A Mister Sister

I am a Mister Sister, and I'm proud of it!

In the last Sisters in Crime newsletter I got several weeks ago, there was a wonderful article called, Brothers in Crime, which focused on SinC members like me -- men in Sisters in Crime.

The goal of SinC has been the same since the beginning in 1987; working to achieve equality for women writers in the publishing industry, particularly in the crime genre. But, as the article written by SinC chapter liaison Sandra Parshall states, that doesn't mean the organization wants to take away anything from male writers. In fact, men have been part of SinC since the beginning. SinC is supportive of all writers, regardless of gender.

I joined Sisters in Crime specifically because of two male members in the Speed City chapter, Tony Perona and Jim Huang. As Jim says, SinC programs are supportive and inclusive of everyone. SinC is positive and upbeat. And I see that in every chapter meeting. I don't feel out of place though often there are only one or two men in attendance.

The Speed City chapter of SinC has three dozen members and six are men. That's not a bad percentage. In fact, I think it is slightly higher than the national, where male membership is around 12 percent to 14 percent. I am the only male officer of our chapter, where I have served for two years as secretary, but I truly believe I have benefited from membership far more than I have contributed.

I joined SinC in 2008 after writing my first novel, FIGHTING CHAOS. (Note, the title of my blog stems from the title of the book.) No one in the group has read Chaos. But members have read and commented on subsequent work and I can say without fear of contradiction that my writing has improved tremendously as a result.

All the stories in BEDLAM AT THE BRICKYARD are written by local members of Sisters in Crime, and three of the 15 stories are by men. That also isn't a bad percentage. David Reddick wrote two, including one under the pseudonym Joan Bruce, and I wrote one. So this Saturday Dave and I will proudly display our Mister Sister status.


Dave and I, all the other BEDLAM authors and all the local members of SinC want to invite you to come to the BEDLAM launch and book signing on Saturday, June 12, from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. at the Barnes and Noble bookstore in Carmel. (There will be refreshments.) Pick up a book and read some of the wonderful stories by wonderful local writers. I look forward to seeing you there.

Thanks for reading and keep writing.