Sisters in Crime Australia is proud to announce that 28 stories by 28 authors have been shortlisted for its 31st Scarlet Stiletto Awards for best crime short stories written by Australian women. This year 195 stories are vying for a record $13,400 in prize money.
The shortlisted authors come from all over Australia – and New Zealand: In alphabetical order, they are: Robyn Black (VIC) for “Old Truths”; Jenny Blacklock NSW)for “The Applewood Murder”; Josephine Brick (VIC) for “Visions of Rome”; Heidi Catherine (QLD) for “Heel and Toad”; Laree Chapman (QLD) for “Capeweed”; Blanche Clark (VIC) for “Unconscionable”; Sherryl Clark (NZ) for “From Above”; Ellen Coates (VIC) for “The Cold Case of Southern Death”; Vicky Daddo (VIC) for “Tilt and Load”; Fiona Hardy (VIC) for “Green Thumbs”; Samantha Holz (QLD) for “Loops & Spirals”; Kimberley Ivory (NSW) for “You Didn’t Have to Be There”; Alyssa Mackay (QLD) for “Murder in the Cards”; Naomi Manuel (VIC) for “The First Edition”; Rose Mebrhatu (VIC) for “The Echoes We Leave Behind”; Janet Moore (VIC) for “The Mismatch”; Amy Anshaw-Nye (NSW) for “Red Oxide”; Andrea Pavleka (VIC) for “Spiked”; Helen Richardson (NSW) for “The Drawing Class”; Averil Robertson (VIC) for “What Needs To Be Done”; Janice Shaw (NSW) for “Neighbourhood Watch”; Jessica Southern-Reid (NSW) for “Amelia Anderson Is All At Sea”; Michelle Stephens (VIC) for “The Wednesday Widow”; Nikki Lee Taylor (NSW) for “Lilly Pilly, Don’t Be Silly”; Katrina Watson (VIC) for “Crime and Management”; Jennifer White (VIC) for “Under the Circumstances”; Stephanie Whitelock McMillan (NSW) for “Noblesse Oblige”; and Ingrid Wren (TAS) for “The Visit of the Vocabulum”.
Awards are presented in the following categories: 1st, 2nd, 3rd, Young Writer (under 19), Campus Crime; Art and Crime; ‘Body in The Library’ (including runner-up); Most Satisfying Retribution; Mystery with History; Malice Domestic; Cross-Genre; Thriller; Great Film Idea; Best Disabled Protagonist and the new Cate Kennedy Award for Best Story Inspired by a Forensic Clue.
All authors receive a framed certificate and, if lucky, they also win one of the 16 prizes on offer. The first-prize winner also scores a spectacular trophy – a scarlet stiletto shoe with a steel stiletto heel plunging into a mount.
Scarlet Stiletto judging coordinator Professor Emerita Christina Lee, a two-time shoe winner, said the judging process was a challenging but very enjoyable exercise.
“This year saw a large number of stories focusing on domestic violence, many with resilient characters and strong, hopeful endings,” she said.
“The judges were impressed by the many stories that challenged our expectations. We were intrigued by unexpected twists, and amused by clever plotting and witty turns of phrase.”
The 31st Scarlet Stiletto Awards ceremony will be held on Saturday 23 November, 6 for 6.30 pm, at Rising Sun Hotel, 2 Raglan Street, South Melbourne.
Multi-award-winning author, Candice Fox, will present the awards, after first discussing her life in crime with fellow award-winning author, Sarah Bailey.
The dress code is scarlet.
Candice Fox will also launch Scarlet Stiletto: The Sixteenth Cut, an e-book of the winning stories, published by Clan Destine Press. Bookings for the award ceremony here.
The Scarlet Stiletto Awards national short story competition was established in 1994. To date, 4777 stories have been entered with 34 Scarlet Stiletto Award trophy or category winners going on to have books published including Cate Kennedy, Tara Moss, Angela Savage, Natalie Conyer, Fin J. Ross, Anna Snoekstra, Ellie Marney, Inga Simpson, Aoife Clifford, Veronica Lando, and Louise Bassett.
The competition prizes are kindly sponsored by Swinburne University of Technology; Simon & Schuster; Melbourne Athenaeum; Every Cloud Productions; Writers Victoria; Sun Bookshop; Fremantle Press; Allen & Unwin; HQ Fiction; Clan Destine Press; Monash University; ScriptWorks; Kerry Greenwood; the Brisbane Chapter of Sisters in Crime; Cate Kennedy; and the late Viliama Grakalic.
More info on the Scarlet Stiletto Awards here.
More comment: Professor Emerita Christina Lee, c.lee@psy.uq.edu.au; 0424 003 285
More information: Carmel Shute, National Co-convenor, admin@sistersincrime.org.au; 0412 569 356