Guest Blogger, Terrie Farley Moran

Please join me in welcoming author Terrie Farley Moran as the special guest blogger here today at Thoughts in Progress.

Terrie’s short mystery fiction has been published in several venues including the anthologies, Murder New York Style  and the third Toys for Tots anthology, Dying In A Winter Wonderland which rose to number eight on bestseller list of the Independent Mystery Booksellers in 2008. 

Terrie’s story “When a Bright Star Fades,” was published in the e-zine, Hardluck Stories, and won recognition as a distinguished mystery story of 2008. She joins us at Thoughts in Progress to talk about the newly released Mystery Writers of America anthology, Crimes by Moonlight, edited by Charlaine Harris.

Terrie invites everyone to visit the blog Women of Mystery to enjoy the grand banter of eight talented mystery writers, each and every one a member of the New York/TriState chapter of Sisters in Crime.

Hi everyone. I’m delighted to have this opportunity to tell you about Crimes by Moonlight. Last year, The Mystery Writers of America (MWA) announced that they were organizing an anthology of short mystery fiction with a paranormal theme. The incomparable Charlaine Harris agreed to be the editor, and as such, she invited other noted authors to join her. 

A call for submissions went out to all MWA members for ten additional stories. A team of five eminent MWA authors culled through more than two hundred blind submissions of paranormal mystery stories and selected the ten that completed the anthology. I am honored that a story I wrote, “The Awareness,” is included in Crimes by Moonlight.

The mere mortals among us find the paranormal world to be enticingly mysterious which leads to a natural tie-in between paranormal stories and mystery stories. This anthology offers twenty mystery stories each with its own unique paranormal element: shape-shifters, vampires and ghosts abound. Steve Brewer writes about a man who wakes up on the autopsy table. He’s officially dead but has a mission to accomplish. Elaine Viets weaves the story of a grandma who can presage death. One story is about an inquisitive banshee who decides to solve a murder. I’m pleased to say the banshee is my own creation.

The authors contributing excellent paranormal mysteries to this anthology are:

Charlaine Harris

Steve Brewer

Dana Cameron

Max Allan Collins and Mickey Spillane

Barbara D'Amato

Brendan DuBois

Terrie Farley Moran

Jack Fredrickson

Parnell Hall

Carolyn Hart

S. W. Hubbard

Toni L. P. Kelner

Lou Kemp

William Kent Kreuger

Harley Jane Kozak

Margaret Mahon

Martin Meyers

Jeffrey Somers

Elaine Viets

Mike Wiecek

Although yesterday, April 6th, was the official release date for Crimes by Moonlight, the actual book launch will be held in the Mysterious Bookshop in New York City on Tuesday, April 27th. I expect it to be a glamorous event, with many of the anthology authors and any number of Edgar Award nominees present. You can find all the information here.  

Finally, thanks to our wonderful publisher, Berkley Prime Crime, I would like to offer one free copy of Crimes by Moonlight to a reader of Thoughts in Progress.

Terrie, thank you so much for guest blogging here today. Crimes by Moonlight sounds intriguing and loads of fun to read.

Now for the giveaway. If you’d like a chance to win a copy of Crimes by Moonlight, just comment on Terrie’s post between now and 8 p.m. on Wednesday, 14. Be sure to include your e-mail address if it’s not included in your profile.