Sisters In Crime NY

Robert Rahn and Kim Anklin are both former police officers. Bob was a homicide lieutenant in the NYPD, and Kim was a crime and intelligence analyst for Ventura County in California. But today, East Coast meets West Coast investigation, and they work together as business partners at Management Resources, Ltd. , a private firm that puts their wide-ranging experience to work on all sorts of cases, such as various types of fraud, elder abuse, and wrongful death, among others. We’ll talk about what comprises the life of a modern P.I., including the electronic goodies and technological approaches that have become essential to the field. Come for the definitive He Said, She Said on the biz of 21st century private eyes!

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Joseph Giacolone is a veteran Detective Sergeant and Commanding Officer of a Cold Case Squad that has investigated hundreds of homicides, cold cases and missing persons. Joe is also the author of the Criminal Investigative Function: A Guide for New Investigators.  A decorated officer who won the Medal of Valor, he’s also an adjunct professor at John Jay College of Criminal Justice where he teaches courses in Criminal Justice and Criminal Investigation.

Join us at the Muhlenberg Public Library in Manhattan, 209 W. 23rd Street, (near 7th Ave.)  We begin our meet-and-greet at 6pm, with chapter business and programs beginning by 6:30.  Concluding at 7:45pm, members who wish, and often our guests, adjourn for dinner together at a nearby restaurant. This meeting is free, open to the public, and we cordially invite guests to attend!

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This month sees the publication of member Peggy Ehrhart’s sequel in her blues mystery series.  In the new release, GOT NO FRIEND ANYHOW,  Maxx Maxwell, the hardest-working and unluckiest singer on Manhattan’s blues scene encounters more deadly complications when she tries to get her band’s demo CD recorded at Prowling Rooster Records.

Congratulations, Peggy, on adding to Maxx’s troubles for our entertainment!

Posted in Member News

The Agatha Award nominations have been announced for the upcoming Malice Domestic convention, to be held from April 29th to May 1st of this year, and two of our local Sisters are on the rolls!

Avery Aames has been nominated in the Best First Novel category for THE LONG QUICHE GOODBYE, and Elizabeth Zelvin was nominated in the Best Short Story category for “The Green Cross” which appeared in Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine.

As always, there’s terrific company and competition among the wonderful nominees, but we’re delighted and proud to have two local Sisters recognized in this special way, and very good luck to you both!

Posted in Announcements, Member News

Can't help thinking of this old game show

What really influences mystery readers to buy your book? A web page? Blogging? Twitter? Bookstore events? Newsletters?  You have questions. Your national SinC board decided to find some answers. They went right to the source–mystery readers–and asked them, sponsoring the first ever deep-dive survey of mystery readers. Our research partner was Bowker, the experts on publishing industry data. The detailed report is now available to all SinC members, at no cost.

(If you haven’t seen it yet, you can go to this link.  You will need to use the Member Log-in tab at the upper right of the menu bar.  If you don’t have a user name and password there, or haven’t joined/renewed with the national organization, follow their site instructions. Once you’re logged in, you will choose the link for “The Mystery Book Consumer in the Digital Age”)

Some of the findings were a surprise; others put hard data under what we already assumed  Read, ponder, come to the February 17th meeting with all your questions!  Local NYSinC chapter member Triss Stein, who managed the entire project, will be with us to tell you all about it.

As usual, we’re meeting at the Muhlenberg Library (on 23rd St, just west of 7th Ave.) to gather and chat as of 6pm.  Chapter business and programming begins by 6:30pm.  A little before 8pm, we adjourn, and anyone who wishes ventures out together for a nearby dinner afterward.  More details and upcoming programs available at the right-hand 2011 Chapter Meetings link.

Image via GSN.com

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On February 17th, our chapter’s own Triss Stein will be presenting and discussing these results at our meeting.  She was one of the point people from Sisters in Crime who worked on this project.  Go to 2011 Chapter Meetings link in right sidebar for details. But, if you’e unable to attend then…

This Tuesday, Jan. 18th, the SinC listserv will host two representatives from Bowker, the company that conducted SinC’s groundbreaking Mystery Book Buyer Study. They will be available from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. eastern time to answer members’ questions about the study and how writers can use the information to better target their marketing efforts. The full survey report is available through the SinC national website.

Any SinC member not already on the listserv can join by sending an e-mail to sistersincrime-subscribe@yahoogroups.com with his or her full name in the body of the message. It’s perfectly all right to join the list for the Tuesday session and unsubscribe afterward, although, of course, we think all SinC members can benefit from being on the list.

Also, see you local Sisters at the library on Thursday for what promises to be another terrific meeting with veteran literary agent Victoria Skurnick!

Posted in Announcements, Events, Markets

Victoria Skurnick was with the Book-of-the-Month club for twenty years before becoming an agent with the powerhouse Levine Greenberg Literary Agency. Next Thursday, January 20th, she’ll answer all our questions on the state-of-the-market, an especially mobile target these days, and give us ideas as to how writers can best navigate the changing landscape.  Check the 2011 Meetings page from the right-hand menu for more information about start time and the Muhlenberg Library.

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Our chapter members have been so busy writing and publishing short stories this year, perhaps in unprecedented numbers.  In this season, there are two, particularly thematic offerings for which we wish to raise a cup of cheer.  Lina Zeldovich’s Russian-holiday-themed short story “Believe” is now online at Beat to a Pulp. And, Elizabeth Zelvin’s historical “Natividad” appears in the current holiday/year-end issue of Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine.

Congratulations to them both!

And let us wish all of our Sisters and their dear ones an equally bright (and occasionally criminal) New Year!

Posted in Member News

Our holiday party on Tuesday, December 14th, will be at chapter favorite Cowgirl (519 Hudson St. more info at link). The party starts at 6:30pm like regular meetings.  Dinner will be buffet-style with chips, salsa, and guacamole for snacking; chicken fried chicken and BBQ ribs; green salad, mashed potatoes, coleslaw and cornbread; cobbler for dessert and coffee/soft drink service. There will be a full, cash bar stocked with the dee-lish margaritas as always.

In addition to hosting our fun Secret Santa gift exchange (for which interested Sisters can bring a wrapped gift of mayhem costing less than $10), we’re adding another optional activity.  This year, we’ll also be collecting book donations at the party. Children for Children is a non-profit that will distribute our collection to local schools that need new (or very gently used) books of fiction, appropriate for early readers up to high-schoolers. If you can, please help us build new generations of readership!

The cost will be $45 at the door, by cash or check made out to New York/Tri-State Sisters in Crime. We’ve had great success simply collecting RSVPs by e-mail, and saving us all time and stamps, so thanks in advance for your Firm YES, since the headcount we supply gets charged to the chapter.  RSVP to nysinc@ymail.com and we’ll confirm your saddle’s reserved!

Pretty spur picture via Seidel’s Saddlery.

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Next Thursday, November 18th, former District Attorney and defense lawyer Charles Abercrombie will give us the inside scoop and war stories from both sides of the courtroom.  Bring your questions about strategy and procedure!  As always, see logistical info on the Chapter Meetings page.

Posted in Events