An Honor to be Nominated

Easter this year will be one that sticks in the memory for years to come. First off, it snowed and was bitter cold. Colder than Thanksgiving, Christmas or New Year. I came up with a few Easter carols. “I’m Dreaming of a White Easter” and “Jingle Bunnies” to name two.

I spent the day with my family. Unfortunately it was in the Emergency Room. Mom had another dizzy spell Saturday evening and then didn’t feel good and had leg cramps Sunday morning, so the planned visit to the doctor turned into a visit to the ER instead. Several of the hospital staff had to double check with us that they had the right person because their records listed her at 86 years old and they didn’t believe it. That made her day. Yes, it’s true.

Her tests all came back excellent, but her blood pressure dropped considerably when they took it standing as opposed to sitting or lying down. They decided to keep her overnight for observation and to run a few more tests this morning. Mom was happy. She didn’t have to wash dishes. Hopefully I’ll be allowed to bring her home later today.

Mentally and physically exhausted, I returned home and checked my e-mail to see if there was anything vital there that couldn’t wait until morning. That was when I learned the BIG NEWS.

I am a finalist for this year’s Derringer Awards in the Longer Short Fiction category for my story, “A Signature in Blood” that appeared in the Winter issue of Mysterical-E. I had to read the list three times before it sunk in. No, there isn’t another Annette Dashofy out there with a story by the same name as mine. It’s me. And it’s an incredible group of writers in which to be included. Here’s the entire list of finalists:

Flash Fiction

Jan Christensen, “Matched Set“ (Long Story Short, Winter, 2006)
Barry Ergang, “Vigilante” (Mysterical-E, Summer 2006)
Michelle Mach, “Snowflake Therapy” (Thereby Hangs a Tale, June 2006)
Jill Maser, “Flight School” (Flashshots. August 28, 2006)
Sandra Seamans, “Home Entertainment” (A Cruel World, July/August 2006)

Short-Short Stories

Gail Farrelly, “Even Steven” (Mouth Full of Bullets, Winter 2006)
John M. Floyd, “Four For Dinner” (Seven by Seven)
Justin Gustainis, “Interview” (Cape Fear Crime Festival, October, 2006)
Steven Torres, “Elena Speaks of the City, Under Siege” (CrimespreeMagazine September/October 2006)
Frank Zafiro, “The Worst Door” (Dispatch, January 2006)

Mid-length Short Stories

David Bareford, “Eden’s Bodyguard” (Thuglit, September 2006)
Rex Burns, “Shadow People” (Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine, June2006)
Bill Crider, “Cranked” (Damn Near Dead: An Anthology of Geezer Noir)
Robert S. Levinson, “Uncle Blinky’s Corner of the World” (ElleryQueen Mystery Magazine, March/April 2006)
Robert Lopresti, “Shanks on the Prowl” (Alfred Hitchcock MysteryMagazine, May 2006)

Longer Short Stories

Annette Dashofy, “Signature in Blood” (Mysterical-E, Winter 2006)
Julie Hyzy, “Strictly Business” (These Guns for Hire)
Stuart MacBride, “Daphne MacAndrews and the Smack-Head Junkies” (DamnNear Dead: An Anthology of Geezer Noir)
Larry Sweazy, “See Also Murder” (Amazon Shorts, December 11, 2006)
Steven Torres, “The Valley of Angustias” (Alfred Hitchcock’s MysteryMagazine, October 2006)

And there I am in the final category.

I can’t wait to tell Mom. I just hope it doesn’t make her as dizzy as it made me.