Dana's Notebook

I had a great time last weekend promoting Seven Kinds of Hell at Mystery One Bookstore.  There also was some excellent visiting with Jon and Ruth Jordan of Crimespree Magazine: good food, good talk (books, comics, music, movies, and general geekitude).  Thanks to everyone who showed up for the signing:  I hope they had as much fun as I did!

And now some pics:

Mystery One's window.  Note the 50th Anniversary Issue of Crimespree.  I got my copy signed!


Great folks stopped by the signing! 


Mugging in Milwaukee!

The boring bar is not a toy.  The boring bar is not a toy.  The boring bar is not a toy.  The boring bar..


The Jordans are badass.  I wish I could tell what happened next...

I'm thrilled to pieces:  RT Book Reviews gave Seven Kinds of Hell four stars and a wonderful review!

Cameron's bright prose is a refreshing treat in the first in her Fangborn series. Readers will enjoy the thrills and spills of archeologist heroine Zoe Miller as she discovers the surprising delights of werewolfism and the meaning of artifacts dating back to Pandora's Box. While traversing an evocative European/Asia Minor historical cityscape, her ex-boyfriend, Will, unexpectedly reappears in her life, for a sweet subplot.

This is just the best news ever, and I'm so grateful!  The book will be released 3/12 (next Tuesday!) from 47North!  You can read the whole review here.

Fingers crossed, Spring is on its way...

And Seven Kinds of Hell is almost here! It will be released on March 12, 2013.

Here's what New York Times bestselling author Charlaine Harris has to say: "Seven Kinds of Hell is a great adventure. Dana Cameron's supernatural heroes are refreshingly different, and the action is astonishing."

And New York Times bestselling author Tess Gerritsen says: "Dana Cameron can pull me into a story like few other writers. Wildly creative, thrilling and fun, the Fangborn series is one you won't want to miss!"

I'm so thrilled about this book, and I can't wait for you to read it! You can pre-order it now.

More wonderful news: My Emma Fielding short story, "Mischief in Mesopotamia" is up for an Agatha Award for Best Short Story! It originally appeared in Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, and you can read it and all the nominated stories on the Malice Domestic Agatha page.

Remember my Anna Hoyt story, "Disarming?" It is part of a new electronic collection: The Crooked Road Volume 2: Ellery Queen Presents Stories of Grifters, Gangsters, Hit Men, and Other Career Crooks, including stories by Lawrence Block, S.J. Rozan, Edward D. Hoch, Ed McBain, and Peter Lovesey. It's an honor to be included with these extraordinary writers!

I recently had an exciting experience when I was asked to contribute to "Soul Music," a program on BBC Radio 4. The discussion was on Beethoven's Fifth Symphony, and how people responded to it. I wrote a blog for the Femmes Fatales about the adventure, and you can hear the episode by clicking this link.

March will be a busy month for me, and I'll be travelling a lot in 2013! Houston, Milwaukee, San Diego, Anaheim, New York, and Bethesda are just a few of my stops. You can find my schedule here.

I look forward to seeing you on the road!

Dana

Paula Benson asks me thoughtful--and thought provoking--interview questions about writing and Seven Kinds of Hell at Writers Who Kill!  Please stop by!

I'm guest blogging at Book Chick City, on how I discovered the Fangborn.  Leave a comment by March 7 to be entered in a contest to win a copy of Seven Kinds of Hell, which will be released March 12!  (US/UK/Canada only).

Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine has a link to my Agatha-award nominated short story, "Mischief in Mesopotamia," featuring archaeologist Emma Fielding.  You can find that here. 

And I'm thrilled to announce that "Disarming," an Anna Hoyt story, has been included in the electronic EQMM collection The Crooked Road Volume 2:  Ellery Queen presents Stories of Grifters, Gangsters, Hit Men, and Other Career Crooks.  The description: 

"In this anticipated follow up to Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine's first digital-only anthology, you'll once again take the "low road" of grifters, hit men, and other career crooks, and come out with new insights into crime, revenge, and justice. Your path--led by stars like Mystery Writers of America Grand Master Lawrence Block, Edgar Award winner Doug Allyn, 2012 Agatha Award winner Dana Cameron, 2012 Dilys Award winner S.J. Rozan, and Edgar winner Edward D. Hoch--is winding, taking you through byways both humorous and deadly. You'll follow the Prohibition-era gangsters of Mark Coggins and Lou Manfredo, and the contemporary mafiosos of Janice Law, Ed McBain, and Diamond Dagger award winner Peter Lovesey. With small-town scams and big-city hits, 2012 Shamus Award winner Michael Z. Lewin, film and television writer William Link, and award-winning novelist Andrew Klavan offer some comic relief, while Edgar nominee Kevin Wignall, Andrew Taylor, bestselling author Peri O'Shaugnessy, and EQMM Readers Award winner Clark Howard remind us where the Crooked Road can often lead. Edited by Janet Hutchings, this volume will surprise you with favorite series characters, dark humor, high stakes, and edge-of-your-seat suspense. Hold on tight, and don't miss it!"

I'm thrilled and honored to have a story included with these authors.  If you or someone you know needs a little gritty in your crime fiction, I hope you'll click and order it today!

I mentioned last week in a blog for the Femmes Fatales that I had been interviewed for "Soul Music," a BBC Radio 4 program about the impact of certain pieces of music on people.  The episode I contributed to was on Beethoven's Fifth Symphony, and I spoke about music and getting through my dissertation, and my transition from archaeology to writing crime fiction and urban fantasy.  Well, it broadcast this morning, and you can hear the podcast here. 

It was a fascinating experience, and the finished episode is terrific, with memories from a conductor and a merchant navy sailor as well.  I hope you'll check it out!

I'm so proud to announce:  "Mischief in Mesopotamia" has been nominated for an Agatha for Best Short Story!  The story appeared in Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine in November, and features archaeologist Emma Fielding, the protagonist of my first six novels!  The nominated short stories include work by Sheila Connolly, Barb Goffman, B.K. Stevens, and Art Taylor, and you can find the complete slate, below. 

The Agatha Award is voted on by the attendees of Malice Domestic, and the winners in all categories will be announced at the banquet on May 4, 2013. 

Congratulations to everyone, and thank you so much for this honor!


Agatha Award Nominees 2012

Best Novel:
The Diva Digs Up the Dirt by Krista Davis
A Fatal Winter by G.M. Malliet
The Buzzard Table by Margaret Maron
The Beautiful Mystery by Louise Penny
The Other Woman by Hank Phillippi Ryan

Best First Novel:
Lowcountry Boil by Susan M. Boyer
Iced Chiffon by Duffy Brown
A Scrapbook of Secrets by Mollie Cox Bryan
A Killer Read by Erika Chase
Faithful Unto Death by Stephanie Jaye Evans

Best Non-fiction:
Books to Die For: The World's Greatest Mystery Writers on the World's Greatest Mystery Novels by John Connolly/Declan Burke
Blood Relations: The Selected Letters of Ellery Queen, 1947-1950 by Joseph Goodrich, Editor
More Forensics and Fiction: Crime Writers Morbidly Curious Questions Expertly Answered by D.P. Lyle
Double Cross: The True Story of the D-Day Spies by Ben Macintyre
The Grand Tour: Around the World with the Queen of Mystery Agatha Christie by Mathew Prichard, Editor

Best Short Story:
"Mischief in Mesopotamia" by Dana Cameron (Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine)
"Kept in the Dark" by Shelia Connolly (Best New England Crime Stories 2013: Blood Moon Anthology)
"The Lord is My Shamus" by Barb Goffman (Chesapeake Crimes: This Job is Murder)
"Thea's First Husband" by B.K. Stevens (Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine)
"When Duty Calls", by Art Taylor (Chesapeake Crimes: This Job is Murder)

Best Children's/Young Adult Novel:
Seconds Away by Harlan Coben
The Edge of Nowhere by Elizabeth George
Liar & Spy by Rebecca Stead
The Code Busters Club, Case #2: The Haunted Lighthouse by Penny Warner
Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein

Best Historical Novel:
The Twelve Clues of Christmas by Rhys Bowen
Dandy Gilver and an Unsuitable Day for Murder by Catriona McPherson
Murder on Fifth Avenue by Victoria Thompson
An Unmarked Grave by Charles Todd
Elegy for Eddie by Jacqueline Winspear

I just posted to the Femmes Fatales' blog about a very cool experience I had recently, discussing how Beethoven got me through a whole slew of artifact analysis for my dissertation work many years ago--and how that, eventually, led me to writing crime fiction and urban fantasy.  The BBC Radio 4 show, "Soul Music," will feature my story, with two others, next week:  Tuesday, Feb. 12, at 11:30am (UK time)!  So I'll be up early, tuning in, but there will be a podcast after the original broadcast.  You can see the promo here.