The Mystery Writers of America has revealed the winners of their annual special awards.
The organization of crime writers announced in a news release that it has named two authors as Grand Masters: Michael Connelly and Joanne Fluke.
Connelly, a former president of the MWA, has written more than 30 mystery novels. He’s best known for his series of books featuring Harry Bosch, a Los Angeles police detective; they have been adapted into two television series, Bosch and Bosch: Legacy.
Fluke has gained acclaim from readers for her popular series of cozy mysteries featuring baker and amateur detective Hannah Swensen, including, most recently, Caramel Pecan Roll Murder. Her novels have formed the basis for Murder, She Baked, a series of TV movies, which air on the Hallmark Movies & Mysteries channel.
Winning the Raven Awards, which honor “outstanding achievement in the mystery field outside the realm of creative writing,” were the authors’ association Crime Writers of Color and Eddie Muller, the writer who hosts Noir Alley, a weekly series on Turner Classic Movies that features crime films.
The Ellery Queen Award, which honors “outstanding writing teams and outstanding people in the mystery-publishing industry,” went to The Strand Magazine, which focuses on mystery authors.
Previous authors named Grand Masters by the MWA have included Laurie R. King, Jeffery Deaver, and Lois Duncan. Past Raven Awards have gone to critic Marilyn Stasio and the Edgar Allan Poe Museum, while Ellery Queen Awards have been won by publisher Reagan Arthur and editor Linda Landrigan.
Michael Schaub, a journalist and regular contributor to NPR, lives near Austin, Texas.
