Teddy's Favorite Thing Is An Ellery Queen Readers Award Winner

The 2023 Ellery Queen Readers Award winners -- voted upon by the readers of EQMM -- have been announced. My debut short story, "Teddy's Favorite Thing," placed third, behind David Dean's "Mrs. Hyde," and "Spear Carriers," by Richard Helms.

Both Mr. Dean and Mr. Helms are veteran writers, contributing to EQMM for decades, so I feel especially fortunate to share the podium with them. The awards blog notes that Teddy was my first story, and is "a sign of good things to come for this newcomer to the crime-fiction scene." Those are kind words and I'm especially pleased to be the new guy in anything in this phase of my life!

Details of the 2023 awards, with results down to 10th place, are available at the EQMM blog.

I congratulate all the winners and extend my thanks to Ellery Queen for publishing Teddy, and to the readers of EQMM for making the story a success.