Previous Events

We’re delighted to announce the chapter’s second annual QueryFest! A true member perk, three leading editors and agents will be joining us to discuss the newest trends in publishing and best query practices, after which they will evaluate our members’ query letters in groups of four in private virtual rooms. These letters will be delivered in advance to give each group leader sufficient time to digest their contents and offer meaningful advice on how to improve them. You’ll also glean insight by listening to your fellow members’ queries and the advice given. It’s a great opportunity to polish up your pitch! Thanks so much to the Query Advisors who will be leading this event: Terri Bischoff, Senior Acquisitions Editor, Crooked Lane Books. Joining QueryFest for a second year, Terri began her life in books as a bookseller at Kramerbooks in Washington, DC. After moving home to the Midwest, she worked at a feminist bookstore before purchasing and operating Booked for Murder in Madison, WI. She spent 10 years at Midnight Ink as their acquiring editor and published 36-40 books a year. Terri has a wealth of experience and knowledge in both mysteries and in bookselling, particularly as a book buyer and reviewer. Terri’s interests lie in mainstream suspense, thrillers, quirky and humorous cozies, LGBTQIA, and diverse characters/storylines. She is also organizing Bouchercon 2022 in Minneapolis. Michelle Richter, Senior Agent, Fuse Literary. Michelle Richter joined Fuse Literary in 2014 from St. Martin’s Press, where she worked on a variety of fiction and nonfiction including MELISSA EXPLAINS IT ALL by Melissa Joan Hart. She has a master’s degree in Publishing from Pace University. Michelle’s clients have won or been finalists for such awards as the Edgar, Mary Higgins Clark, Strand Critics, Anthony, Agatha, Lefty, ITW Thriller, Macavity, Barry, Derringer, IPPY, and International Book Award. She is a member of Sisters in Crime. Michelle is especially eager to find suspense and psychological thrillers with complex lead characters. BIPOC, LGBTQ, and disabled voices in fiction always welcome. Michelle loves unreliable narrators, stories of family secrets, friendships, and sibling relationships. Her favorite writers include Colson Whitehead, Celeste Ng, Ruth Ware, Laura Lippman, Megan Miranda, Lori Rader-Day, Jennifer Hillier, and Tana French. Shawn Reilly Simmons is co-owner/publisher/editor at Level Best Books and serves on the Board of Malice Domestic. She is also the author of seven novels in the Red Carpet Catering mystery series. She’s also written several short stories which have been published in various anthologies, including “Burnt Orange” in Passport to Murder: the 2017 Bouchercon Anthology; “The Prodigy” in Mystery Tour, the Crime Writers’ Association Anthology; and “Now is the Hour” in Writers Crushing Covid-19. Shawn’s story “The Last Word,” appearing in Malice Domestic 14: Mystery Most Edible, won the Agatha Award for Best Short Story of 2019. Shawn also won the Anthony Award as editor of the Best Anthology or Collection for the same anthology. In addition, her story “The Red Herrings at Killington Inn” received an Agatha Nomination in 2020 for Best Short Story. She is a member of Sisters in Crime, Mystery Writers of America, the International Thriller Writers, and the Crime Writers’ Association in the UK.

Join Susan Elia MacNeal, Richie Narvaez and Kathleen Kalb as they discuss the current state of historical mysteries. Should you be writing series or standalones? How do you balance the lure of nostalgia with historical accuracy? What are some new eras to explore and how can you keep traditional favorites, such as the Gilded Age, feeling fresh? Finally, how does your personal history inform your perspective of the past and the stories you choose to tell? Moderated by Mariah Fredericks.

Click HERE to register for this event.

Featuring:

Kathleen Marple Kalb likes to describe herself as an Author/Anchor/Mom…not in that order. She writes the Ella Shane historical mystery series for Kensington Books, including A FATAL OVERTURE, and A FATAL FIRST NIGHT, named to Aunt Agatha’s Best Of: History Mystery 2021 list. She grew up in front of a microphone and a keyboard, working as an overnight DJ as a teenager in her hometown of Brookville, Pennsylvania, and writing her first (thankfully unpublished) historical novel at sixteen. After a news career with stops in Pittsburgh, Vermont and Connecticut, she’s a weekend morning anchor at 1010 WINS Radio in New York City. As Nikki Knight, she’s also the author of the contemporary Vermont Radio Mystery, LIVE, LOCAL AND DEAD, from Crooked Lane. Her Vermont story, “Bad Apples” was an Honorable Mention in the 2021 Black Orchid Novella Award Contest. She, her husband, and their son live in Connecticut, in a house owned by their cat.

 

Susan Elia MacNeal is the New York Times bestselling author of the Maggie Hope mysteries. MacNeal won the Barry Award and has been nominated for the Edgar, Macavity, Agatha, Left Coast Crime, Dilys, and ITW Thriller awards. She lives in Brooklyn, New York, with her husband and son.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Richie Narvaez is the author of Roachkiller and Other Stories, Noiryorican, and Hipster Death Rattle, which has been optioned for a possible TV series on the CW. His YA historical novel, Holly Hernandez and the Death of Disco, set in New York City in 1979, won an Agatha Award and an Anthony Award. He lives in the Bronx.

 

 

 

 

 

Mariah Fredericks was born, raised, and still lives in New York City. She graduated from Vassar College with a degree in history. She is the author of the Jane Prescott mystery series, which has twice been nominated for the Mary Higgins Clark Award, as well as The Lindbergh Nanny which comes out November, 2022. She can be reached at mariahfredericksbooks.com.

 

 

 

 

 

 

It’s all well and good to write a book and get it published but if no one knows about it, you’ll never sell a copy, other than to friends and family. In Part I (Feb), our guest speakers shared how to design an ad and get the maximum mileage out of advertising it on Facebook. This month, we’ll talk about publicizing your work by attracting the interest of libraries, book clubs, review sites, and podcasters. Don’t miss this program—it could help propel your readership skyward!

 

Our Speakers Include:

Brian Kenney. A librarian and editor, Brian has worked for libraries across New York City, including many years at the Brooklyn Public Library. An editor at Library Journal (LJ) and editor in chief of School Library Journal (SLJ), he was also editorial director of Publishers Weekly, LJ, and SLJ. He’s served on several award committees, including the American Library Association’s Notable Books Council and the Andrew Carnegie Medals for Excellence, and is a member of the advisory committee for Booklist magazine. He is the director of the White Plains Public Library (NY), where he runs Book ‘Em, a lively crime fiction book group. Along with Etta, he co-founded First Clue, a weekly crime fiction newsletter. The two also published the Mystery Preview—looking ahead at the next nine months of crime publishing—in the March issue of Library Journal.

 

Henrietta (Etta) Verma is a coauthor of weekly crime fiction newsletter First Clue, author of How to Get Your Book Into Libraries, and a librarian and editor. She is a former head of Library Journal’s book review section and was previously an editor at School Library Journal’s book review. Etta currently works for an academic publisher and in her spare time devours two crime novels per week for First Clue, as well as writes and edits reviews at Booklist magazine. Originally from Ireland, Etta now lives in New York City with her two children. Find her on Twitter at @1stClueReviews.

 

 

Sara Rosett is USA Today bestselling author who writes lighthearted mysteries and is the co-host of the Wish I’d Known Then Podcast, geared for writers. She is also the author of over 30 novels in the genres of cozy and historical mystery. Sara writes nonfiction for authors, including How to Write a Series and How to Outline a Cozy Mystery. Find out more at https://www.SaraRosett.com.

 

A ZOOM REGISTRATION EMAIL WILL BE SENT TO CHAPTER MEMBERS.

Not a member? Click HERE to join.

In this informative marketing session, Sarah Burr, a social media-savvy, prolific author and one of our chapter’s newest board members, will offer valuable tips on how to design an eye-catching digital ad for your books. Then Finola Austin, a historical novelist and creative strategist at Meta (formerly Facebook), will explain her company’s newest advertising algorithms, giving you and your ad dollars the best chance of attracting the maximum number of buyers and readers. Don’t miss this opportunity to get new eyeballs for your work!

Event Bios:

Sarah E. Burr loves to murder people…in her books. She’s the author of four mystery series: the fantasy-based Court of Mystery, the paranormal Glenmyre Whim Mysteries, the social-media savvy Trending Topic Mysteries, and the book-loving Book Blogger Mysteries. Sarah serves on the NY Tri-State Sisters in Crime board as the social media liaison, and is the creative mind behind BookstaBundles, a digital content design service for authors. When she’s not spinning up new stories or creating online posts, Sarah is off seeing Broadway musicals, reading up a storm, video gaming, and enjoying walks with her dog, Eevee. Visit her website at www.saraheburr.com to learn more about her many projects.

Finola Austin, also known as the Secret Victorianist on her award-winning blog, is an England-born, Northern Ireland-raised, Brooklyn-based historical novelist and lover of the 19th century. Her first novel, Bronte’s Mistress, was published by Atria Books in 2020. By day, Finola works as a Creative Strategist at Meta (formerly Facebook), advising brands on their Facebook and Instagram advertising. Find her online at www.finolaaustin.com.

 

Chapter members will receive a Zoom link for this event.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Come join us for a Sisters in Crime event we’re very excited about. Sisters in Crime Tri-State New York and San Diego are collaborating to present our two anthologies: CROSSING BORDERS and JUSTICE FOR ALL: MURDER NEW YORK STYLE. The premises, settings, voices, characters and crimes are wonderfully diverse in these stories. Nevertheless, we’ve organized the discussion in panels around around some overall issues and themes:

• Same As It Ever Was: Historical Perspectives
• Same As It Never Was: The Dangers of Assumption
• Shame As It Always Was: The Scourge of Discrimination
• Breaking All The Laws: Genre-Bending Plots and POV
• Dames Looking into Cause: Seeking the Truth
• Aim and Revise the Flaws: The Editors Take Stock

More than twenty authors from both coasts will give their insights on how they dealt with these issues. The four editors will tell us how they chose the stories and how they suggested improvements.

Please register in advance at the link below. Free and open to anyone interested, SinC member or not. Please spread the word.

CLICK HERE TO REGISTER

After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar.

Join us for our annual Open Mic Night, and members read for their published and unpublished works!

Kathleen Kalb, Catherine Maiorisi, Mally Becker, Sarah Burr, Cathi Stoler, Nancy Good, Ursula Renee, Constance Meccarello, Peggy Katalinich, Nina Mansfield, Catherine Siemann, and Lori Robbins will entertain us with readings. 

Please CLICK HERE to register for this Zoom Event.

Edgar Winner Joanna Shaffhausen will be joining us as our guest of honor for a conversation about all things writing. So please join us to toast the end of 2021 and the beginning of 2022.

Joanna Schaffhausen is the award-winning author of the Ellery Hathaway mystery series and the new thriller, Gone for Good. She has a doctorate in psychology, which reflects her long-standing interest in the brain―how it develops and the many ways it can go wrong. Previously, she worked as an editorial producer for ABC News, writing for programs such as World News Tonight, Good Morning America, and 20/20. She is the current Vice President for the New England chapter of Mystery Writers of America. She lives in the Boston area with her husband, daughter, and an obstreperous basset hound named Winston.

For our monthly meeting on October 20th at 6:30 pm, fellow sib Edgar-nominated Mariah Fredericks will be talking with the best-selling and award-winning author Elizabeth Kerri Mahon about her new book PRETTY EVIL NEW YORK focused on Gotham’s most fascinating female criminals, including Ruth Snyder, immortalized in James M. Cain’s novella Double Indemnity; serial killer Lizzie Halliday, nicknamed the Worst Woman in the World; and Celia Cooney, the Bobbed Hair Bandit.

This event will be held on Zoom and is open to the public. CLICK HERE TO REGISTER.

Stop by table #427 at the Brooklyn Book Festival!

Our anthology will be on sale throughout the day, and the following Sisters in Crime authors will be selling and signing books:

10:00-11:00	Catherine Siemann	Lori Robbins
11:00-12:00	Elizabeth Mannion	Dawn Barclay
12:00-1:00	Constance Meccarello-Gerson	Nina Mansfield
1:00-2:00	Lori Robbins	Cathi Stoler
2:00-3:00	Nancy Good	Tina deBellegarde
3:00-4:00	Mally Becker	Nina Wachsman
4:00-5:00	Mary Jo Robertiello	Susie Case