MWA Rewards Success

Authors Ken Follett and Margaret Maron have been named as 2013’s Grand Masters by the Mystery Writers of America. An MWA press release explains that this commendation “represents the pinnacle of achievement in mystery writing and was established to acknowledge important contributions to this genre, as well as a body of work that is both significant and of consistent high quality.”

Follett and Maron will receive their prizes during the Edgar Awards Banquet, to be held in New York City on May 2 of next year.

The 2012 Grand Master was Martha Grimes.

Also announced today were the winners of two other MWA prizes. The Mysterious Galaxy Bookstore (with branches in San Diego and Redondo Beach, California) and veteran newspaper journalist Oline Cogdill will both receive the 2013 Raven Awards. The Raven “recognizes outstanding achievement in the mystery field outside the realm of creative writing.”

Finally, the 2013 Ellery Queen Award goes to Johnny Temple, the founder and editor of Akashic Books, which is perhaps best known for its series of urban noir short-story collections (Manhattan Noir, Havana Noir, etc.). The MWA’s press release says the Ellery Queen Award “is given to editors or publishers who have distinguished themselves by their generous and wide-ranging support of the genre.”

(Hat tip to Mystery Fanfare.)

READ MORE: “MWA Grand Masters Ken Follett and Margaret Maron,” by Oline Cogdill (Mystery Scene).