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Panel Discussion: The Mystery Genre: Its Evolution, Current Trends, and the Future
Join us for a panel discussion on Saturday, September 13, at Hoboken Public Library titled The Mystery Genre: Its Evolution, Current Trends, and the Future, with panelists Rhonda Barnat, Gary Cahill, Lori Robbins, and moderator Jeff Markowitz.
What makes mysteries so tantalizing? Three distinguished mystery authors will delve into the genre’s history; memorable sleuths and villains; captivating storylines; and what devilish mayhem lies ahead.
This FREE event is open to MWA members and the public.
The panel kicks off at 1:00 p.m. and runs until 3:00 p.m. the Hoboken Public Library is at 500 Park Avenue.
Jeff Markowitz (www.jeffmarkowitz.com) is the author of six crime novels set in and around New Jersey, including his latest book, The Other, a dual-timeline historical about standing up to hate. Jeff spent more than forty years creating community-based programs and services in New Jersey for children and adults with autism, including twenty-five years as president and executive director of the Life Skills Resource Center, before retiring in 2018 to devote more time to writing. In October 2021, an epic late-night puzzle hunt based on Jeff’s novella, “Motive for Murder.” raised over $1 million for at-risk children in New York City. Jeff is a past president of the New York Chapter of Mystery Writers of America. He lives in Monmouth Junction, N.J., with his wife. Carol, and two cats, Vergil and Aeneas.
Rhonda Barnat is a crisis-management expert and writes crime fiction under the pen name Rona Bell. Her short story,“Prey of New York” was included in the anthology Where Crime Never Sleeps: Murder New York Style 4 and cited in the Houghton Mifflin book of Best American Mystery Stories 2018, edited by Louise Penny and Otto Penzler. Her short story “The Call Is Yours” appears in Me Too Short Stories: An Anthology of crime writers responding to Me Too issues, edited by Elizabeth Zelvin and published by Level Best Books. She has contributed a number of pieces to Mystery Readers Journal.
Gary Cahill’s first short story, “That Kind of Guy,” appeared in Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine as an homage to the 1920s and beyond dark and twisty classic Black Mask Magazine. Other work has been published in Pulp Empire, Short Story Me Genre Fiction (editor nominated for best story on the web); the Pulp Magazine anthology The Kennedy Curse; and The First Line Literary Journal, Volumes I, II, III, the print anthology. He is podcast cofounder of Plan B Magazine and wrote a feature cover story for Mystery Weekly (now Mystery) Magazine and Shotgun Honey, among others. He is a two-time blue-ribbon champion of the Colts Neck Country Fair Great American Apple Pie Contest. Additionally, after twenty-three years working in Hell’s Kitchen at the height of its hellishness, he is now a staff member at the Weehawken, N.J., Public Library. Gary also serves as the “amuse bouche” pizzaiolo for the secret society WWC (Writers Who Cook).
Lori Robbins is the Amazon best-selling author of the On Pointe and Master Class mystery series and a contributor to The Secret Ingredient: A Mystery Writers Cookbook. She is the recipient of two Silver Falchions; the Indie Award for Best Mystery; and a silver medal from the Award for Mystery and Suspense. Short stories include “Leading Ladies,” which received honorable mention in the 2022 Best American Mystery and Suspense anthology. A former dancer, Lori performed with a number of modern dance and classical ballet companies, but it was her commercial workfor Pavlova Perfume and Macy’s that paid the bills. After ten lean years onstage, she became an English teacher and now writes full time. Her experiences as a dancer, teacher, and mother of six have made her an expert in the homicidal tendencies everyday life inspires. You can find her at lorirobbins.com.