun-loving, dual-gendered inhabitants of Merculian. Young people are getting sick from alien party drugs, celebrated dancer Eulio is receiving menacing notes from a stalker and a body is discovered in the Pleasure Gardens.
Then on opening night, Eulio disappears. Marlo and the Regulators discover dark secrets linked to the ruthless Terran criminal and his gang who have taken possession of the River District. Can Marlo act quickly enough to save their beloved city?
AND FINALLYCONGRATULATIONS TO…
Melissa Yi
Melissa Yi who recently WON the contest held by the International Thriller Writers Organization for best middle grade crime fiction manuscript featuring a BIPOC sleuth.
The prize was a $1000 scholarship toward attending ITW’s Thrillerfest in New York City, May 31st to June 4th. That’s where Melissa Yi is now, because one of the judges, legendary children’s author, R.L. Stine, asked to meet her.
And big congratulations to Mike Martin and the MLMC team for the smashing success of this year’s Canadian virtual mystery conference. If you missed one of the panels, don’t worry. As long as you registered for MLMC, the recorded sessions will be available for viewing shortly.
Today Donna Carrick, publisher of In the Spirit of 13, the Mesdames of Mayhem’s fifth anthology, interviews contributing author, Lynne Murphy. Lynne talks about the inspiration for her two stories in the collection: “The Trespassers”, an eerie tale in which a grandmother is haunted by two small children and the light-hearted revenge story, “Gracie, The Invisible Dog”.
Donna Carrick, publishing editor of The Spirit of 13, is interviewing the contributing authors. Her first interview is with Lisa De Nikolits where Lisa reveals her inspiration for her story, “A Land of Fear and Denial”.
May is an exciting month for crime writers, but this year especially so for the Mesdames and Messieurs with new books and publications. Not to mention the thrill of the upcoming CWC Awards of Excellence and the Maple Leaf Mystery Conference, our new national crime writers conference!
Congratulations – and Fingers Crossed!
Melissa Yi
Melodie Campbell
Crime Writers of Canada will announce the winners of the 2022 Awards of Excellence on Thursday, May 26th at 1 pm. Broadcast on YouTube.
Melissa Yi’s story, “Dead Man’s Hand”, published in EQMM in 2021, is a finalist for the CWC Award of Excellence for Best Short Story.
Melodie Campbell’s mentee, Delee Fromm, is nominated for CWC Award of Excellence for Best Unpublished Novel for her manuscript, The Strength to Rise.
Fingers crossed!
Congratulations to Cat Mills!
The Billboard Squad
Cat Mills’ latest film, The Billboard Squad, is a 25 minute short documentary for Al Jazeera Witness. It is scheduled to be released on May 23rd.
Dave Meslin is a 47-year-old Canadian activist in Toronto known for his campaigns to defend public space from commercial interests. For 15 years, he’s been lobbying the city to remove illegal billboards from neighborhoods across Toronto.
Dave has a team of volunteers, including his 11-year-old niece, who gather intel and strategize on how to bring down the billboards. They are prepared to do whatever it takes to reclaim a local green space. But as the Billboard Squad clashes with power, bureaucracy and inertia, Dave grapples with the emotional complexities of activism.
In mid-May, Sylvia is a guest on EQMM’s blog where she reveals how she changed from a literary writer to a life of crime… writing.
Jayne Barnard
Jayne Barnard‘s story, “Crow’s Hoard”, will be published inNothing Without Us Too, the follow-up to the anthology, Nothing Without Us, a 2020 Prix Aurora Award finalist. The books feature stories by authors who are disabled, d/Deaf or hard-of-hearing, Blind or visually impaired, neurodivergent, Spoonie, and/or who manage mental illness.
Trapped in her small apartment after a flood forces everyone else to evacuate, chronically-ill Carmel expects to die, even welcomes it. But when she tells the crows who trade her their treasures for snacks that she won’t be there tomorrow, they bring her a choice she could have never predicted.
Release date, September 15, 2022.
Jayne has a second story in the new anthology from Sisters In Crime Canada West, Crime Wave: Women of a Certain Age. In “Midsummer Day’s Dream” our favorite sleuthing B&B hosts are juggling a Shakespeare on the Beach production and a painters’ retreat. But drug deals, old grudges, and a fire on the mountain spell Midsummer disaster for their fledgling business.
Crime Wave: Women of a Certain Age will be published Fall, 2022. We’ll be sharing the cover reveal as soon as it’s released!
On May 15th, the Crime Writers of Canada will release their 40th anniversary anthology, Cold Canadian Crime.
Stories by Melodie Campbell, Lisa De Nikolits, Blair Keetch, Rosemary McCracken, Lynne Murphy and Sylvia Warsh are included in the collection – a terrific showing by the Mesdames of Mayhem!
Exciting Events!
Rosemary McCracken
Rosemary McCracken was interviewed on May 5th by CWC’s Erik D’Souza as part of a series of interviews for the Cold Canadian Crime anthology.
Lynne Murphy’s book launch for Potluck and Other Stories was a big success. She had guests from England, Jersey in the Channel Islands, BC, Winnipeg, Ottawa. Many of the Mesdames were in attendance. You can watch the launch on YouTube here
The Maple Leaf Mystery Conference, our new national crime writers conference, takes place on Zoom from May 24 to 28th. Registration is only $25 and features interviews with internationally recognized authors, Ian Rankin and Maureen Jennings. Sign up here.
The Mesdames are an integral part of the conference with ten of us conducting interviews or moderating and participating on the panels.
Catherine Astolfo
M. H. Callway
Melodie Campbell
Donna Carrick
Lisa De Nikolits
Lynne Murphy
Rosemary McCracken
Madona Skaff
Jane Petersen Burfield
Caro Soles
Here’s the panel schedule. Do join us!
· Wednesday, May 25th, 8:15 pm Melodie Campbell, Lynne Murphy, Caro Soles are on the panel, Deadly Laughter
· Friday, May 27th, 2 pm, Melodie Campbell interviews best-selling author Ian Rankin
· Friday, May 27th, 3:15 pm, M. H. Callway, Rosemary McCracken and Jane Petersen Burfield are on the panel, The Big Short
· Friday, May 27th, 5:45 pm, Madona Skaff is on the panel, Changing Faces in Crime/Mystery Writing
· Saturday, May 28th , 2 pm, Catherine Astolfo and Lisa de Nikolits are on the panel, Maple Leaf Murder East
· Saturday, May 28th, 5:45 pm, Donna Carrick moderates the panel, Love with a Mysterious Twist
Looking Ahead to June!
June will be another crazy busy month for the Mesdames, including the Big Reveal of our cover for In the Spirit of 13.
On June 3 to 4th, The Toronto International Festival of Authors has invited members of the Crime Writers of Canada to do readings, sell books and meet readers.
On June 8th, an inaugural Queer Noir at the Bar will be held during Toronto’s Pride Week with guest reader, Caro Soles.
On June 11-12th, Word on the Street returns to Queen’s Park with Caro Soles and many Mesdames hosting a booth.
And on June 18th, Lisa De Nikolits will be reading at the CanLit AuthorFest.
Mesdames of Mayhem 