WWJW by Leigh Lundin What do you do if your religious beliefs conflict with your Bible? Most Christians, Jews, Buddhists, and Muslims would say you get right with God, but if you’re Andrew Schlafly, you rewrite the Bible to suit your own notions. Really. I’m serious. I couldn’t make this up. I’ve tried not to […]

PATIENTS, PATIENTS by John M. Floyd A few weeks ago I did something I hate to do. And no, it didn’t involve cleaning rain gutters or going to the opera or trying to make sense of contemporary poetry. It involved a trip to the doctor. Nothing serious, just a routine checkup. Since my late father […]

CONVENTIONAL WISDOM by Steve Steinbock As you read this, I’m probably sitting in the lobby of the Indianapolis Hyatt Regency hanging out with John Floyd, or downstairs in the Exhibit Hall browsing paperbacks with Bill Crider, or better yet, on a lunch date with Criminal Brief veteran Melodie Johnson Howe. As I write this, though, […]

YOU CAN’T MAKE THIS STUFF UP by Deborah Elliott-Upton Writers are told we must know the tricks of the trade when writing about crimes, but in truth, criminals are pretty darn dumb. The Oklahoman website reported that James Brewer of Shawnee, OK, suffered a stroke and feared he was on his deathbed. Wanting redemption in […]

POP QUIZ 2: PROPER NAMES by Rob Lopresti One interesting thing about surnames is that most of them mean something. (Some only mean that an official at Ellis Island couldn’t spell, but never mind that.) When people ask me about my own I usually explain that Lopresti means “son of a priest.” Then I wait […]

I am pleased beyond words to offer the following, the first unsolicited fan contribution to Criminal Brief, something I first invited way back in May of this year. It is only fitting that the inaugural column should be written by our faithful and constant friend, Jeff Baker, who offers the following as his biographical blurb: […]

WHAT A CONCEPT by James Lincoln Warren Enjoyable genre fiction usually strikes a balance between convention and novelty. This is particularly true of mysteries. For example, in the fair-play mystery, the clues are hidden in plain view and at the climax, the puzzle is solved by the detective; the novelty is usually in the nature […]