Freshen your link ma’am?

Ok, I’m awake now and properly rested. It’s about time for a proper introduction if I haven’t scared everyone away already. I’m even going to attempt a link roundup if I can figure it out.

I am indeed Bryon Quertermous and I’m writing this on a dreary, rainy day from Ann Arbor, Michigan. From my window I can see the massive blue scoreboard at Michigan Stadium penetrating the fog. I love Ann Arbor. It has more bookstores per capita than any other place in the country, including my favorite mystery bookstore Aunt Agatha’s.  There are at least fifteen in the immediate area that I know about. Of course there is also the Ann Arbor Attitude to deal with. Somebody once told the city they were the cultural center of the country and they still haven’t gotten the joke.

But I like it and it beats where I’m from with just one Borders store. Now let’s get to the links shall we?

First we start with a sad notice. Judy Corman, who helped popularize Harry Potter in the US has died at the age of 66. The New York Times carries her obituary.

Next up is a brand new edition of January Magazine. This month’s issue features interviews with James Lee Burke who discusses his National Book Award nomination and why he thinks his work will ultimately go out of fashion, Allan Folsom, Dylan Schaffer and Loren D. Estleman (who will be a major link in the Literary Michigan feature later today). They also have a review of Michael Chabon’s Sherlock Holmes novella The Final Solution.

I’m a little late on this one, but the Crime Fiction Dossier has links to some interesting script deals made in Hollywood recently including this one I’m particularly looking forward to:

Richard Price will adapt his own novel Freedomland for Scott Rudin and Joe Roth. The book deals with the aftermath of a carjacking that becomes a racially charged media sensation.

And more news on the plagarism front. A freelance writer is accusing "author" Kitty Kelly of plagarizing parts of her recent Bush-bashing book from him. I think my question on this again falls onto the Patterson camp, who the heck want to take credit for something Kitty Kelley puts in her books??! Bookninja has an interesting discussion going about the topic of plagerism in general.

Finally, the newly design website for Mystery Writers of America has a couple of links of interest. First is the Helen McCloy Scholarship for writing programs. As a graduate writing student myself I’m very much in favor of anything that encourages students to pursue mystery writing. Also MWA is announcing three new anthologies and opening up submissions for the first one to be edited by Harlan Coben.

Barry Zeman, chairman of the MWA Publications Committee, reports that Tor Books has purchased three new MWA anthologies. The first, on the theme of "mysterious relationships" and with the working title Relationships Can Be Murder, will be edited by Harlan Coben and is expected to appear sometime in 2005. Linda Fairstein and Michael Connelly will edit the 2006 and 2007 anthologies.

The deadline for the first anthology is December 15th, 2004. Manuscripts must be received in the National Office by that date. Stories must be original – not published elsewhere – and should be between 3500 and 7000 words. Individuals may only submit ONE story for consideration for each anthology.

On a final, final note. I’ve been checking for the results of last night’s National Book Awards ceremony but the results haven’t been posted to their site yet even though it says they were suppossed to be posted by 10:30 p.m. last night. I’ll keep checking on this and let you know what I find out.