The Edgars, named after American author Edgar Allan Poe, count amongst the most illustrious awards in the mystery genre. This year, no less than two short stories from MIDNIGHT HOUR made the cut for Best Short Story. This is extraordinary for a couple reasons: Tracy Clark, whose story LUCKY THIRTEEN starts off the anthology with a grim bang, never wrote a short story before this effort. Indeed, in our author panels, Clark talked about the anguish of writing short. Meanwhile, V.M. Burns delightful story THE VERMEER CONSPIRACY is in the cozy realm: Valerie, in her blog, expresses her disbelief about the honor:
Imagine my surprise when I got to the nominees for Best Short Story and saw, “The Vermeer Conspiracy.” WHAT? The Vermeer Conspiracy was the name of the short story I’d written for Midnight Hour: A Chilling Anthology of Crime Fiction by 20 Authors of Color. But it couldn’t be my story. The Edgars is a very serious organization, and I don’t write serious. Yes, I write crime fiction, but I write cozies. Surely, two people didn’t come up with the same title. I scanned the list for the author’s name and saw, V. M. Burns. My first thought was, “That’s me. I’m V. M. Burns.” Still, I couldn’t believe my eyes. That’s when the congratulatory emails/Facebook posts started to roll in.
Happy Birthday, Edgar Allen Poe! Jan. 23, 2022, V.M. Burns Mystery Writer
Winners will be announced at a real live banquet on April 28, 2022. Below, the table of nominees. Congratulations!
| 2022 | Best Short Story | Blindsided | Michael Bracken & James A. Hearn | Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine | Issue: September-October 2021 |
| 2022 | Best Short Story | The Vermeer Conspiracy | V.M. Burns | Crooked Lane Books | Midnight Hour Anthology |
| 2022 | Best Short Story | Lucky Thirteen | Tracy Clark | Crooked Lane Books | Midnight Hour Anthology |
| 2022 | Best Short Story | The Road to Hana | R.T. Lawton | Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine | Issue: May-June 2021 |
| 2022 | Best Short Story | The Locked Room Library | Gigi Pandian | Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine | Issue – July-August 2021 |
| 2022 | Best Short Story | The Dark Oblivion | Cornell Woolrich | Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine | Issue: January-February 2021 |
| 2022 | Best Short Story | Aggie Morton Mystery Queen: The Dead Man in the Garden | Marthe Jocelyn | Penguin Random House Canada – Tundra Books |