Pancho Villa and Six Words

This week La Bloga features two of our favorite things:  A brand new book about Pancho Villa, one of our favorite heroes, written by one of our favorite authors; and the annual Six-Word Mystery Contest from the Rocky Mountain Chapter of the Mystery Writers of America.  Can't go wrong with either.

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Pancho Villa: A Revolutionary Life
Paco Ignacio Taibo II, translated by Todd Chretien
Seven Stories Press - August

[from the publisher]
With Pancho Villa, renowned writer Paco Ignacio Taibo II offers a wild ride and revealing portrait of the controversial revolutionary figure Pancho Villa. Until now, Villa’s life and legacy has been defined and interpreted mostly by his enemies. Here, for the first time, he finds himself among friends. Click here to read an excerpt on our website.

Canonized as one of the greatest military commanders of all time, Pancho Villa used calvary charges to rout superior armies in battle after battle, turning the tide in campaigns that kept the dream of the Mexican revolution alive even after its founding principles had been betrayed. Here in this magisterial biography of Villa, novelist, biographer, historian, and crime fiction writer Paco Ignacio Taibo II presents a new vision of Villa not only as a master of war but also as the living incarnation of the revolutionary hopes of a great nation. Taibo’s irreverent and conversational style, together with his deep research, make Pancho Villa a major advance in our understanding of the Mexican revolution and its most explosive leader. Until now, Villa has been defined and interpreted mostly by his enemies. Here, for the first time, he finds himself among friends.

Includes period photographs that indelibly capture the rocky transition from the wild and agrarian past towards modern Mexican statehood.

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Six-Word Mystery Contest

DENVER, August 23, 2024 – There are short stories. Then there are really short stories consisting of only six words. Writers who can boil down a mystery into a half-dozen words are encouraged to enter the fifth annual Six-Word Mystery Contest sponsored by the Rocky Mountain Chapter of Mystery Writers of America (RMMWA).

The contest opens September 1, 2024 with instructions posted at www.rmmwa.org. Entries must be received by midnight, Oct. 6, 2024, MST. Six-word “whodunits” can be entered in one or all five of the following categories: Hard Boiled or Noir; Cozy Mystery; Thriller Mystery; Police Procedural Mystery; and/or a mystery with Romance or Lust. The Six-Word Mystery Contest is open to all adults 18 and over. No residency requirements.

Award-winning author and RMMWA Chapter President Lori Lacefield said, “Follow the tradition set by Hemingway in the 1920s with your own boiled-down intriguing mystery, written in just six words and be judged by professional writers, editors, and agents. Writers from across the nation as well as Europe, Asia and Australia have entered our previous contests. We’re excited to see what big and fun story ideas are revealed this year.”

Last year’s overall winning entry from the police procedural category was written by David Bart: Dead bookie: all bets are off.  Another previous contestant, Kathleen O’Brien, said her entry landed her a literary agent.

This year’s esteemed judges include Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine Editor Linda Landrigan; New York Times best-selling author Anne Hillerman; award-winning author, Manuel Ramos; literary agent Terrie Wolf, owner of AKA Literary Management; and John Charles of The Poisoned Pen Bookstore in Scottsdale, Arizona.

The contest entry fee is $6 for one entry (just $1 per word); or $10 to enter six-word mysteries in all five categories. The grand prize winner will receive $100 in cold, hard cash. Winners in all other categories will receive $25 gift certificates, and all winners and finalists will be featured in Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine, on our RMMWA website, and in our popular monthly newsletter, Deadlines.

Participants will be invited to the chapter’s annual Mystery & Mistletoe Holiday Party in December which will be held live and on Zoom.

According to legend, the first six-word novel was born in the 1920s when Ernest Hemingway at New York’s Algonquin Hotel or Luchow’s restaurant (depending on whom you ask) won a $10 bet by writing a six-word story. His dark and dramatic submission was: For sale: Baby shoes. Never worn. Urban legend or no, memorable, heart-breaking, and sublime six-word stories have been penned ever since.

For more information about the contest rules and how to enter, please visit www.rmmwa.org beginning August 23, 2024.

ABOUT MYSTERY WRITERS OF AMERICA

Mystery Writers of America is a nonprofit professional organization of mystery and crime writers, editors, publishers, and other professionals in the mystery field.

MWA watches developments in legislation and tax law, sponsors symposia and mystery conferences, presents the Edgar® Awards, and provides information for mystery writers. Membership in MWA is open to published authors, editors, screenwriters, and other professionals in the field.

The Rocky Mountain Chapter represents member writers in Colorado, Montana, New Mexico, Utah, and Wyoming. The Rocky Mountain Chapter meets monthly and provides educational presentations by subject matter experts on topics related to crime, law enforcement, investigative, forensic, medical and legal issues among others; and often sponsors special events of interest to mystery writers in the region.

Later.

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Manuel Ramos writes crime fiction. Read his latest story, Northside Nocturne, in the award-winning anthology Denver Noir, edited by Cynthia Swanson, published by Akashic Books.