Crime Short Story – Adjudications and Readings - February 4th, 2020.

Before handing back the seven manuscripts to the (still anonymous authors), Sandra read out the titles and opening paragraphs of each story and commented on their impact and appropriateness to the story. Also discussed was how closely or otherwise, the authors had followed the guidelines given in the Sandra’s January workshop.

There was a general comment in terms of indents, spacing and fresh paragraphs. If in doubt, look at an already published book.

             Kate was a sole winner.

         

  Kate’s ‘Death at St Judes’. When the priest found the body of Mary O’Hara in the church, he was devastated. Later he became amazed that anyone would want to poison such a hard working and popular member of the church congregation.

Her recent husband Frank was even more devastated and also angry at the Priest. He had married believing that Mary had become and would remain his loving and constant companion. He was bitterly disappointed to find that Mary continued to devote more time caring for the fabric of the church than she did for her new husband.

Frank also hadn’t realised that Mary would consume the remains of the digitalis-laced communion wine. He confessed to the priest that he, Father McGill, not Mary, had been the intended target.

  John S’s seedy character ‘Pinky’ had a ‘close’ encounter in the edgy world of illegal drug distribution. He made the mistake of believing that he could by-pass his usual supplier with impunity.

He was unable to talk his way out of short sharp lesson that lead to his inglorious demise.

  Joyce told of middle aged Maisie who was settled into mundane but reasonably contented life. Her handsome petty crook of a brother was upset when he failed to persuade her to invest her bequest from a recently bereaved cousin. The ‘investment’ was to be in yet another of his dodgy schemes.

She decided to get her retaliation in first and arranged a fatal fall down the stairs for him. She still might be able to get away on that cruise.

  Hilary’s character did not have an impressive education, but was streetwise enough to know that her apparent Robin Hood of an employer was running some sort of scam. Unfortunately he was trying to scam a group that was way out of his league.

In his attempt to escape the heavies who were after him he became a fatal target of his own vanity.

  Morag gave us a hospital cleaner that for years had been on the receiving end of scorn and abuse from her mother. Her Mother’s hospitalisation gave her the chance for pay back time.

The death at first looked like natural causes. Unfortunately, the scratch to the face from her mother fingernails, sustained whilst trying to avoid the smothering pillow, left traces of the daughter’s DNA.

  Joan Fr’s Maria was initially infatuated with Robert: That infatuation changed to fear and hate almost immediately, as she became an abused prisoner and slave in their isolated house. Whenever he left the house, she was locked in the cellar.

She saw a chance of escape through his love of her cooking. The wild mushrooms were starting to take effect, but Maria had not thought through Robert’s likely reaction when he started to feel ill.

  Pete’s spoiled housewife, after she found a rich and handsome lover, decided that her husband had become redundant. She carefully devised a plan to convert his yacht into an accident black-spot.

When the Police arrived to investigate the suspicious death of her husband’s illicit lover, she had many confused emotions.