The First Two Pages

Every Tuesday, a mystery writer explains how he or she faced the challenges of those brutally difficult–and vitally important–first two pages.

First Two Pages of “I Gotta Be Me” in Where Crime Never Sleeps: Murder New York Style 4

Lindsay A. Curcio

This month, The First Two Pages continues to feature posts by some of the authors who contributed stories to Where Crime Never Sleeps: Murder New York Style 4 (Level Best Books, September 2017), the fourth anthology of crime and mystery short stories by members of the New York/ Tri-State Chapter of Sisters in Crime.

The New York/Tri-State Chapter of Sisters in Crime initially discussed an anthology theme of New York City landmarks. I immediately thought of the main US post office in New York City, the James A. Farley Post Office on Eighth Avenue. It’s a big Beaux Arts style building, covering the area from 31st to 33rd Streets. I like the building for several reasons. Its staff lovingly processes letters to Santa. (Think of Miracle on 34th Street—Macy’s is just a block away.) It’s open 24 hours a day. (As an immigration lawyer, I have made many trips to this post office over the years, at all hours, to meet deadlines.) And it serves as a base where the homeless can claim their mail.

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First Two Pages of “Love, Secrets, and Lies” in Where Crime Never Sleeps: Murder New York Style 4

Catherine Maiorisi

Let me start by saying that I’m a “pantser,” i.e., a writer who doesn’t do a lot of planning. So presented with the prompt to write a crime story that involves an iconic event or public place in New York City, my thoughts immediately went to a protagonist. And, no surprise, I’m sure, I thought of NYPD Detective Chiara Corelli, the main character of my mystery, A Matter of Blood, which will be published in January 2018.

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First Two Pages of “Prey of New York” in Where Crime Never Sleeps: Murder New York Style 4

Rona Bell

The first three words of my short story, “Prey of New York,” are: “We are hawks.”

These hawks have been following me around as a writer for a long time.

What the professional writer knows that the student writer does not is that there is nothing better than an assignment. When I learned that Murder New York Style 4 would involve New York City landmarks, it was a great challenge and also a relief.

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First Two Pages of “Every Picture Tells A Story” in Where Crime Never Sleeps: Murder New York Style 4

Cathi Stoler

As a lifelong New Yorker, I’m keenly aware of how people view the city. Many see the New York of today without knowing its backstory. Whether they admire one of its great buildings or a piece of art in one of its museums, they don’t always know how it came to be, or how its creation may have shaped someone’s life. This look into how the past impacts the future of my protagonist Chloe is what I wanted to come through.

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First Two Pages of “Levitas” in Where Crime Never Sleeps: Murder New York Style 4

Roslyn Siegel

This month, The First Two Pages continues to feature posts by some of the authors who contributed stories to Where Crime Never Sleeps: Murder New York Style 4 (Level Best Books, September 2017), the fourth anthology of crime and mystery short stories by members of the New York/ Tri-State Chapter of Sisters in Crime.

A whiff of sex and scandal; a glimpse of the artsy, Bohemian life of a bygone era; an example of the mysterious powers of the mind. All this I hoped to provide in the first two pages of my short story.

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