Women Writers, Women's Books: Judy Penz Sheluk: From Pink Slip to Published Author

 Women Writers, Women's Books: Judy Penz Sheluk: From Pink Slip to Published Author

Thursday Treats

Welcome to what will be, I hope, the first of many weekly columns highlighting cool stuff to check out. Publishing news of books, short stories, interviews, and more, that I have seen and think might be of interest to you. So, you will see a lot of publishing news related items as, more than anything else, I am a reader. A reader who reads both eBooks and print.

 

I’m not a true crime kind of guy. Many of you are, and so I mention that authors Judy Penz Sheluk and Amanda Capper are writing a book on the Helen Grier murder case. Judy explains the background and their plans in her post earlier this month on The Stiletto Gang. Even though I am not a true crime guy, the post is intriguing. Her post is well worth the read.

 

Ed Ridgley’s short story “The Blue Lincoln” is up at the Guilty Crime Magazine website. A flash tale and a free read. And, if you missed it, the latest issue of the magazine, Guilty Crime Story Magazine: Issue 015 - Summer 2025 is available over on Amazon. I have my copy in the TBR pile along with several other issues. Just way behind in my reading.

 

As Lesa Holstine announced on Lesa’s Book Critiques back in November 2024, Bill Crider’s books are being republished by his daughter, Angela, and her husband, Tom. In recent days, Jan Grape wrote about her love for Bill, the Dan Rhodes series, and more in a post that includes an interview with Angela. Check out her  SluethSayers post. By the way, if you have not read the mystery series set in East Texas with the good sheriff, you should do so. Begin with Too Late To Die and read in order. I have reviews of the books here on the blog as well if you want to know more. Been a big fan for decades.

 

The new issue, Starlight Pulp Review #7, is out. Features short stories by numerous folks including SMFS list members, Robert J. Binney with “Gifts of Providence,” Ron Clyburn with “Send in the Killers,” Martin Hill Ortiz with “Not Enough Corpses,” and Jennifeer Slee with “The Apex.”

 

Mystery Writers of America put out their monthly roundup of publishing news from their members. New Books by MWA Members – January 2026 also lists short stories. This month, all the stories are found in the pages of AHMM or EQMM. SMFS list members are featured in the books as well as the short story categories.

 

Speaking of SMFS, the latest publishing news post as compiled and issued by SMFS President Joseph S. Walker came out last week. With winter weather making things dangerous outside coming for most of the nation, including my part of NE Dallas where we are being threatened with a crippling ice storm this weekend (God, no), this is a good time to stock up on reading materials.

Also, get your submissions in to the Derringers. All the details are up on the SMFS blog. Deadline is 1/30/2026.

 

Finally, as Lorie Ham of Kings River Life Magazine has shared on Facebook and elsewhere, “We've had some big unexpected expenses come up lately, so I'm running another big ad special for KRL. So if you are interested in knowing more reach out via email at kingsriverlife@gmail.com.”

Until next time...  

 

Kevin R. Tipple ©2026

The Stiletto Gang: A Fatal Affair: The Murder of Helen Grier [Part I]

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House of Mystery Radio on NBC: Judy Penz Sheluk - Midnight Schemers & Daydream Believers

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Jungle Red Writers: Crowing about Cover Art--Judy Penz Sheluk

Jungle Red Writers: Crowing about Cover Art--Judy Penz Sheluk: DEBORAH CROMBIE : It's always a treat to have Judy Penz Sheluk here, and what better way to beat the heat than a new mystery anthology! ...

Guest Post: Midnight Schemers & Daydream Believers: First Lines by Judy Penz Sheluk

 

Please welcome back Editor Judy Penz Sheluk to the blog today as she shares the first lines of the various short stories in the new anthology, Midnight Schemers & Daydream Believers: 22 Stories of Mystery & Suspense. Published by Superior Shores Press, the read is available at Amazon and other vendors.  

 

 

Midnight Schemers & Daydream Believers: First Lines by Judy Penz Sheluk

 

 

I set up my publishing imprint, Superior Shores Press (SSP), in February 2018. Since that time, I’ve learned a lot, not only as a publisher, but as a writer and editor. Reading, you see, really is the best teacher, and with close to 500 short story submissions for SSP’s five multi-author anthologies, reading was definitely a huge part of the process. My biggest takeaway? The opening line (or sometimes paragraph) has to grab my attention. It has to stand out from the crowd, arms raised overhead, and shout, “Pick me, pick me!” Every one of the first lines in Midnight Schemers & Daydream Believers, the latest Superior Shores Anthology, spoke to me, some more quietly than others, to be sure, but they spoke to me nonetheless, made me want to keep on reading, to hope that the rest of the story would be as good, or better. That the end would satisfy and surprise. Here’s a sneak peek of those first lines, in order of appearance:

 

Secretly Keith by Charlie Kondek

“Big” John Warmer was not a big man, unless you counted his stomach, a characteristic he not only failed to conceal but to which he drew attention by wearing t-shirts a size too small.

 

A Talent for Fame by Susan Daly

“Wait...what? Kate stared at me, her glass of Northern Spirit Rye paused halfway to her lips.

 

The Underground by Pam Barnsley

With only a slight tremor in his hands, Chaucer turned the last card over.

 

Julia’s Garage by Rand Gaynor

A bumblebee, held down by a set of calipers, struggles against having its stinger pulled out by a small pair of tweezers.

 

A Time to Tell by Amanda Capper

I started collecting secrets when I was six.

 

The Artist by Linda Bennett

Saturday afternoon and Nick tells Michael it’s time to take the new guy out with the crew.

 

Maladaptives Anonymous by donalee Moulton

Marla Porter is a life coach. I don’t know what a life coach is, but it clearly makes Marla happy.

 

Watch Your Step by Edward Lodi

Brandon Whitby eased the boredom of his days as the desk clerk of a seedy motel by alternating between daydreaming of what it would be like to be rich, never having to work again, and cooking up schemes to achieve that goal—without, of course, actually having to put in any real effort.

 

Dinner at Angelo’s by Julie Hastrup

Charlie’s Buick crunched into Angelo’s gravel parking lot.

 

Evening Escapade by KM Rockwood

Timing was everything.

 

Quincy and Crow by Joseph S. Walker

When Helena Vasquez’s great-grandfather bought the lot at the corner of Quincy and Crow, there was still farmland within walking distance.

 

Front Desk Staff  by Bethany Maines

I was about to lose a hundred dollars to a douchebag named after the blonde himbo from Saved by the Bell.

 

Checking Out at the Live Free or Die Motel By Debra Bliss Saenger

Deputy Sheriff Connor Fisk was ending the graveyard shift before being relieved by the daytime crew.

Hopscotch and Pop Tart by Clark Boyd

Hopper McTaggart, his formidable bulk crammed behind the wheel of a pink Fiat 500, stared into the wall-eyed face of the rubber chicken hovering outside the passenger window.

 

A Promise to Pete by James Patrick Focarile

Two small white socks were left on the front doorstep.

 

Ticket Out by Jim McDonalds

Fourteen months inside is a drag, except for my mopping buddy Deuce, who teaches me how to crack the new digital Forte lock.

 

Ghost Wolves by Peggy Rothschild

We approached the house from the back, both dressed in dark jeans, jackets, and beanies.

 

Friendship Never Dies by Beth Irish

How did I end up in this dilapidated joint?

 

Secrets Unleashed by Gina X. Grant

Casing the joint proved easy.

 

Try Hard by Michael Penncavage

Cliff was almost giddy with excitement.

 

Making Up for Lost Time by C.W. Blackwell

It wasn’t the first time someone told me I looked like Tag Sandoval, the famed Silicon Valley tech CEO, but it carried an unbearable irony now that I was living in a downtown shelter with two dozen men whose luck had run completely dry.

 

A Foolproof Plan by Judy Penz Sheluk

I watch Mark’s black SUV turn out of our long, narrow driveway and feel the tightness in my chest loosen, knowing my husband will be gone for the next two days.

 

Readers: Which first line from Midnight Schemers & Daydream Believers grabbed your attention, made you want to keep reading, and why?

 

About the book: Desire or desperation, revenge or retribution—how far would you go to realize a dream? The twenty-two authors in this collection explore the possibilities, with predictably unpredictable results.

 

Featuring stories by Pam Barnsley, Linda Bennett, Clark Boyd, C.W. Blackwell, Amanda Capper, Susan Daly, James Patrick Focarile, Rand Gaynor, Gina X. Grant, Julie Hastrup, Beth Irish, Charlie Kondek, Edward Lodi, Bethany Maines, Jim McDonald, donalee Moulton, Michael Penncavage, Judy Penz Sheluk, KM Rockwood, Peggy Rothschild, Debra Bliss Saenger, and Joseph S. Walker.

  

Amazon Associate Purchase Link: https://amzn.to/44vnrJF 

Judy Penz Sheluk ©2025

  

Judy Penz Sheluk is a former journalist and magazine editor and the bestselling author of two mystery series, several short stories, and two books on publishing. She is also the publisher and editor of five Superior Shores Anthologies. Find out more at www.judypenzsheluk.com.

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Guest Post: First Lines in Larceny & Last Chances: 22 Stories of Mystery & Suspense-- Part 2 by Judy Penz Sheluk

Please welcome Judy Penz Sheluk back to the blog today as she shares some of the first lines from the stories in the new anthology, Larceny & Last Chances: 22 Stories of Mystery & Suspense, releasing Tuesday. Part 1 ran last Sunday on the SMFS blog. The anthology was released last Tuesday and includes my short story, The Hospital Boomerang.

 

 

Larceny & Last Chances: 22 Stories of Mystery & Suspense

First Lines: Part II

 

That’s right. Part II. If you missed Part I, you can find it on the Short Mystery Fiction Society’s blog spot, where it was posted on June 16^th. And now, here’s Part II (or, for those of you not keeping up, the first lines of the final 11 stories in Larceny & Last Chances: 22 Stories of Mystery & Suspense):

 

No Good Deed by Kate Fellowes

 I’ll just say, that Bible should have been mine in the first place.

 

Incidents & Intentions by Wil A. Emerson

Lily unlocked the back door of the thrift shop using a key that didn’t belong to her.

 

A Tight Squeeze by Larry M. Keeton

My wife, Denise, was dead.

 

Not This Time by Mary Wills Fraser

I’m hiding in my ex-husband’s closet when my phone rings.

 

Wheel of Fortune by John Bukowski

Karl slid his last token into the slot and pushed the glowing button.

 

Robbery at The Birdcage by Cate Moyle

Deputy Michelle Simmons received the dispatch call at 05:49 and steered her cruiser toward the village of Dunecrest.

 

The Crimson Salamander by Tracy Falenwolfe

Since her induction into The Modus Operandi Supper Club, Billie Burgess often said Mark Luxor was the devil.

 

The Case of the Pilfered Parka by Gina X. Grant

Five minutes into the interview, Noah was ready to confess.

 

A Promise Kept by Karen Grose

The only reason I’m working at Big Jim’s is because no one else wanted the job, let alone applied.

 

The Pool by Brenda Chapman

Greg opened the gate to his neighbor’s backyard and surveyed the wide expanse of fresh sod, his gaze coming to rest on the newly installed, inground pool that sparkled like a box of gems in the June sunshine.

 

The Last Chance Coalition by Judy Penz Sheluk

I watch Jake McFadden strut into O’Leary’s Bar & Grill with the swagger of a man who’s dabbled with the big time and likes to flaunt it.

Have a favorite? Leave a comment. We really do love comments.

 

About the anthology

Larceny & Last Chances: 22 Stories of Mystery & Suspense

Edited by Judy Penz Sheluk

Publication Date: June 18, 2024

 

Sometimes it’s about doing the right thing. Sometimes it’s about getting even. Sometimes it’s about taking what you think you deserve. And sometimes, it’s your last, best, hope. Edited by Judy Penz Sheluk and featuring stories by Christina Boufis, John Bukowski, Brenda Chapman, Susan Daly, Wil A. Emerson, Tracy Falenwolfe, Kate Fellowes, Molly Wills Fraser, Gina X. Grant, Karen Grose, Wendy Harrison, Julie Hastrup, Larry M. Keeton, Charlie Kondek, Edward Lodi, Bethany Maines, Gregory Meece, Cate Moyle, Judy Penz Sheluk, KM Rockwood, Kevin R. Tipple, and Robert Weibezahl.

 

Amazon Associate Purchase Link: https://amzn.to/4bq7wwo 

 

Judy Penz Sheluk ©2024 

Judy Penz Sheluk is a former journalist and magazine editor and the bestselling author of two mystery series, several short stories, and two books on publishing. She is also the publisher and editor of four Superior Shores Anthologies. Find out more at www.judypenzsheluk.com.

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