Dark Deeds, again

Dark Deeds Down Under 2 includes stories from 22 Aussie & Kiwi authors

Craig every second Tuesday

Kia ora and gidday everyone,

So we've hit April here in the UK, and the signs of Spring have been taking over for a while. Miss Nine and I particularly enjoy spotting the early flowers bursting through in February and March on our park walks and streets: cherry blossoms and daffodils, then some crocuses and in recent weeks, hyacinths and magnolias. Later this month we'll be heading out bluebell-spotting (April and early May being the best time of year). Of course back home Down Under in 'the antipodes' of New Zealand and Australia the opposite is true, with summer waning and autumn colour taking over, as I see in vid chats with my mother and her well-tended garden in the background.

Looking up through the magnolias last week

It's also the season, at last, for Dark Deeds Down Under 2, an anthology that I've been working on sporadically as editor for the past 18-24 months, through some rather bumpy times in my personal life. The second volume in our pioneering anthology series showcasing Australian and New Zealand crime writing, it comes out globally later this month. I don't yet have my editor copies, but a few of our contributors have posted enthusiastically on social media about receiving theirs in recent days, which has filled my heart and made the overlong gestation all worthwhile. 

I was also recently interviewed for a piece in the biggest newspaper in my home country, the Weekend Herald. I'm far more used to being on the interviewer side of these things, rather than the interviewee, so I'm curious to see how the resulting article comes out in a couple of weeks' time. In the end these anthologies aren't about me, even if my name is on the cover as editor, but all the wonderful authors who've contributed their stories. Hopefully that comes through. 

Sydney podcaster and kids author Dani Vee with her copy of Dark Deeds Down Under 2;
Dani's contributed her first adult crime story to our collection

I've known about the power of short stories since my high school English teacher, Mrs Sivak - a US immigrant to the Top of the South region of New Zealand - introduced my class to the likes of "The Lottery" by Shirley Jackson and "The Most Dangerous Game" by Richard Connell. They still resonate, decades later. So it brings me great joy (in among the life bumps) to have gotten the opportunity to help put these anthologies together in recent years, since long-time Sisters in Crime Australian national co-convenor Lindy Cameron, a crime writer, event organiser, and publisher, came to me with an offer I couldn't refuse back in late 2021. Like me, Lindy has a longstanding passion for showcasing the quality and diversity of our local Down Under storytellers at home and abroad, so it's been really cool to 'join forces' on this rather exciting project. 

Back in late 2021 (and still) I was honoured to be asked to be series editor, and very keen to dive in. My enthusiasm just escalated after a weekend of video chats with a bit of a wish-list of contributors. I’d expected to receive a majority of ‘noes’ given we were asking novelists with busy lives to supply a new short story on short-ish notice, so I had a long list of possibilities to speak with, but instead I got 90%+ yeses, and I barely got partway down my wish-list before having the first anthology full! Given the enthusiastic response of Aussie and Kiwi authors to our project, and the many more fab authors I wanted to include, we soon decided to make it a trilogy, at least. 

David Wenham as Murray Whelan in "The Brush Off", a 2004 screen
adaptation of Shane Maloney's book, directed by Sam Neill 

Our first anthology, which came out mid 2022, included new brand adventures for some popular antipodean crime fiction heroes like Vanda Symon's Detective Sam Shephard, Garry Disher's "Hirsch", RWR McDonald's 'The Nancys', Katherine Kovacic's Alex Clayton, Kerry Greenwood's Corinna Chapman, Dan Rabarts & Lee Murray's Penny Yee and Matiu, and Alan Carter's Nick Chester. Sulari Gentill and Dinuka McKenzie offered prequel tales for their series characters Rowly Sinclair and DS Kate Miles. And we even had the honour of 'bringing back' Murray Whelan, political advisor turned sleuth (played by David Wenham in screen adaptations) from legendary Melbourne author Shane Maloney. Not to mention some terrific standalone crime and thriller short stories from the likes of Nikki Crutchley, Narrelle M Harris, Renee, Stephen Ross, Fiona Sussman, Lisa Fuller, Aoife Clifford, Helen Vivienne Fletcher, and David Whish Wilson. It was a pretty cool project that I was very proud to be a wee part of. 

The Queen of Crime, Val McDermid, with the first hardcover
of Dark Deeds Down Under, at Harrogate in 2022. 

Overall, I’m very happy with how Dark Deeds Down Under has been received by readers and critics. We’ve had some really lovely reviews and feedback, and lots of nice moments. Some unforgettable stuff like the great Val McDermid holding it up onstage at Theakston Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival in Harrogate in July 2022 and telling an audience of 800+ people how great it was and that they should all go and buy it! – unfortunately Val hadn’t realised that I’d given her a pre-release hardcover (the first off the press, so to speak) as a thank you for reading the manuscript and giving us a cover blurb, so it wasn’t in the festival bookshop! What might have been. 

So I'm pretty excited that we're back later this month with a second volume. Hopefully we'll be able to get both books into more readers hands, and showcase a range of cool Aussie and Kiwi storytellers at home and abroad. 

TV news producer turned crime writer Stephen Johnson with a
pre-release copy at the recent Clunes Booktown Festival

Our contributors are mainly crime novelists (one of our guiding ideas was to get new short stories about familiar characters from ANZ crime series, eg Vanda Symon’s Detective Sam Shephard, Garry Disher’s South Australian cop ‘Hirsch’, etc), but also include some genre-blending authors, short story specialists, and fresh/unpublished authors. This time around we're planning some bookshop or library events around both countries, among other things, celebrating many of the forty one authors who are featured across the first two volumes. 

I feel pretty lucky to get to do what I do, and how my lifelong love of mystery fiction has grown into this rather surreal more-than-a-hobby/less-than-a-career life in adulthood. And particularly that I get to help shine a light on cool storytellers from our corner of the globe (yes, I know globes don't have corners, but you know what I mean). 

So Dark Deeds Down Under volume 2 will officially be out around 16 April, though you can pre-order copies now direct from the publisher (Australia/New Zealand here, United States here) with a nice wee discount. 

The second volume includes a diverse array of intriguing and exciting stories from a cool range of Kiwi and Aussie storytellers, who I'll talk more in depth about next time on Murder is Everywhere: Charity Norman, Anna Downes, Jack Heath, Jennifer Lane, Emma Viskic, Natalie Conyer, Malla Nunn, Chad Taylor, Jean Bedford, Ben Hobson, Peter Papathanasiou, Helen Fitzgerald, Andi C Buchanan, Dorothy Porter, Shelley Burne-Field, Ashley Kalagian Blunt, Robert Gott, Dani Vee, Stephen Johnson, Michael Botur, Renee, and Peter Corris. 

But for now I hope you're enjoying Spring or Autumn, wherever you are in the world, and you have some great books to read. If you're looking for something new, maybe try a little Dark Deeds Down Under. 

Thanks for reading. Until next time. Ka kite anō.

Whakataukī of the fortnight: 

Inspired by Zoe and her 'word of the week', I'll be ending my fortnightly posts by sharing a whakataukī (Māori proverb), a pithy and poetic thought to mull on as we go through life.

Poipoia te kākano kia puawai

(Nurture the seed and it will blossom.)

Sharing a joke with the wonderful Renee, a legendary figure in Kiwi storytelling
and one of our DDDU contributors, at Nelson Arts Festival in Oct 2022

Dark Deeds, Down Under

 

Craig every second Tuesday

Kia ora and gidday everyone,

So it's the half-term break here in the UK, and I was meant to be going camping with Miss Seven the past three days - her first 'sleepaway' camp with the local Woodcraft group she's been going to (Woodcraft Folk is a Scouts-like group that I hadn't heard of myself until recently, but has been going for almost 100 years and is pretty big here in the UK - I guess like some of those other outdoorsy groups in the US like Camp Fire etc). 

Unfortunately a wee gastro bug on Friday put paid to our plans for the weekend - and my thoughts of writing today about getting out into nature, or revisiting the childhood Scouts/camping/summer camp kinds of thing with my own daughter now rather than being a kid or a leader for others' kids, as I've done in the past. Another time. 

But while I was feeling a bit sorry for myself and like the world's worst Dad (I was the one who came down sick just before we were meant to go to camp), something good happened to lift my spirits. Well, Miss Seven was being an absolute trooper and keeping a smile on my face, even though she was pretty disappointed herself - but this was another outside-the-household thing that made me grin when I woke up on Saturday morning: the cover was finalised and the official announcement made about the first anthology I've edited: DARK DEEDS DOWN UNDER. 

DARK DEEDS DOWN UNDER is a first-of-its-kind anthology
of Australian & New Zealand crime and thriller short fiction

So if you'll indulge me, I thought I'd share a bit more about this cool project I've been involved in for the past few months. I'd say 'I'll write about nature next time', but in fact there's a fair bit of nature in this book, threaded through some criminally good stories. After all, the presence and impact of rugged elements (and weather) is one of a few things that can make antipodean crime writing a little distinct and different from its British counterparts.

While you could say that next month's publication of DARK DEEDS DOWN UNDER will be the culmination of a project kickstarted last European summer/autumn, you could also say that the seeds of it all go back far, far further. In a way, it's another culmination of several of the crime writing related things I've been doing the past fourteen years - and that Lindy Cameron, the long-time President of Sisters in Crime Australia as well as the publisher at Clan Destine Press and an acclaimed crime writer in her own right, has been doing for twice as long. 

It's been fabulous to collaborate with Lindy and all the authors on DARK DEEDS DOWN UNDER. We have 20 outstanding storytellers in the first volume, a diverse constellation of Aussie & Kiwi storytelling talent. And yes, I said first volume, because due to the enthusiastic response from many, many authors I reached out to as Commissioning Editor we've already decided to make it something of a series. The second volume (many of the stories already gathered for that one) will be out late this year, just before Christmas. And the third, next year. 

The 'Quiet King of Aussie Crime', Garry Disher, is among the authors providing brand-new stories with the series characters for DARK DEEDS DOWN UNDER

While some things dragged out a little - as many creative projects can do at the best of times, and our pandemic-bruised lives are hardly the best of times - I'm so stoked with how it has all come together. The lineup of 20 authors includes three Ned Kelly Lifetime Achievement Award recipients, multiple Ngaio Marsh Awards, Ned Kelly Awards, and Davitt Awards winners (the three main crime prizes Down Under), and some fresh newer voices too. It's a great mix, with authors ranging from 30s to 90s, across most states and territories, and several writers of colour. 

I couldn't be happier with how it has come together, and I'm looking forward to keen crime readers out there getting a chance to try the stories. Several include characters familiar to keen crime readers from books series, eg Constable Paul 'Hirsch' Hirschhausen from Garry Disher's award-winning books, Vanda Symon's Detective Sam Shephard, Sulari Gentill's gentleman sleuth Rowly Sinclair, Kerry Greenwoods baker and amateur sleuth Corinna Chapman, and more. From the raucous antics of the Nancys in small-town Otago to a prequel tale starring Dinuka McKenzie's Kate Miles, to the futuristic noir escapades of Matiu and Penny Yee in a supernatural-tinged Auckland, DARK DEEDS DOWN UNDER has got quite the mix of characters whose adventures you can follow elsewhere too. 

It also includes some brilliant standalone crime tales. 

And the long-awaited return of Murray Whelan, the political functionary who found himself investigating crimes linked to his job in an outstanding series of novels by Shane Maloney that were first published in Australia and internationally between 1994-2007, and made Maloney Australia's most popular crime writer of the time. 

David Wenham starred as Murray Whelan in a TV adaptation in 2004.
Our anthology includes the first new Murray Whelan tale in 15 years

I feel very honoured and privileged to get to be the Commissioning editor of this book (series) that showcases some of the amazing modern-day crime writers we have in Australia and New Zealand. While I know short stories and anthologies aren't for everyone, I hope the keen crime readers out there will give it a go. 

Here's a sneak peek at the line-up in Volume One: 

• Alan Carter
• Nikki Crutchley
• Aoife Clifford
• Garry Disher
• Helen Vivienne Fletcher
• Lisa Fuller
• Sulari Gentill
• Kerry Greenwood
• Narelle Harris 
• Katherine Kovacic
• Shane Maloney
• RWR McDonald
• Dinuka McKenzie
• Lee Murray & Dan Rabarts
• Renee
• Fiona Sussman
• Stephen Ross
• Vanda Symon
• David Whish-Wilson

Sulari Gentill, who was born in Sri Lanka and now lives in the Snowy Mountains,
offers readers a prequel to her award-winning Rowly Sinclair historical mysteries

There's lots more I could say about DARK DEEDS DOWN UNDER, but perhaps another time. For now, I'm just swimming in gratitude for the Aussie & Kiwi crime writing community. It's been a pleasure. 

Stay safe, and happy reading. 

Until next time, ka kita ano. 

Whakataukī of the fortnight: 

Inspired by Zoe and her 'word of the week', I've been ending my fortnightly posts by sharing a whakataukī (Māori proverb), a pithy and poetic thought to mull on as we go through life. I'd usually never use the same whakatauki in repeated posts, but given this one's celebrating storytelling on s small scale, it seemed particularly apt. 

Ahakoa he iti he pounamu

(Although it is small, it is greenstone)

Pounamu are treasured items carved in a variety of traditional designs. While they are relatively small - often worn as necklaces - they are powerful and full of meaning.

CULPRITS – the Heist Was Just the Beginning

Zoë Sharp

Four years ago, an email arrived from Richard J Brewer and Gary Phillips, asking me if I would be interested in contributing a short story – of sorts – to a rather unusual anthology they were putting together, entitled CULPRITS: The Heist Was Only The Beginning.

Richard and Gary had come up with the set-up and the opening chapter for a heist story. A crew is brought together to rob a rich Texas cattleman, he told me. They do the job, get the money, and then – as the subtitle suggests – things start to get interesting.

 

And this is where the contributors came in.

 

We were to choose one of the characters and let our imaginations run riot with what happens to them after the heist. Do they get away? Do they get caught? Do they keep the money? Or lose it along with their lives?

 

It was a fascinating idea with a great cast and opening – and an even better line-up of contributors.

 

How could I resist?

 

In fact, the exact words I used in response to Richard’s invitation were, ‘I don't need to think over your proposition. It's a terrific idea and I'm in. Hell yes.’

 

The jacket copy for CULPRITS runs:

 

Some stories are all about the crime. These stories are about the maelstrom of what happens after…

 

A hard-bitten crew of professional thieves pull off the score of their lives, coming away with seven million in cash. Like any heist there are some unforeseen complications, and unfortunately they don’t get away without a few bodies dropping. But despite this, they get away with the swag. Seven million. Enough to change their lives, make new identities, start fresh. But that’s when the real trouble begins…

 

In this unique, riveting, linked anthology, we follow each member of the crew of culprits as they go their separate ways after the heist, and watch as this perfect score ends up a perfect nightmare. Featuring stories penned by acclaimed writers Brett Battles, Gar Anthony Haywood, Zoë Sharp, Manuel Ramos, Jessica Kaye, Joe Clifford, and David Corbett, CULPRITS examines what happens next to these criminals once they take their cut and go their separate ways, only to find that the end of the heist was the beginning of their troubles.

 

The anthology came out from Polis Books in February of 2018 and picked up some great reviews.

 

As it turns out, that wasn’t all it picked up.

 

Yesterday, I got another of those out-of-the-blue emails that put a different perspective on your whole day. Richard wrote to us all to point us in the direction of an announcement in Variety, and The Hollywood Reporter that CULPRITS is on its way to the small screen as a series for Disney+UK.

 

“BAFTA-winning writer Sally Wainwright (‘Happy Valley’, ‘Gentleman Jack’), ‘Killing Eve’ producer Sally Woodward Gentle and producers Faith Penhale (‘Les Miserables’) and Stephen Garrett (‘The Night Manager’) are among the creatives behind Disney Plus’ first scripted slate out of the U.K.”

 

Culprits

“Star Original ‘Culprits’ is a dark comedy heist series from filmmaker J Blakeson (‘I Care A Lot’, ‘The Disappearance of Alice Creed’). The show follows what happens after a heist, when the crew have gone their separate ways, but are being targeted by a killer one-by-one. Created and directed by Blakeson, the series is executive produced by Garrett and produced by Morenike Williams (‘Killing Eve’). Culprits is a Character 7 production.

 

Noting that work began on ‘Culprits’ a couple of years ago, Garrett said, “We are immensely proud that Disney Plus have decided to make it one of their platform-defining shows. The additional thrill for me is that I’m working with a writer-director at the very top of his game.”

 

The Heist, it seems, really was only the beginning. I’ll be watching with interest to see what they make of our efforts.

 

This week’s Word of the Week is scurryfunge, meaning to hastily rush round tidying the house because company is on the way over.

OK, back to the edits...