November 5, 2009

On October 13, two Jane Lawless mysteries that haven't been available in over a decade were released by Bella Books & Distribution: A Small Sacrifice and Faint Praise.

A Small Sacrifice won the Lambda Literary Award & The Minnesota Book Award.
"An absorbing plot... superior." —Publishers Weekly

Faint Praise won the Minnesota Book Award and was nominated for a Lammy.
"Hart's fans will rejoice in the sixth Jane Lawless mystery. Full of wit and wicked deeds, fast pacing and memorable characters, it is the best caper yet." —Booklist, Starred Review

August 6, 2009

Newsflash: The Mortal Groove, the 15th Jane Lawless mystery, is a winner of the Golden Crown Literary Award in the Dramatic General Fiction category.

June 26, 2009

Sweet Poison, the newest Jane Lawless mystery, has been shortlisted for the Golden Crown Literary Award in the Best Mystery category.

The Mortal Groove, the 15th Jane Lawless mystery, has been shortlisted for the Golden Crown Literary Award in the Dramatic General Fiction category.

Winners will be announced at the GCLS Conference in Orlando, Florida, in late July.

May 5, 2009

Happy springtime to everyone! Some good news to report this time around. I just signed a new contract with St. Martin's/Minotaur in New York for two more Jane Lawless mysteries. In the current publishing environment, with the economy in such bad shape and publishers scrambling to figure out how to weather the storm, I wasn't at all sure that another contract offer would be forthcoming. I'm thrilled to be continuing with the series—and also thrilled that Bella Books will, in the next few years, be republishing all the Lawless titles in trade paperback. Many of the Lawless mysteries have been out of print for ten years or more. Two older titles, A Small Sacrifice and Faint Praise, will be released by Bella Books this fall to coincide with St. Martin's release of the paperback of Sweet Poison, and the next in the series, The Mirror and the Mask. The Bella editions should hit stores in October, the St. Martin's editions, in early November.

On another upbeat note, Sweet Poison has been nominated for this year's Lambda Literary Award for Best Lesbian Mystery. I've been nominated before, but each time it comes with such a rush of excitement that it almost takes my breath away. Needless to say, I feel deeply honored to be in such great company. I wish I could be in New York for the ceremony, but time and commitments don't allow. If you've never been to the awards, you might want to think about attending this year. The gala will be held on May 28th at the Proshansky Auditorium, 5th Avenue at 34th Street, in NYC. For more information and to buy tickets, here's the link.

Every May, New Orleans plays host to the Saints & Sinners Literary Festival. This year I'll be teaching a master class on revisions, as well as doing a few panels and taking part in a reading as part of the 2009 Lammy Finalist Reading Series. The French Quarter is probably the best place on earth to hold a writing festival -- lots of wonderful restaurants, hot music leaking out of every doorway, and an ambiance like no other in the U.S. This will be the third time I've attended and I always go away feeling inspired by the wonderful writing being done in the GLBT community. Do check it out.

I'm now on Facebook. I've resisted this for years because I thought it would eat up too much time. After having coffee with a dear friend recently—RD Zimmerman, who currently writes under the name Robert Alexander and is (fingers crossed) moving ever closer to seeing a major motion picture made of the first book in his Russian series, The Kitchen Boy—I finally took the plunge. RD told me how much fun he was having, how it was a good way to keep connected with friends and fans. He was so encouraging that I had to see for myself what it was like. And amazingly, I love it. Sure, it can be a time eater, but I find that I check in once a day to see what's going on, spend maybe fifteen minutes reading others posts and perhaps posting something myself. Come join me!

The Minnesota Crime Wave—William Kent Krueger, Carl Brookins, and myself—continue to produce a monthly TV show, The Minnesota Crime Wave Presents. We've done well over a dozen shows now, which are available on the MCW site as well as YouTube—and locally in Minnesota on cable TV—CTV 15. If you're interested in all things mystery, check it out. We interview a writer, or someone directly involved in the mystery community, in each episode.

I continue to read voraciously—fiction, biography, memoir, history, current events. I'm thinking about adding a "What I'm Reading" section to my website. I also just completed the final revision of my latest novel—The Mirror and the Mask—and look forward to the copyedits. I'm feeling my way into the next Lawless story, although I've been side-tracked by several other story ideas that have been percolating inside my head for many years. Way too much to do and not enough time. I'll be teaching my "An Introduction to Writing the Modern Mystery" again this fall at The Loft Literary Center. More on that in the next update. This past winter, I taught my first intermediate mystery writing course and will, this summer, teach my first advanced course. I love teaching and as long as there is the interest, I hope to continue to teach three courses a year—one at The Loft, and two independently.

As always, my warmest wishes to all of you for a peaceful spring and summer.

Ellen