Short Mystery Fiction Society Awards

SHORT MYSTERY FICTION SOCIETY DERRINGER AWARDS

The Derringer Award was created in 1997 by the Short Mystery Fiction Society to honor excellence in the creative artform of short mystery and crime stories. The name "Derringer," after the palm-sized handgun, was chosen as a metaphor for a mystery or crime short story -- small, but dangerous. The award is in the form of a certificate suitable for framing.

Any English-language mystery or crime short story that appeared during the previous year in a publication which has an editor and an established procedure for submission, acceptance and rejection, is eligible for a Derringer. The publication does not have to pay in cash and may be a print magazine, an electronic magazine (ezine), or an anthology or collection published in book form.

The author does not have to be a member of SMFS to be considered. Winners in each category are chosen by SMFS member vote.

Each member of the Short Mystery Fiction Society may submit up to two stories for consideration. The stories may be two of their own, two by other writers, or one of each. Editors and publishers of professional publications may submit a number of submissions based on the total number of stories they published during the year.

An official announcement calling for submissions for the Derringer Awards will be made in February of each year and winners will be announced by the end of April.

You might also want to check our List of Past Derringer Winners and Finalists.

Nominations for the 2009 Derringer Awards

Nominations for the Derringer Awards will be accepted beginning February 1st, 2009. So think back about all those great stories you read in 2008. The ones you had to tell other people about. Pick the ones you love best and e-mail your nomination to Nikki Dolson, Derringer Awards Co-ordinator.

In the subject line type DERRINGER SUBMISSION – TITLE OF STORY and attach the story file, preferably in Word format. Please remove the author’s name from the stories. The attached files should have the title of the work and a word count included at the top of the story.

In the body of the email tell me the author's name, when and where the story was published. Also tell me who published the story. I’ll need to know if the person submitting the story is an editor, the author or a member of SMFS. Include indicate the length-category the work is to be entered in.

And last but not least, the submission must be a mystery of some sort.

2008 DERRINGER WINNERS & FINALISTS

From April 1-30, the members of The Short Mystery Fiction Society voted to determine the winner in each category. Winners were announced in mid-May.

For a complete list of previous winners and finalists, please click here. For additional information about the Derringers, please contact the Derringer Awards Coordinator.

FURTHER INFORMATION ON THE DERRINGERS

The Complete Rules and Procedures

Submissions

Who May Submit

Timeline

Judging Guidelines

Selection of Finalists

OTHER AWARDS

The Short Mystery Fiction Society will also occasionally bestow special one-time-only awards, as it deems fit.

For example, in 1999, The Short Mystery Fiction Society, together with Murderous Intent Mystery Magazine, sponsored The Edgar Allan Poe Sesquicentennial Tribute Story Contest to mark October 7, 1999, the 150th anniversary of the passing of Edgar Allan Poe, the dark genius of American letters and the father of the detective story. The contest was open to members of the SMFS and the readers of MIMM.
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