Nominating mystery authors for halls of fame.

Consider nominating distinguished mystery authors for halls of fame that exist throughout the country. Quite often, genre writers are overlooked for these honors or are nominated for some other achievement (e.g., Celestine Sibley was inducted into the Georgia Writers Hall of Fame for her journalism rather than her mysteries; Mildred Wirt Benson is a member of the U Iowa School of Journalism Hall of Fame for her reporting credentials, although her Nancy Drew novels are mentioned).

To be considered for nomination, writers usually need some connection to the particular state (e.g., birth or a minimum term of residence) and a body of work.

Anna Katharine Green.
NYPL

Links to halls of fame appear below. I have nominated police procedural pioneer Ed McBain/Evan Hunter and important early mystery author Anna Katharine Green for the New York State Writers Hall of Fame and, for New Jersey's hall of fame, Ho-ho-kus's Metta Fuller Victor (author of The Dead Letter [1866], the first American detective novel).

State Halls of Fame Devoted to Writers

East Tennessee. It appears the next nominations process will open in June 2013.

Georgia. Current nominees include Mignon Ballard and Virginia Lanier.

Minnesota. Nominated writers must have links to Minnesota, either through birth or residence in the state while producing a body of work. A good candidate for nomination would be Haycraft-Queen lister Mabel Seeley.

Missouri. 2012 Quill Award inductee is Ridley Pearson.

Nevada.

New York. In addition to my nominations of Hunter and Green (mentioned above), another appropriate nominee would be Brewster's Rex Stout—something that the Wolfe Pack should back.

North Carolina. Elizabeth Daniels Squire was inducted in 2006 and Manly Wade Wellman in 1996.

Oklahoma. Jean Hager was inducted in 1992, Carolyn Hart in 1993, and William Bernhardt in 1997.

South Carolina. Does not appear to have a nominations process open to the public. Mickey Spillane was inducted in 2012.

Texas. Established by the Friends of the Fort Worth Public Library to recognize authors who have contributed to the literary heritage of Texas. Bill Crider was inducted in 2010.

Wisconsin Writers Wall of Fame. Sponsored by the Friends of the Milwaukee Public Library. August Derleth was inducted in 1997.

Other
Alabama Men's Hall of Fame.

Alabama Women's Hall of Fame.

Alaska Women's Hall of Fame. Deadline for nominations: November 1, 2012.

Arizona Women's Hall of Fame.

Ink in their blood: Five female mystery authors from the fourth estate.

• Edna Buchanan. Miami Herald journalist Buchanan received a Pulitzer Prize for her reporting in 1986 and discussed her coverage of crime in The Corpse Had a Familiar Face (1987) and Never Let Them See You Cry (1992). Her journalist-sleuth Britt Montero appears in Contents under Pressure (1992); the Edgar-nominated Miami, It's Murder (1994); Suitable for Framing (1995); Act of Betrayal (1996); Margin of Error (1997); Garden of Evil (1999); You Only Die Twice (2001); The Ice Maiden (2002); and Love Kills (2007).

• Carole Nelson Douglas. As a college senior, Douglas was a finalist in Vogue's Prix de Paris writing competition (along with future fellow mystery novelist Marcia Muller). She was a reporter and feature writer for the St. Paul (MN) Pioneer Press for more than 15 years and received several awards from the Newspaper Guild of the Twin Cities and a second-place award in newswriting from the Minnesota Associated Press. Today, Douglas has a busy mystery writing life, with her Irene Adler, Midnight Louie, and Delilah Street paranormal series.

• Gillian Linscott. Linscott was a journalist for the Liverpool Daily Post, the Birmingham Post, the Guardian, and the BBC for nearly 25 years. A versatile writer, she has penned historical mysteries featuring intrepid suffragist Nell Bray (such as the Ellis Peters Historical Dagger winner Absent Friends) and standalones such as The Garden. Today, she writes a mystery series set in the Victorian era under the pen name Caro Peacock.

• Eve K. Sandstrom. Inspired to pursue journalism by reporter-sleuth Beverly Gray, Sandstrom was a reporter and columnist at the Lawton (OK) Constitution for more than 25 years. She published several mysteries with Sam and Nicky Titus as well as reporter Nell Matthews, was an Agatha and Anthony nominee for her short story "Bugged" in Malice Domestic 5, and now features chocolatier Lee McKinney in her mysteries under the pen name JoAnna Carl.

• Celestine Sibley. A distinguished journalist with the Atlanta Journal-Constitution for more than 50 years (she covered the James Earl Ray trial, among her other assignments), Sibley published her first mystery novel, The Malignant Heart, in 1957, followed by five others with journalist-sleuth Kate Mulcay: Ah, Sweet Mystery (1991); Straight as an Arrow (1992); Dire Happenings at Scratch Ankle (1993); A Plague of Kinfolks (1995); and Spider in the Sink (1997). She died in 1999 and was inducted into the Georgia Writers Hall of Fame in 2007. Edgar winner Phillip DePoy adapted her memoir, Turned Funny, into a play in 2006, and Sibley Fleming reflected on her grandmother's life in Celestine Sibley: A Granddaughter's Reminiscence (2000).

Georgia Writers Hall of Fame.

Organized by the libraries of the University of Georgia, the Georgia Writers Hall of Fame honors that state's most influential writers. Potential selectees must be a native of Georgia or have produced a significant work while residing in Georgia. Members of the public may nominate individuals here; past suggestions for nominees include Mignon F. Ballard (Augusta Goodnight series) and Virginia Lanier (Anthony winner, Death in Bloodhound Red). Although some members may seem to be givens (e.g., Erskine Caldwell, Carson McCullers, Alice Walker), I was pleased to see journalist and mystery author Celestine Sibley (The Malignant Heart, A Plague of Kinfolks, etc.) and historical novelist Frank Yerby (The Foxes of Harrow, etc.) as part of the roster.