Crime writers and fans gathered at South Melbourne’s Rising Sun Hotel on Saturday night (23 November) to paint the town red as they celebrated the 31st anniversary of Sisters in Crime’s Scarlet Stiletto Awards for best short stories. Scarlet was the prescribed dress code and, while the authors and their pals might be dedicated to crime and intricacies of law-breaking, they nearly all obeyed! Some even went to the effort of wearing scarlet stilettos or, in one case, long red satin gloves (despite the heat).
This year, 195 short stories competed for a record $13,400 in prize money. Over the lifetime of the awards, 4777 stories have been entered with 34 Scarlet Stiletto trophy and category winners going on to have books published. These include Cate Kennedy, Tara Moss, Angela Savage, Aoife Clifford, Ellie Marney, Josephine Pennicott, and Anna Snoekstra.
“Lilly Pilly, Don’t Be Silly” by Newcastle author Nikki Lee Taylor won the Swinburne University of Technology First Prize ($2000) and the coveted trophy, a scarlet stiletto shoe with a steel stiletto heel plunging into a mount.
“This is such an incredible honour. When I entered, my goal was just to be short-listed,” Taylor said. “To actually win the Sisters in Crime Scarlet Stiletto Award is something I could never have imagined.”
Taylor’s story is a chilling tale narrated by a teenage protagonist, exploring themes of abuse and bullying. Known for her deeply empathetic and character-driven narratives, Taylor’s work often highlights the strength and resilience of women and girls who have faced profound trauma.
“I wanted to write something that felt unexpected but was still relatable and authentic,” she said. “The expectation of a crime story is usually that a murder or incident occurs to a third party, but it’s important to also consider the impact of crimes we commit against ourselves, especially as women, and often without even realising it.”
Taylor is a former journalist, whose work around PTSD was recognised by the Journalism Media & Storytelling Awards panel. She is currently on a hiatus from work to pursue her goal of becoming a full-time author. When Taylor is not writing, she is an avid photographer and competes in various disciplines of canine sports with her cocker spaniel Saxon.
Multi-award-winning author, Candice Fox, presented the awards after discussing her life in crime with host, multi-award-winning author, Sarah Bailey. Fox’s novel, Crimson Lake, is the basis for the TV drama, Troppo, whose third series will screen on the ABC next year. The Dark Lake, the first novel in Bailey’s Gemma Woodstock series, is currently in development with Brouhaha Entertainment and Stan, with Phoebe Tonkin to play Gemma. Fittingly, Fox wore a t-shirt decorated with blood splatters and the words ‘problem solved’, a gift from her husband.
Emerita Professor Christina Lee, a double-shoe winner, coordinated the final judging session and said in her introduction to the collection of winning stories that the judges noticed a strong emphasis on domestic violence and abuse.
“Every ten days in Australia, a woman dies, and countless other lives are shattered, as a direct result of domestic violence. Writing fictional stories about this does not trivialise it: it highlights the strength and ingenuity with which women and children can, and do, take control of their circumstances. From this perspective, it is heartening to see the many ways this year’s authors have approached the topic,” she said.
“Of course, authors wrote about plenty of other topics as well. There were police procedurals and PI capers and space adventures and ordinary women leading their lives in complex circumstances. We were reminded that crimes can happen everywhere and involve everyone. This year’s new category, the Forensic Clue (complete with mysterious photograph of a scarlet stiletto, an empty wine bottle, and a doorway with a Chinese restaurant menu) attracted a huge variety of intriguing entries. Our regular categories, including Art and Crime, Cross-Genre, and the ever-popular Body in the Library, again attracted very strong fields and enormous variety.”
The Simon & Schuster Second Prize ($1000) went to Heidi Catherine (Macleod, Victoria) for “Heel and Toad”, a witty story about a woman plotting the demise of her (adoring) husband with the help of a cane toad. When not dabbling in her life of crime writing, Heidi Catherine writes fantasy and dystopian novels. While she quite enjoys killing her characters (especially the awful ones), she promises she’s far better behaved in real life.
The Sun Bookshop & Fremantle Press Third Prize ($750) was won by Blanche Clark (Highett, Victoria) for “Unconscionable”. There are so many injustices in the world, but during the pandemic Clark was struck by the tragedy and senselessness of people coming to Australia in search of a better life, only to die on our roads. Clark, a former Herald Sun journalist, won the Scarlet Stiletto trophy in 2019 and now works as a content editor and studies creative writing part-time at Swinburne University. She sported a deadly pair of scarlet stilettos, purchased that day from Savers.
The Allen & Unwin Award for Best Young Writer (under 19) went to 15-year-old Rose Mebrhatu (Sunshine Victoria) for “The Echoes We Leave Behind”. Anna Carter, a quiet librarian in a small town, spends her days documenting the lives of others—until the arrival of Victor Hale, a mysterious researcher, disrupts her routine. As secrets unfold, she confronts the haunting echoes of the past, exploring themes of guilt, betrayal, and the desperate lengths people will go to protect their truth. Mebrhatu enjoys exploring dark, psychological themes in her crime fiction. This is her first time being shortlisted for the Scarlet Stiletto Awards, and she’s excited to continue honing her craft and telling compelling stories.
The Melbourne Athenaeum Body-in-the-Library Library Award ($1250) went to Naomi Manuell (Brighton, Victoria) for “The First Edition”.As the cost-of-living crisis bites, a young teacher takes extra work at a catering company to make ends meet. But a shock revelation at a millionaire’s party on St Kilda Esplanade leads to a crisis of conscience. Is she brave enough to take a stand? Or will her invisibility (and an unlikely partner-in-crime) be her biggest strength? Manuell worked briefly as a lawyer before moving to London where she was a reporter on a satellite TV channel specialising in business news. Later, she produced TV programs on new media and digital technology. Her nonfiction work has been published in Meanjin.
The Melbourne Athenaeum Body-in-the-Library Library Runner-Up Award ($750) was won by Katrina Watson (Balaclava, Victoria) for “Crime and Management” which is a simple, yet hands-on guide to managing the modern criminal gang. Further volumes for aspiring criminal leaders are available for the taking from your local bookshop, she says. Watson is a retired doctor. She has one novel published (The Bones, 2023) and one on the way (Tsunami). She’s been runner-up in several national short story competitions and has an OAM.
The HQ Fiction Award for Best Thriller ($1000) was taken out by Fiona Hardy (Forest Hill, VIC) for “Green Thumbs”. Morally flexible detectives Teddy and Alice are given a job: to find the owner of a severed thumb found by startled gardener Ellie Mainwaring in her suburban backyard. Hardy is a writer, reviewer, and bookseller. Her debut crime novel, Unbury the Dead, is coming out in March by Affirm Press. She was also commended in the recent Thunderbolt Awards. Hardy was unable to attend.
“The Applewood Murder” by Jenny Blackford (Wallsend, NSW) won the Clan Destine Press Award for Cross Genre ($750). “The Applewood Murder” started on a cruise ship, with an astonishingly good small troupe of Cirque-type performers. All that was necessary to round the evening out was a murder. Blackford won two prizes in the 2016 awards and the 2020 Davitt Award for Best Children’s Crime Novel. Blackford was unable to attend.
The Malice Domestic Award worth $750 went to Jennifer White (Sandford, Victoria) for “Under the Circumstances”. Over the years, having met too many women of all ages who continue throughout their lives to battle the often hidden but enduring effects of childhood abuse, Jen asked herself: What circumstances would make a young woman commit murder? White’s fiction and non-fiction have been published in regional, national, and international hardcopy and web-based publications and won several writing competitions. For a time, she edited and published a literary magazine and undertook manuscript assessments for other hopefuls.
The Monash University Award for Best Campus Crime worth $600 went to Stephanie Whitelock Mcmillan (Austinmer, New South Wales) for “Noblesse Oblige”. The sophisticated, successful head of Sydney’s exclusive All-Saints College – thinks the past, including the crimes he’s committed, is behind him but there is still a score to be settled. McMillan has degrees in fine arts, law, and communications, and has worked in publicity, public relations, and policy (with varying degrees of success) but writing has been her life-long passion. McMillan was unable to attend.
The ScriptWorks Great Film Idea Award ($500) was won by Jessica Southern-Reid (Bermagui, New South Wales) for “Amelia Anderson is All at Sea”. Amelia
Anderson is not the kind of person who goes on cruises, or tries new things on
the menu, or reads salacious fiction. At least, the old Amelia Anderson wasn’t
that kind of person. But the new Amelia Anderson comes along with new problems.
First and foremost, somebody seems to want her dead. Southern-Reid splits
her time between Australia and Denmark. She won the 2020 Scarlet Stiletto prize
and would love to have the set of stilettos one day. She has a wife named Maja
and three chickens named Garlic, Onion, and Horseradish. Southern-Reid was unable to attend.
The Viliama Grakalic Award worth $750 for Best Art and Crime Story went to Amy Anshaw-Nye from St Marys North, New South Wales for “Red Oxide”. Struggling artist Lucy Berry is plucked from obscurity to attend the world-renowned Victoria Finley Artists’ Residency. Competing against two talented rivals for a mentorship with Ms Finley herself, Lucy knows that this is the opportunity of a lifetime — but would somebody kill for it? “Red Oxide” is an exploration of the high price of ambition. Anshaw-Nye, a writer, is a WestWords Academy alum and was a recipient of the 2023 Varuna-WestWords Emerging Writers’ Residency. Her prose has been published in a variety of publications, including ZineWest, Verandah Journal, and the BAD Western Sydney Anthology. Anshaw-Nye was also unable to attend.
The inaugural Cate Kennedy Award for Best Story Inspired by a Forensic Clue ($500) – a scarlet stiletto shoe, lying mysteriously abandoned next to a wine bottle in the entrance to a Chinese restaurant – went to Kimberley Ivory (Orange East, New South Wales) for “You Didn’t Have to Be There”. Quirky forensic scientist Kate MacMillan is horrified when her own DNA turns up at crime scenes she’s never visited. Kate puts her scientific reputation on the line, ignoring her pesky conscience and dodging her dysfunctional workmates, to solve the ‘how dunnit’ before she is mistaken for the ‘who dunnit’. Ivory is a forensic examiner by night and a mystery writer by day. A lifelong scribbler, she has juggled careers in medicine, journalism and academia, but always with a passion for stories.
Sisters in Crime’s Queensland Chapter’s Liz Navratil Award for the story with the Best
Disabled Protagonist, worth $500, went to Queenslander (!!), Samantha Holz
from Eli Waters for “Loops and Spirals”. Tucked away in their scenic rainforest home, Gia and her mother hide away from a traumatic past. The anxiety Gia works hard to manage
daily is tested when police show up at their door, bringing that past with them. Samantha is studying Creative Writing with Curtin University and working towards becoming a published author. Holz was unable to attend.
The Writers’ Victoria Crime and Punishment Award for the most satisfying retribution, a very well-patronized award, went to Laree Chapman (Brayan, Bundaberg, Queensland), for “Capeweed”. The prize used to be getting to sit in a cell for 3 months at Old Melbourne Gaol. Now it’s a Zoom course worth $300. Chapman draws on her early experiences living on a remote island to explore themes of isolation and resilience. In 2020 her adult historical crime story “Hawker’s Road: The Hangman’s Noose” was placed second in the CYA: Everything’s A GenreCompetition. Chapman’s story “Smooth” won the 2024 GenreCon Short Story competition.
Highly commended framed certificates went to:
- Robyn Black (Tatura, Victoria) for “Old Truths”
- Josephine Brick (Frankston South, Victoria) for “Visions of Rome”
- Sherryl Clark (Kamo, NZ) For “From Above”
- Ellen Coates (Elsternwick, Vic) For “The Cold Case of Southern Death”
- Vicky Daddo (Hazelwood South, Victoria” for “Tilt and Load”
- Andrea Pavleka (St Kilda East, Victoria) for “Spiked”
- Alyssa Mackay (Springwood, Queensland) for “Murder in the Cards”.
- Janet Moore (Portarlington, Victoria) for “The Mismatch”
- Helen Richardson (Anna Bay, NSW) for “The Drawing Class”
- Averil Robertson (Albion, Victoria) for “What Needs to Be Done”
- Janice Shaw (Belmont North, New South Wales) for “Neighbourhood Watch”
- Michelle Stephens (Fitzroy North, Victoria) for “The Wednesday Widow”
- Ingrid Wren (Lenah Valley, Tasmania) for “The Visit of the Vocabulum”
A mystery judge – Susanna Lobez, fashionista, true crime author, broadcaster, and podcaster – presented the Better Red than Dead prizes for the best scarlet outfits to Yeshi Weldhiwot, mother of the youth award winner, Rose Mebrhatu, and Chris Reed, resplendent in a red satin cloak.
Candice Fox also launched Scarlet Stiletto: The Sixteenth Cut, an e-book collection of the 2024 winning stories, edited by Phyllis King ($7.99) https://www.clandestinepress.net/
Also, available is the paperback of the winning stories over the first 30 years, The Scarlet Stiletto: 30 Years of Mystery, Murder and Malice, edited by Lindy Cameron. (paperback $36.99; e-book $7.99). https://www.clandestinepress.net/products/the-scarlet-stiletto?_pos=2&_sid=d6cc4e961&_ss=r
Prizes were kindly sponsored by Swinburne University of Technology, Simon & Schuster, the Sun Bookshop, Fremantle Press; the Melbourne Athenaeum Library, Kerry Greenwood, Every Cloud Productions; the Viliama Grakalic estate; Writers Victoria, HQ Fiction, Allen & Unwin, Clan Destine Press, Monash University, the Queensland Chapter of Sisters in Crime, Cate Kennedy, and ScriptWorks.
The 32nd Scarlet Stiletto Awards close on 31 August 2025.
Info & author interviews: Carmel Shute, National Co-convenor, Sisters in Crime: 0412 569 356; admin@sistersincrime.org.au or go to www.sistersincrime.org.au