Category Archives: Updates from Toni

Rejoicing, Cavorting, and Doing the Dance of Joy!

Awards, Updates from Toni

Just found out this morning that my story “The Pirate’s Debt” is a finalist for a Derringer Award. The Derringers are given by the Short Mystery Fiction Society. Finalists are determined by blind judging by volunteer judges from the SMFS membership. The the members have a month to vote for the winners. This year, the winners will be announced May 1. I’ll be in DC for Malice Domestic, but you can bet I’ll be checking for the announcement frequently.

Congratulations to all the finalists. I’ve listed them all below:

BEST FLASH STORY (Up to 1,000 Words)

“And Here’s To You, Mrs. Edwardson,” by Hamilton Waymire
Published in the webzine *Big Pulp*, November 23, 2009

“Awake” by David Dean
Published in EQMM, July 2009

“Gutterball” by Stephen D. Rogers
Published in Woman’s World Magazine, Sep 7, 2009

“The Right Track” by R.T. Lawton
Published in Woman’s World Magazine, 10/26/09

“Unplanned” by Libby Cudmore
Published in Thrillers, Killers ‘n’ Chillers, August 2009

BEST SHORT STORY (1,001 – 4,000 Words)

“Identity Theft” by Robert Weibezahl
Published in Beat to a Pulp, March 2009

“The Biography of Stoop the Thief” by Steven Torres
Published in Uncage Me!, July 2009

“The Hard Sell” by Jay Stringer
Published in Beat to a Pulp, 2009

“The Right to Remain Silent” by Debbi Mack
Published in Back Alley Webzine, August 2009

“Twas the Night” by Anita Page
Published in The Gift of Murder, 2009

BEST LONG STORY (4,001 – 8,000 Words)

“A Stab in the Heart” by Twist Phelan
Published in EQMM, February

“Famous Last Words” by Doug Allyn
Published in EQMM, November

“Regarding Certain Occurrences in a Cottage at the Garden of Allah” by Robert S. Levinson
Published in AHMM, November

“Snow of Bloedkoppie” by Berhard Jaumann (translated from the German by Mary Tannert)
Published in EQMM, August

“The Shipbreaker” by Mike Wiecek
Published in EQMM, March/April

BEST NOVELETTE (8,001 – 17,500 Words)

“Adjuncts Anonymous” by B.K. Stevens
Published in EQMM, June

“Julius Katz” by Dave Zeltserman
Published in EQMM, September/October

“The Last Drop” by R.W. Kerrigan
Published in EQMM, February

“The Pirate’s Debt” by Toni L.P. Kelner
Published in EQMM, August

“Uncle Brick and Jimmy Kills” by Allan Leverone
Published in Mysterical-E

Ahoy! Pirates sighted on the horizon!

Uncategorized, Updates from Toni

Avast me hearties! There be a new pirate mystery on the horizon!

Or, in less piratical terms, my story “The Pirate’s Debt” appears in the August issue of Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, which I just received today. To add to the pleasure, my name is on the cover!

“The Pirate’s Debt” is the sequel to my Anthony-nominated story “Skull and Cross-Examinations,” which is currently posted on the Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine site.

Any new publication is cause for celebration and to hoist a tankard of rum! Of course, to Blood-eye Val, any excuse is good enough!

PirateValSepia

Kissing Cousins a Mystery Lovers Bookshop Bestseller!

Updates from Toni

I’m a happy camper today–a happy bestselling camper. Curse of the Kissing Cousins is #10 on the May paperback bestseller list for the amazing Mystery Lovers Bookshop in Oakmont, PA! I was at the story for their annual Mystery Festival the first Tuesday in May, and had a such a good time. This is just icing on the cake. Many thanks to the fine people of Oakmont!

The May list isn’t on the Mystery Lovers web site yet, so in the meantime, I’ll put it here:

Hardcover

  1. Look Again by Lisa Scottoline (St. Martin’s)
  2. Fatally Flaky by Diane Mott Davidson (HarperCollins)
  3. Scarecrow by Michael Connelly (Little Brown)
  4. Killer Cuts by Elaine Viets (Obsidian)
  5. The Way Home by George Pelecanos (Little Brown)
  6. In the Shadow of Gotham by Stefanie Pintoff (Minotaur)
  7. Murder on Waverly Place by Victoria Thompson (Berkley)
  8. The Big Dirt Nap by Rosemary Harris (Minotaur)
  9. Killer Keepsakes by Jane K. Cleland (Minotaur)
  10. Posed for Murder by Meredith S. Cole (Minotaur)

 

Trade Paperback

  1. Death of a Cozy Writer by G.M. Malliet (Midnight Ink)
  2. Paper, Scissors, Death by Joanna Campbell Slan (Midnight Ink)
  3. Would-Be Witch by Kimberly Frost (Berkley)
  4. Dead Man Dancing by Marcia Talley (Severn House)
  5. The War Against Miss Winter by Katherine Miller Haines (Harper)
  6. The Forever Man by C. William Davis III
  7. Death and the Lit Chick by G.M. Malliet (Midnight Ink)
  8. The Turnaround by George Pelecanos (Back Bay Books)
  9. Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Schaffer (Dial Press)
  10. Gold Digger by Vicki Delany (Rendezvous Press) TIED WITH In the Shadow of the Glacier by Vicki Delany (Poisoned Pen Press)

 

Mass Market Paperback

  1. Clubbed to Death by Elaine Viets (Obsidian)
  2. Hounding the Pavement by Judi McCoy (Signet)
  3. The Cat, the Quilt and the Corpse by Leann Sweeney (Obsidian)
  4. The Map Thief by Heather Terrell (Ballantine)
  5. Still Life by Louise Penny (St. Martin’s)
  6. The Clockwork Teddy by John J. Lamb (Berkley)
  7. Bookmarked for Death by Lorna Barrett (Berkley)
  8. Pushing Up Daisies by Rosemary Harris (Minotaur) TIED WITH Some Like It Hot-Buttered by Jeffrey Cohen (Berkley)
  9. Deadly Appraisal by Jane K. Cleland (Minotaur) TIED WITH Death Loves a Messy Desk by Mary Jane Maffini (Berkley)
  10. Curse of the Kissing Cousins by Toni L.P. Kelner (Berkley)

Anthony award nomination sighted, cap’n!

Awards, Updates from Toni

Ahoy, mateys! The latest scuttlebutt is that my story “Skull and Cross-Examinations” has been nominated for an Anthony Award for Best Short Story! If that’s not enough to make you want to dance a hornpipe or two, you’ve been at sea too long. Might I suggest a generous portion of rum to help you achieve the proper state of mind? That always does the job for this here pirate.

For you landlubbers out there, the Anthony Awards are given by the attendees of Bouchercon, the annual World Mystery Convention. The convention ships to various ports, but this year’s port of call is Indianapolis, IN in October, and you can bet I’ll be setting sail for the city as soon as I can figure out which body of water comes closest.

Now I wouldn’t be much of a pirate if I didn’t seize partial credit for one of the other nominated stories: my shipmate Dana Cameron’s story “The Night Things Changed.” And I’m not just stealing the treasure of a nomination! Dana’s story was published in Wolfsbane and Mistletoe, the werewolf Christmas anthology co-captained by Charming Charlaine Harris and myself. So I’m entitled to a fair share! Anybody who says different will have Charming Charlaine to answer to, and we all know she’s a bloodthirsty wench if ever there was one.

Here’s the full list of short story nominations for your reading enjoyment. I’ve put in those new-fangled links for you to navigate to some of the stories, but some aren’t up yet and others aren’t being put up because publishers wanting to protect them against piracy. (Can’t be blaming ’em for that!) But as any new links show on me charts, I’ll put ’em up here.

  • “The Night Things Changed” by Dana Cameron, Wolfsbane & Mistletoe (Ace) 
  • “A Sleep Not Unlike Death” by Sean Chercover, Hardcore Hardboiled (Kensington)
  • “Killing Time” by Jane K. Cleland, Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine – November 2008
  • “Skull and Cross-Examinations” by Toni L.P. Kelner, Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine – February 2008
  • “Scratch a Woman” by Laura Lippman, Hardly Knew Her (William Morrow)
  • “The Secret Lives of Cats” by Kristine Kathryn Rusch, Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine – July 2008

Now the reason I’m sharing these stories, which don’t come easy to a pirate, is so that any of you scurvy dogs meaning to attend Bouchercon can read them and know just which story to cast you vote for. Of course, if any other scalawags were to read ’em without even intending to go to Bouchercon, well, there’d be nothing we could do to stop ’em.

Who Killed the Pinup Queen?

Updates from Toni

That’s what Tilda Harper will be trying to find out in the next “Where Are They Now?” mystery. I turned in the manuscript for Who Killed the Pinup Queen not long ago, and my editor sent me the cover design last week.

WHO KILLED,,,

I love the cover, but will have to wait until January 2010 to get my hands on the actual Berkley Prime Crime book.

Guten Tag!

Translations, Updates from Toni

I recently got a peek at the cover for the German translation of Wolfsbane and Mistletoe. Or should I say Werwölfe Zu Weihnachten, which translates to “werewolves at Christmas.” I’m happy to see they’re using the wundebar Lisa Desimini illustration from the original edition.

Weinachten

The book itself will be out from DTV in October of this year, which will be sehr gut.

Well, Shiver me Timbers! An Agatha Nomination!

Awards, Updates from Toni

Last week, I got word that my story “Skull and Cross-Examinations” had been nominated for a Agatha Award for Best Short Story! And  you can bet that I’ve been one happy pirate ever since. I’d have posted about it sooner, but I’ve been busy dancing the hornpipe and perhaps the rum flowed a bit too freely.

For you landlubbers out there, Agatha Awards are given by the attendees of Malice Domestic, which is THE convention for fans and writers of traditional mysteries. I’m not sure what tradition a pirate courtroom drama falls into, but I’m not about to argue with an honor like this. I’m as happy as a buccaneer who’s spotted a slow-moving brig full of gold and rum, with the wind in his favor.

Being a greedy sort, I’m also claiming partial credit for one of the other nominated stories: my shipmate Dana Cameron’s story “The Night Things Changed.” And I’m not just stealing the treasure of a nomination! As it turns out, Dana’s story was published in Wolfsbane and Mistletoe, the werewolf Christmas anthology co-captained by Charming Charlaine Harris and myself.

Moreover, I’m acquainted with all the authors and editors involved in these stories, and I can say you won’t find a more blood-thirsty bunch of pirates anywhere. Of course, I mean that in a good way.

Like all pirates, I like to share my good fortune with my crew. Okay, maybe not like ALL pirates, but some pirates do share. Occasionally. If they’ve had enough rum. Apparently I have, because I have a treat for everybody. Not only has my story been posted for Agatha readers to take a look, but all five nominees are now online, and I’ve got the links all mapped out…

Now the reason sending these stories on this internet voyages is so that any swabbies meaning to attend Malice Domestic can read them and know just which story to cat their vote for. Of course, if any other scalawags were to read ’em without even intending to go to Malice, well, there’d be nothing we could do to stop ’em.

So here’s some literary booty for the taking. Just be warned. If you don’t go read these stories, well, these guys here might come looking for ye to find out why…

 

skull-illo1

Illustration by: Mark Evan Walker

New Year’s News?

Translations, Updates from Toni

A New Year is supposed to be put one’s focus on that which is new. New outlooks, new projects, and so on. And I am working on new stuff. I’m hip-deep in the new “Where are they now?” mystery, Charlaine Harris and I are working hard on our new urban fantasy anthology, and I’ve got short pieces scheduled for Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine and Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine. I’m even going to appear in a whole new sub-genre–I’ve written a noir PI story for a Bleak House anthology edited by Carolyn Haines. Of course, publishing pipelines are long, so that stuff won’t hit the shelves until later this year, or even in 2010.

For now, my new releases are actually new editions of older books.

  • Without Mercy was just released in a Wheeler Publishing Large Print trade paperback. I find it odd to look at my work in large print. It somehow looks as if the whole story is being told in shouts. I’d plug in the new cover, except it looks just like the hardcover.
  • Many Bloody Returns will be released in an Ace trade paperback on February, 3. The cover is a little new, so I’ll go ahead and post it.

bloody comp.indd

  • Though I can’t read enough Polish to tell what the release date is, Fabryka Slow has posted information about the Polish translation of Many Bloody Returns, or Krwawe Powroty, complete with a cover illustration. The newness here comes from it being my first Polish translation, and the cover, which is a whole new look–see for yourself.

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  • Curse of the Kissing Cousins will be released as a Berkley Prime Crime paperback on May 5. Though it’s technically a reprint of Without Mercy, with the spiffy new cover, the new title, and the new publisher, it feels like a new release, and I’m planning to hit the road to promote it. There will be a new author photo as well, which was actually taken January 2 of this year. Or does this count as a new edition of the old author…

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New Cover!

Uncategorized, Updates from Toni

Just got the cover for the upcoming release of Curse of the Kissing Cousins! And I love it!

Note that this is the Berkley Prime Crime paperback reprint of Without Mercy. (The title has been changed because Berkley already published a book with that title.) I loved the Five Star cover of Without Mercy, too. But I’m really glad to have a new look to go with the new title and new publisher.

For an author to get one good cover for a book is wonderful–getting two just seems like winning a lottery!