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Fiction Beyond the Pulps The Digests, Mystery Magazines and On-Line
After the pulps died out, there were drastically fewer markets for short story writers, particularly those of a hard-boiled bent, to sell their wares. Fortunately, there were a handful of outlets left, mostly digests that, for the most part, published everything from cozies to hardcore noir in the same issue. There was even a rebirth of sorts, for a while in the fifties and early sixties. Most of the digests that focussed on hard-boiled crime only lasted only a few years, but a handful (most notably Manhunt and Mike Shayne's Mystery Magazine) lasted long enough to have a major impact, on the genre, and several of the shorter-lived ones (Trapped, Guilty, etc.) proved a sturdy training ground for writers as diverse as Harlan Ellison, Donald Westlake, Lawrence Block, Robert Silverberg and Ed McBain to sow their literary wild oats and hone their craft. Two of the more general crime and mystery digests, Ellery Queen and Alfred Hitchcock, are still going strong. Add to this, the current boom in themed anthologies, and the rough, unruly on-line crime fiction and the e-publishing scenes, and the short story market is suddenly looking better than it has in years. Current outlets for fiction are in red; defunct, expired, pushing up the daisies magazines are gray. Of course, I could be wrong about a lot of these, so if you know better, please let me know.....
Founded in 1956, AHMM is the second oldest mystery short story magazine in existence -- and the biggest seller. Originally a tie-in with the Alfred Hitchcock Presents TV show, they offer short origial fiction, an occasional "Mystery Classic", poetry, reviews, logic problem. (Same company, different editorial staff from EQMM.) Published eleven times a year, with a special summer double issue in July/August. Now the best-selling crime-fiction magazine in the world, at least in English, and currently tending toward cozies, although it wasn't that long ago that it was regularly publishing P.I. tales by the likes of Loren D. Estleman and Rob Kantner. Noir, noir, noir... Well, some, anyway. It turns out this is mostly non-fiction. It continues as a yearly anthology with top names only, and as of 2015, appears to be defunct, although back issues may still be available. A short-lived online crime mag that actually paid for fiction! Black Maple needed dark and mysterious writing, i.e. mystery, suspense, thriller, psychological horror, and true crime. Preferred length was 1000 to 1500 words, but they considered works shorter than 1000 words, as well as works up to a maximum of 5000 words. Alas, it went the way of many on-line mags, and at this time, there are no plans for a print edition.
An excellent e-mag, the late and truly lamented standard bearer for online-published short crime fiction. Each issue was available for download in handy dandy Acrobat pdf format on their also-excellent website. They promised "Fresh Pulp on the Web", and they went about it in a particularly stylish way. Exceptionally writer-friendly, and they also had a column on private eyes written by yours truly, but don't hold that against them... Best of all, they paid their writers. At least until the very end. They'll be missed. Formerly known as Octane, this one specialized in what they called "rock'n'roll noir." They promised a slim volume of 10 high voltage stories each no longer than 1500 words. From the promo: "Imagine the buzz of the Ramones, the electric intensity of the Clash. Imagine rock'n'roll turned into fiction. Imagine BULLET." Issue one hit the deck in September 2003 and lasted just seven issues. But it was great fun while it lasted.
They bill themselves as "The Magazine of Dark Mystery, Suspense and Horror." Which might be stretched to include a P.I. tale or two.
A "brother publication" of Mike Shayne Mystery Magazine, this one lasted only four issues. It featured a Charlie Chan story in each issue. Richard Gallagher fills us in: "As it happens, I know that there were a total of four issues published, because I was a charter (and possibly only!) subscriber. I still have all four, so I thought you might like a little detail on them. Vol. 1, No. 1 was published in November, 1973. Each issue contained a short Charlie Chan novel (ranging from 56 pages to 75 pages) credited to Robert Hart Davis (probably a pseudonym - my guess is Dennis Lynds, who wrote a Charlie Chan novel during the same era). Contributors to the first issue were Jim Duke, Robert W. Alexander, Andrew Bogen, Bill Pronzini, Pauline C. Smith, George Antonich, and Lawrence Treat. Vol. 1, No. 2 was published in February, 1974 (actually, the cover says February but the first page says January). Contributors were Hal Ellson, John Lutz, James P. Cody, Henry Slesar, Lawrence Treat, M.G. Ogan, and Edward D. Hoch. Vol. 1. No. 3 was published in May, 1974. Contributors were David Mazroff, John Lutz, James Holding, Syd Hoff, Jack Foxx, Evelyn Payne, and Herbert Harris. The last issue, Vol. 1, No. 4, was published in August, 1974. Contributors were Francis Clifford, M.G. Ogan, Al Nussbaum, Ronald Anthony Cross, Gary Brandner, Clarence Alva Powell, and Pauline C. Smith. I suspect that the demise of the magazine was connected to the death of Leo Margulies, because Renown Publications was still soliciting subscriptions in issue no. 4. Incidentally, Thom Montgomery doesn't show up on the masthead until issue no. 3, where he is listed as Editor. The first two issues listed only Leo Margulies as publisher and Cylvia Kleinman (Mrs. Margulies) as Editorial Director." Thanks, Rich.
Clearly a sister of Homicide Detective Story Magazine and Killers Mystery Story Magazine.
Great small zine, featuring some truly great short stories. Highly recommended.
From the UK. What a slick package! A lot of great UK and American detective writers strut their stuff.Prices include postage. Well worth it. David Birks of the late, great Blue Murder Magazine assures anyone visiting this site that "This stuff is right up your alley." "America's premier fan-oriented mystery magazine. In it and on this site we celebrate all that is good about the mystery genre AND point you to the best in crime fiction." A much loved publication, but it's apparently defunct. Last issue was in 2016.
Later merged with Wayne Dundee's Hardboiled to form Hardboiled Detective Magazine for three issues in 1990, whereupon it reverted back to just Hardboiled, edited by Lovisi.
Another crime digest from the fifties published out of of Holyoke, Mass.. A sister publication of Mammoth Detective and Fast Action Detective, this was one of Columbia's low-budget magazines edited by Robert Lowndes. Double Action Detective Stories was actually the digest-sized continuation of the pulp-sized Double Action. Their editorial offices were located at 241 Church Street, NY 13, NY, which had previously been listed as also the address of the publisher.
Apparently only published an issue or so in 1960, but the first issue featured a new Shell Scott story by Prather, and a new 87th Precinct story (fancy that), among an impressive list of names (and Pronzini and Adair apparently consider it mostly hard-boiled).
First appearing in 1941, and established by Ellery Queen himself (or more accurately themselves), Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine has pretty much become the top dog in the short fiction crime genre, and certainly one of the most critically acclaimed, with 35 major awards and nominations just since 1990! Their forte is short fiction, but they also offer occasional poetry, Jon L. Breen's regular book review column "The Jury Box." Same company, different editorial staff from AHMM. Reaching mystery fans around the world was one of Ellery Queen's first goals for EQMM, and in their more than half-century of publication, EQMM has been translated into more languages than virtually any other American magazine.
The Robert Lowndes-edited pulps were well down the publishing food chain but he was always able to manage some quality on a shoe-string budget. I've purchased a few copies recently of from the early 1950s. The most recent (via eBay) was the February 1952 issue. All but one of the eight writers were unknown to me and I suspect most if not all were house names for Columbia Publications. Another crime digest from the fifties published out of of Holyoke, Mass. Their editorial offices were located at 241 Church Street, NY 13, NY, which had previously been listed as also the address of the publisher. A sister publication of Mammoth Detective, Mystery Stories and Double-Action Detective and Mystery Stories.
"Short Tales For Story Lovers... by Writers and Artists with Fire To Fly." A fan favourite among the self-pub crowd when Barbs Lakey ran the show and would publish contest "winners" who had submitted the "entry fee." Futures was at one time a 130 page quarterly that lingered on and on, in various guises, and under various editorialships, but is now exclusively an online venture. Mystery and its assorted subgenres currently make up 60% of the fiction, the rest is horror, science fiction and mainstream. They also feature cartoons, reviews and some non-fiction.
A long-lasting digest starting with the July 1956 issue and lasting until June 1962. Published by Feature Publications at the same Holyoke, Mass. address as Homicide Detective Story Magazine, et al, with editorial offices at 1790 Broadway and later at 32 West 22nd Street in NYC. This was one of Harlan Ellison's steady markets as it was for Robert Turner. Talmage Powell, Harry Whittington and Robert Silverberg were regulars and Lawrence Block and Gil Brewer also graced its pages. Way, way, way ahead of its time, this little venture was specifically tailored to the hand-held market, although everything was also on their web site. And Vicky was there, so you know it was good stuff. Unfortunately, HandHeld, one of the first online markets for crime fiction that actually paid their writers, went the way of Blue Murder in July 2003. It will be missed.
A quarterly devoted to hardboiled fiction, this was one tough little mag,with an impressive roster of talent, featuring mostly originals, with a few classic reprints. Hardboiled started out as a obvious labour of love, photocopied and hand-bound out of someone's basement, and has since grown into a fine, professional-looking showcase of some of the best writing around in this genre, with incredible cover art by Bruce (Batman: The Animated Series) Timm and others. Along the way, it incorporated Gary Lovisi's Detective Story Magazine (DSM) in 1990, and ran as Hardboiled Detective Magazine for three issues, whereupon it reverted to its original title, but with Lovisi as editor. Gary is also the founder and big kahuna of Gryphon Publications. Apparently no longer publishing, although back issues are available. See Hardboiled. Their mission was "to help hardboiled readers discover future hardboiled classics. The rules here are simple. Click on a book cover and you get in the author's own words how the book came into existence, a hardboiled short story from the author, and a link to find more information about the book." A quarterly eZine section showcasing new hard-boiled and noir stories was added in the fall of 2002 and it quickly became, for a brief time, one of the premier spots for on-line hard-boiled fiction in the wake of the demise of Plots With Guns. The link now goes to editor Dave Zelterman's website, with nary a mention of Hardluck.
High Adventure has been reprinting pulp fiction for years and focusses on weird menace, action/adventure stuff, sci-fi, and yes, even occasional private eye stuff, including some Dan Turner tales. All issues include a gloriously pulpy full color cover, 96 pages and are perfect bound. Back issues are available from their web site or via mail.
This minor fart in the crime fiction digest cosmos only managed one issue. Yet that single issue, September 1956, according to loyal correspondent Richard Moore was worth it. It included a John D. MacDonald story and one by William Campbell Gault. Homicide was published by Everett M. Arnold, Arnold Magazines, Inc., 1 Appleton Street, Holyoke, Mass.; with their editorial offices at 303 Lexington Avenue, New York 16, New York...
12 known issues between the first December 1954 to October 1956. Published bimonthly by Star Publications, Inc. 1 Appleton Street, Holyoke, Mass.; editorial office 545 Fifth Avenue, NY 17, NY. This was one of the best Manhunt imitations.. Some of you may remember him as the "Words From the Monastery" guy on Rara-Avis, or from his own short-lived Hard-Boiled discussion group, but here he actually delivered the goods, letting other people do the talking with some quality hard-boiled fiction. Anthony didn't believe in having a heavy hand when it came to editing (he'd even let you format your own story) so this was a good place for beginning writers, and those intimidated by the idea of being edited. And of course, with a name like Judas, you know they're completely trustworthy... unfortunately, they lost their domain name or something, so they had to change it to the equally short-lived the3rdegree.com.
The continuation of the one-issue-run Homicide Detective Story Magazine. Michael L. Cook, in his invaluabe Monthly Murders, listed the contents for the January 1957 (#3) and March 1957 (#4) issues which makes me think there was a November 1956 issue (#2) of either Homicide or Killers.The contents of the two issues do not equal the impressive first issue of Homicide, but includes stories by Talmadge Powell, Edward D. Hoch, Joseph Commings, Charles Fritch and Henry Slesar. not too shabby. Another of Columbia Publications' low-budget magazines edited by Robert Lowndes (Double Action Detective and Mystery Stories and Fast Action Detective were others), that disappeared when Columbia passed on in 1959-60. It was the digest-sized continuation of the Mammoth Detective pulp (1942-47) that had been published by Ziff-Davis.
"Manhunt has come to be regarded by some as probably the most important outlet for "hard-boiled" fiction after Black Mask and Dime Detective. The excellent introduction to Bill Pronzini and Jack Adrian's Hard-Boiled notes that the original was launched with a January 1953 issue that featured a new serialized Mickey Spillane novel, and folded in 1967. It inspired a slew of imitators, including Flying Eagle's own Murder!, Verdict, Menace, and Mantrap, as well as efforts by other publishers, such as Pursuit and Trapped. There was even a "Best-of-Manhunt" paperback collection published in 1958". Published by the same folks as Manhunt and featuring the same type of hard-boiled crime stuff, with many of the same authors, but it never caught on and folded after only two issues.
Family Circle threw their considerable weight behind this glossy, full-size magazine. Very mainstream, very slick, glossy, filled with trivia, lists, reviews, short interviews and somewhere in there some excellent stories. Not necessarily the most hard-boiled (naturally) but impressive, nonetheless, if a tad over-produced. A bigger problem was its publishing schedule: sporadic is the most charitable word I can think of. It was apparently published to fill the same slots as the traditional baking, knitting, etc.,magazines which make up Family Circle "special projects". It might actually have outsold AHMM, in fact; if one could have only found independent circulation figures for it, but it shared those counts with the baking, knitting, etc., magazines. In the Summer 2000 issue, they admitted they were down to once-a-year publication. But it got worse. In January 2001, they admitted they were pulling the plug completely.
After their ambitious attempt to revive the legendary Black Mask with The New Black Mask in the mid-eighties crashed and burned, partially due to copyright issues, the publisher tried to continue with this more modestly-priced "series of original paperbacks comprising the best of contemporary mystery and suspense fiction." It also marked a shift away from hard-boiled to more traditional mysteries. Published by the same folks as Manhunt but even more hard-boiled. It only lasted a couple of issues.
Michael Shayne Mystery Magazine was started in 1956 by Leo Margulies, a veteran editor from the pulp era. After the first six issues, the title was switched to Mike Shayne Mystery Magazine, which is what it was known as wher n it finally ran out of steam almost thirty years later. An e-zine that briefly made the jump to print with its last three issues, this was another valiant but short-lived attempt to cut a notch in the hard-boiled market, although it was overshadowed by both Plots with Guns and Blue Murder, which preceded it, and Murdaland which was its contemporary (but which also only lasted a few years). Still, they did manage to get out stories by Patricia Abbott, Stephen Rogers, Sandra Ruttan, Barry Ergang, Gerald So and Patricia Harrington, among others. An ambitious but short-lived attempt to publisher a regular annual print anthology focussing on "Crime Fiction for the 21st Century." In just two issues, it managed to publish original stories and excerpts from such heavies as Scott Phillips, Vicki Hendricks, Henry Hunsuicker,Daniel Woodrell, Anthony Neil Smith, J.D. Rhoades, J.F. Connolly, Patricia Abbott, Gary Phillips and Ken Bruen.
Was one of the promising new kids on the block back in the nineties. It published short mysteries by both well-known and unknown writersnew and established authors, as well as interviews, and nonfiction articles.
An E-zine run "by mystery lovers for mystery lovers," Mysterical-e, which publishes both fiction and non-fiction, proudly billed itself at one point as the first of its kind, although I was never quite sure what it was the first kind of. Unfortunately, the online "issues" are becoming rarer and rarer, although so far they're still looking for submissions "on a rolling basis," and are open to other genres. Non-paying. Guidelines can be found on the site. No payment, but a chance for your work to be published on-line and available to the world. All mystery genres and cross-overs considered; story must include a crime element; they are open to, but may choose not to publish, graphic language, sex and violence; such elements will be considered in the context of the story. Fiction up to 10,000 words; mystery-writing related non-fiction up to 5,000 words. There's also a Facebook group, which has proven to be slightly more active.
Short-lived (11 issues) but interesting attempt to combine fiction and non-fiction. Started as a limited-distribution title, shifting to a nationally-distributed slick, quarto-sized, in January 1981. After nine issues it converted to a digest, but only lasted a few more issues. Notable for its special emphasis on hard-boiled fiction. There were looks at film noir, and interviews with people like Dennis Lynds, Ed McBain, Lawrence Block, Jonathan Latimer and more, as well as fiction by folks like Loren Estleman and Michael Seidman. The magazine was founded by Stephen Smoke, who went on to write several private eye novels, including the Ace Carpenter series under the pen name of Hamilton T. Caine and the inspirational P.I. novel Trick of the Light.
It originally billed itself as "The Online Mystery Network" but it seems to be satisfied with offering a handful of online mysteries and mystery games, having petered out years ago. This much-loved and sorely missed tabloid, a long-time fan favourite and a mainstay at mystery conventions and all the cooler mystery bookstores, was founded in 1982 by Patricia and Jack Schnell, and was taken over by Harriet and Larry Stay in 1988. In 1997, Chris Aldrich and Lynn Kaczmarek revived it in 1997 under the banner of Black Raven Press. Its strength was its reviews and interviews, and was frequently nominated for awards. It won the Anthony Award for Best Fan Publication at Bouchercon 2001; they were also nominated for Anthony Awards in 2004, 2006 and 2007.
Mystery Scene was established in 1986 by writers Ed Gorman and Robert Randisi, and bills itself as "the oldest, largest, and most authoritative guide to the crime fiction genre." Since being acquired in 2002 by Kate Stine and Brian Skupin, the magazine has continued on its original mission, informing readers about the best and most interesting work in the crime fiction field. It features interviews, reviews, articles, essays and special features on everything from mystery-themed cookbooks to an annual Christmas gift guide. Regular contributors include Ed Gorman, Gary Phillips, Dick Lochte, Lawrence Block and some wiseass named Kevin Burton Smith. Mystery Scene has won numerous awards, including the Anthony Award from the Bouchercon World Mystery Convention (2004), the Ellery Queen Award from Mystery Writers of America (2006), and the Poirot Award from the Malice Domestic Mystery Convention (2009).Another crime digest from the fifties published out of of Holyoke, Mass.. Their editorial offices were located at 241 Church Street, NY 13, NY, which had previously been listed as also the address of the publisher. A sister publication of Mammoth Detective, Fast Action Detective and Double-Action Detective and Mystery Stories. Published detective stories, puzzles and reviews. O''Niel De Noux's magazine from the early 90's, published originally by Pulphouse, and now long folded. A small press anthology of short suspense & mystery, MT sponsors contests, prints poetry, puzzles and reviews as well as traditional stories. How many issues were published pre-1993 is unclear, although there are suggestions it may have begun publication as early as 1983.
Yeah, it's called "Mystery Weekly" but but this digital mag is published monthly, and presents "crime and mystery short stories by some of the world's best established and emerging mystery writers. The original stories we select for each issue run the gamut from cozy to hardboiled fiction." The monicker, I assume, comes from their free weekly samples, and of course that's the bait. They're hoping you'll love it so much that you'll subscribe to their monthly, printer-friendly PDF version. This digital mag is also available through Magzter, Amazon, Google Play & the App store. And writers take note-- they're always looking for submissions. R.K.Foster, AKA "Ned," was the nefarious editor (N.Ed.) of this ambitious e-zine, a "mystery entertainment and information site for readers, writers, moviegoers, and fans of the mystery in all its forms." which featured fiction, non-fiction, news and reviews. It ran for three years and then disappeared. In 2007 it attempted a comeback, focussing mostly on more "tradtional" mystery fiction, but it never quite reached cruising speed. A web site still exists but it seems to be just an Amazon store.
This ambitious attempt to revive the seminal crime pulp mag ran for just eight incredibly star-studded, digest-sized issues in the mid-late '80s, and featured some of the very best of contemporary hard-boiled writers (and some pretty snazzy and intriguing reprints).Perhaps it was just a little too expensive, or too poorly distributed, but it petered out after losing rights to the title, only to reappear as the paperback-sized A Matter of Crime (and seemed to shift away from hardboiled to cozy).
This modest (hah!) little magazine offered "The World's Best Mystery/Crime/Suspense Stories." Ambitious, pretentious, belligerent, unapologetic, equal parts annoying and thrilling. Published some of the very best hard-boiled fiction of its time, and boasted a web site as in-your-face as its print version. The buzz was that, although they offered subscriptions for four issues, that didn't necessarily mean they were published quarterly. Their schedule was annoyingly erratic, and varied over the years from several issues annually down to sometimes just one a year. Still, it's was worth checking out.... According to one contributor, "New Mystery lives, but in a rather confused manner. The next issue is going to be the Summer issue but I still haven't been told a date as to when it will hit the stands. I'm hoping that because the web site has been updated the print issue can't be far behind. We shall see..." Mind you, that was over a decade ago. My guess? Stick a fork in it, it's done.
A great idea that unfortunately failed after only three issues (and two publishers). This 64-page, comic-book size modern-day pulp magazine featured fiction, art and comic strips by the greatest talents in the mystery, crime fiction and comics fields. Contributors included Robert Randisi, Ron Goulart, Wendi Lee, C.J. Henderson, and Max Allan Collins, and featured Mike Mauser comic adventures. Some back issues are still available from former editor Christopher Mills. Too offbeat for the newstands, too literate for the comic book stores, and possibly hampered by it's offbeat size.
Published by Feature Publications at the same Holyoke, Mass. address as Homicide Detective Story Magazine, et al.
An honest-to-goodness print journal whose credo sounds pretty damn good: "Hardboiled. Lean and mean. No silly reviews. No poetry (that's for pussies). No advertising. Nothing but hard hitting stories. In your face and busting up your kiss-maker. Kapow." Kapow, indeed. Contributors are a veritable who's who of the new pulp (and plenty of 'em are friends of this site). They include Ray Banks, Kieran Shea, Keith Rawson, Patti Abbott, Dave Zeltserman, Paul D. Brazill, Sandra Seamans, Eric Nusbaum, Jedidiah Ayres, Sarah Weinman, Stephen Blackmoore, Anthony Neil Smith, Libby Cudmore and Graham Powell.
An occasionally noirish literary mag, featuring American and Canadian writing. Currently archived.
A class act, all the way, even if the slant is towards more traditional mysteries. At one time a quarterly, beautifully-printed, with great graphics, original fiction and excellent articles about the genre, and still running now as an e-zine of sorts, publishing reviews and fiction. Encourages new authors, offers thoughtful critiques of their work.
Subtitled "The Journal of Proferssional Investigators," this magazine is essentially a trade journal for real-life private eyes, and as thus often makes for fascinating reading. And somewhere back in its long, varied history, it even used to run an awful lot of P.I. fiction. The biggest name they ever published was probably S.J. Rozan, whose Lydia Chin and Bill Smith made their debut there, but Rob Lopresti's Marty Crow, Robert W. Tinsley's Jack Brady and Steve Kaye's Leonard Dolman also made early appearances. They no longer run fiction, alas.
This semi-pro mag regularly mixed crime fiction with fantasy/horror/sf, like a less star-studded, less criminous magazine version of an Alfred Hitchcock Presents anthology. It was retitled "Fantastic Stories of the Imagination" in 2000.
Co-editor Anthony Neil Smith promised this much beloved ezine would be "a pulp magazine for the 21st century. Cheap, fast, and dirty." They were looking for good fiction, poetry, and essays in the hard-boiled noir tradition (tweaked and twisted, however). And it had to have a gun in it. "You can be as sly as you want with that or come out guns blazing," they said, "as long as there's a gun in it." They found it.
This one ran from September 1953 to November 1956. Published by Star Publications, located at that same ubitquious Holyoke, Mass. address as all the rest, with editorial offices at 545 Fifth Avenue, NY 17, NY. A sister publication of Hunted Detective Story Magazine -- that building on Fifth Avenue must have been crowded with mystery writers.
This early digest (from the forties) featured reprints from some of the greatest crime and mystery writers. As far as I can tell, only eight issues ever made it to the newstands which, judging from the one issue I own, (No. 3, February 1946) is a real shame. There are some real treasures here, including "Boston Blackie's Mary" by Jack Boyle.
The Saint Detective Magazine was named after, and often included, a reprinted or original story featuring Leslie Chartis' gentleman-adventurer, Simon Templar, aka "The Saint." The U.S. edition, originally published by King-Size, began in 1953, was re-named The Saint Mystery Magazine in 1958, and folded in 1967, with a three-issue revival in 1984. The UK edition began in 1954 as The Saint Detective Magazine, became The Saint Mystery Magazine in 1960, and folded in 1966, according to The Saintly Bible, Dan Bodenheimer's exhaustive site.
Under various names this ran from 1957 into 1965. The first five issues were science fiction and at some point the name changed to Web Terror Stories. Published by Candar Publishing Company out of good ol' Holyoke, Mass., Massachusetts (where else?).
Short-lived digest, named after Richard Prather's wildly-popular P.I. hero, Shell Scott, of course. It was published under the imprint of the LeMarge Publishing Corporation, the name being a sort of anagram of publisher Margulies' name. Each issue featured a Shell Scott short story by Prather, as well as stories from some of the best in the biz. Its final issue featured Bill Pronzini's first published story.
You couldn't kill this British crime mag with a stick. It was established in 1994 as a print quarterly, and has undergone several changes in its life. From rugged A5 to glossy A4 to, as of March 2002, an online e-zine. It humbly bills itself as "the magazine for Crime & Mystery," with news, columns, reviews, interviews, and a little bit of fiction. In their own words, they're there for "crime fiction readers, though we try to cater for the viewers on the big and small screen, as well as those who have travelled beyond the role of mere readers to being specialist collectors and students.To a large extent we retain a critical stance, and are prepared to shout loudly when we feel that novels, authors and readers are not getting a fair deal. And we are not afraid to champion the underdog. We support and promote the smaller, independent publishers of the crime fiction titles."
This online mag offered mystery, crime and suspense fiction, including the various subgenres and cross-genre stories, and even poaid their writers.
"This American revival of the classic British mag that introduced Sherlock Holmes to the world has managed to hang on for over twenty years. With decent Holmes pastiches, good nonfiction, and HRF Keating, Michael Bond, and other big names who skirt cozy and Edwardian, this is still the most PI-oriented of the non-hardboiled print 'zines, necessarily as a result of all the Sherlockiana."
Published by Pontiac Publishing Corp., editorial offices at 1776 Broadway, NY 19, NY. A sister publication of Off Beat Detective Stories.
A massive on-line British crime and mystery fiction journal, featuring "The Best in Crime and Mystery Fiction," devoted to crime and detective fiction, with articles on collecting, true crime, interviews, reveiws, crosswords, and original fiction. Their web site's something else, although it seems to have stopped being updated somewhere in 2017, or possibly even earlier. It's hard to tell.
Four known issues from October 1956 to April 1957. Published by Arnold Magazines out of Holyoke, Mass., with editorial offices at 303 Lexington Ave. NY 16, NY. Another sister publication of Homicide, Crime and Justice, and Killers. Essentially Judas under a new name, this equally short-lived ezine was run by Anthony "In the Navy" Dauer. Mr. Charm didn't believe in having a heavy hand when it came to editing (he'd even let you format your own story) so this was an excellent place for beginning writers whose egos may have been a little fragile, as well as those who felt editors were scum. A small press magazine from the UK devoted to pulp and cult fiction with a decidedly British slant, featuring mostly non-fiction, on series characters and their creator.
Published by Headline Publications, Inc., out of Holyoke, Mass. A sister publication of Guilty Detective Story Magazine.
Hard-boiled poetry was the hook here, but I'm not sure any issues were ever published.
Not the evangelical Christian magazine, but a short lived and pretty decent crime mag. Following the successful launch of Manhunt, Flying Eagle launched this copy cat, but it never really caught on, despite two further attempts to revive it. All told, only seven issues were published. Perhaps it was the inclusion of reprints that turned readers off. But looking at it from the present, what reprints! Cornell Woolrich (writing as William Irish), Raymond Chandler, Fredric Brown, Rex Stout, Henry Kane,, Chester Himes, James M. Cain, Evan Hunter, Craig Rice, George Harmon Coxe and Frank Kane. It only lasted 4 issues, but the publishers tried again three years later as Verdict Crime Detection. That didn't take either -- all told only seven issues were ever printed. Hard-to-find small press mag out of Oklahoma City, only lasted five issues, each labelled with names like "Sleuth Edition," "Bon "oyage Edition," etc., rather than being dated. |
