Monday, November 23, 2020

Mastering the Art of Crime

Authors Charlaine Harris and Jeffery Deaver were named today as the Mystery Writers of America’s 2021 Grand Masters. As a news release explains, “MWA’s Grand Master Award represents the pinnacle of achievement in mystery writing and was established to acknowledge important contributions to this genre, as well as for a body of work that is both significant and of consistent high quality.”

“Mystery Writers of America is thrilled to honor Jeffery Deaver and Charlaine Harris as MWA’s 2021 Grand Masters,” said MWA President Meg Gardiner. “Over the course of decades, Deaver and Harris have gripped tens of millions of readers while broadening the reach of the genre with transformative books—notably, Deaver’s Lincoln Rhyme series, and Harris’s Sookie Stackhouse novels—and while generously encouraging and supporting fellow writers and the reading public. We’re delighted to recognize their achievements.”

Past Grand Masters include Agatha Christie, Erle Stanley Gardner, Ross Macdonald, John le Carré, Sara Paretsky, Walter Mosley, Max Allan Collins, and last year’s winner, Barbara Neely.

Concurrently, the MWA chose the Malice Domestic mystery conference (founded in 1989) as the recipient of its 2021 Raven Award, recognizing “outstanding achievement in the mystery field outside the realm of creative writing.”

Provided that next year’s Edgar Awards ceremony is held in public (it’s currently scheduled for Thursday, April 29, in New York City), these prizes will be given out then.

Click here to read more about these commendations.

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