CRIMINAL BRIEF CHRISTMAS CONTEST by Leigh Lundin Happy Chanukah, Merry Christmas, and Season’s Greetings! In the spirit of the season, CB announces its first ever Reader Contest. Beginning with this one, a secret Christmas-themed message is hidden in every CB piece from now through next Saturday, December 19. Every one of us enjoys mysteries and […]

NARY A CROSS WORD, I by Leigh Lundin We love words and word games. In that spirit, Criminal Brief will bring you our first ever contest starting December 13. (See below.) In the meantime, enjoy the following crossword puzzle inspired by one of our readers, Cate.   1 2 3 4 5       […]

ANAGRAMS by Leigh Lundin This week, we return to one of our favorite topics, word play, where we take on anagrams. Anagrams a decimal point   I’m a dot in place a gentleman   elegant man a telescope   to see place animosity   is no amity astronomer   moon starer clothespins   so let’s […]

FLORIDA CRIME NEWS by Leigh Lundin A writer in Florida never has to run out of material. Often, news stories reflect stupidity, sometimes on the part of officials, but in recent weeks, crime news has become scary. Florida recently experienced home invasions, and the second could have been as fatal as the first. Winter Garden […]

The NEWSMAN– STODGHILL SAYS SO Dick Stodghill by Leigh Lundin This week, most of us have touched upon Dick Stodghill, and I especially like Steve’s commentary. Dick was a friend of new writers, a friend of CB, a friend of mine. One of my regrets missing Bouchercon this year was missing a chance to visit Dick […]

Deputy Kenneth Moon Inmate Douglas Burden NEWS POT-POURRI by Leigh Lundin Moon Over Tampa Living in Florida provides a rich source of material for writers, though not the kind of anecdotes you want to brag about. This week in Tampa, that changed with a story out of the Hillsborough County Jail. The heroes happen to […]

STICKS ‘n’ STONES by Leigh Lundin This week, we thank the governor of California, Arnold Schwarzenegger, for today’s column. English may not be his first language, but he has no trouble sneaking four letter words, specifically the ƒ-word, into an official message to the State Assembly. For a larger view, click on the snapshot below […]