Fold Up the Tents, Retire the Elephants

Bad news from British novelist John Rickards (Winter’s End): His Mystery Circus blog isn’t long for this cold, cruel world. In a note posted earlier today, Rickards wrote: “Unless someone has some spectacularly cunning plan, I’m going to close down the Circus in the next couple of days. While the switch in format caused an initial slow climb in traffic and conversation, that climb’s over and the numbers are not good.” Well, damn. And double damn. Mystery Circus boasted a pretty impressive goal: “To bring together some of the sharpest minds in crime fiction in one place, to let them sound off about the issues that interest them, to stimulate debate and encourage discussion.” And for the most part, the blog lived up to its hype, regularly combining the posting talents of notables such as Mark Billingham, Laura Lippman, Ray Banks, and Steve Mosby. It’s too bad to see the Circus go. On the other hand, blogging is a much more difficult and time-consuming task than people on the outside realize, and if Rickards didn’t think he was attracting sufficient readership, then he needs to go on to something that will.

If you haven’t already been a reader of Mystery Circus, check out the contents right now, before Rickards pulls the plug.