I feel like there are authors who excel at short
stories. I’ve enjoyed various such authors over the years, from O. Henry to
John Updike to Sarah M. Chen. I’ve written a few myself, but it takes a different
sort of skill to craft a novel than a short punch of a tale.
Last year, I decided to challenge myself by writing to
a theme and submitting my work. I’m happy to announce that my short stories
were accepted by two anthologies. The first, Festive
Mayhem,
is a collection of holiday-themed tales of suspense and mystery. The stories
range in flavor from warm and cozy to downright cold. Here’s a rundown of the
works you’ll find in the collection:
•
"The New Year's Hex" by Carolyn Marie Wilkins. Carrie McFarland finds
her New Year's plans derailed when a psychic vision pulls the 1920s African
American amateur sleuth into someone's evil scheme.
• "Pipe Dreams" by S.G. Wong. In this
hard-boiled Crescent City short story, infatuation and passion drive Minnie
Chen straight into danger as she tries to best the City's most glamorous
private detective in a reimagined 1930s-era Chinese Los Angeles.
• "A Christmas Tip" by Elizabeth
Wilkerson. A surprise Christmas bonus becomes too tempting for Philadelphia
nursing assistant Brianna Byers to resist—even if accepting requires some
skillful skirting of the law.
• "The Stranger in the House" by
Stella Oni. This London House Mystery prequel stars Elizabeth Ojo, a Nigerian
housekeeper at a posh guest house, who finds her Christmas intersecting with
that of a mysterious resident in trouble.
• "What Lies Inside" by Kia Dennis. A
tormented university professor falls deeper and deeper into a destructive
obsession in this harrowing tale of love and longing.
• "A Deadly First" by Delia C. Pitts.
Thanksgiving takes a fatal turn when New York private eye SJ Rook finds himself
thrust into his first murder case in this darkly atmospheric tale of noir.
• "The Holiday Murder Mélange" by Myra
Jolivet. This Sarah Doucette Jean-Louis short story follows the Creole P.I.
around the San Francisco Bay Area on her quest to figure out who killed a man
outside of her office.
• "Those Holiday Blues" by Jennifer J.
Chow. Jasmine, aka "Jazz," can't escape the tragic past when an old
boyfriend asks to meet on the anniversary of his mother's death.
• "Holiday Holdup" by Paige Sleuth. In
this Cozy Cat Caper Mystery Short, Imogene Little gets tangled up in a
Christmas Eve bank robbery orchestrated by none other than Santa Claus himself.
The second
anthology releases in fall of 2021. Spearheaded by our very own Abby L.
Vandiver, it’ll be published by Crooked Lane Books. The collection will feature
original mystery and crime stories from nineteen authors of color.
Although
my mystery writing specialty is cozy series, I’ve veered off course for these
anthologies. The stories in them are more chilling than my usual fare. I think
I needed a break from the same type of writing, and I also wanted to stretch my
creative wings. Sometimes I doubt myself and wonder if I should have strayed
from my typical writing style. Share your thoughts below.
Do
you prefer stories similar to an author’s previous works? Why or why not?
