Scarlet Stiletto Bites

“ Check-Out Time ”, the short story by Sydneysider, Rowena Helston, won the prize for Best Investigation in Sisters in Crime’s 2009 Scarlet Stiletto Awards. Rowena trained as a criminal lawyer and currently works in legal research. After winning the Scarlet Stiletto award, she studied at the Faber Academy at Allen & Unwin and completed a novel, Bellwater Proof . She publishes her creative writ...

Moraig Kisler took out the prize for Best New Talent in Sisters in Crime’s Scarlet Stiletto Awards in 2013 for her short story, “Milko”. Moraig is a retired law clerk and a convenor of Sisters in Crime Australia. While studying an Associate Degree in Professional Writing and Editing at RMIT, Moraig began writing a crime novel The Saltworks . She dabbles in short stories and micro fiction but is al...

Vicky Daddo won 2nd prize in Sisters in Crime’s Scarlet Stiletto Awards in 2013 for her short story, “Mary's Colours”. Vicky writes long and short fiction. She enters the Scarlet Stiletto awards every year and her 2013 second place, was the second time she had been among the prize-winners, cementing her love of writing crime. She is currently writing a cosy mystery novel. Send your feedback to adm...

Aoife [Ee-fa] Clifford won the Scarlet Stiletto Award in 2007 and then continued to take out numerous category awards, including the runner-up prize for The Body in the Library Award in 2013. To hear Susanna Lobez’s superlative narration go to Apple https://buff.ly/3oCL93T ; Spotify: https://buff.ly/3ozTzZO ; Google https://buff.ly/3BY8qk1 ; or Amazon https://buff.ly/3oCLa7X . Aoife is now the aut...

The Body in the Library’ won the eponymous prize in the 2013 Scarlet Stiletto awards for WA author Dawn Farnham. She has published numerous short stories and historical novels and recently received a starred review by US Publisher’s Weekly for her 2023 historical detective novel, Tokyo Time . Credits Concept designer, co-producer, and narrator: Susanna Lobez Co-producer: Carmel Shute Production Ma...

Emilie Collyer’s story, “Service with a Smile", took out the Scarlet Stiletto Cross Genre award in 2013. Emilie writes poetry, plays and prose. She has publicised and produced widely in Australia and internationally. He poetry collection, “Do you have anything less domestic?” ( Vagabond Press 2022) won the inaugural Five Islands Press Prize for a first book. Clan Destine Press published her collec...

Nikki Lee Taylor won the 31st Scarlet Stiletto Award for “Lilly Pilly, Don't Be Silly.” She is a former journalist, whose work around PTSD was recognised by the Journalism Media & Storytelling Awards panel. She is currently on a hiatus from work to pursue her goal of becoming a full-time author. Her novels include two set in Philadelphia, The Secrets We Keep and The Truth We Tell. She describe...

Candice Graham won the Best Environmental Story in the 2012 Scarlet Stiletto Awards with “Fallen Angel”. Back then, she was studying her Masters in Clinical Neuropsychology. The following year she took out First Prize, Since then, Candice has spent many rewarding years working as a psychologist, primarily with children and young adults. Sadly, Candice has stepped back from her work as a psychologi...

Robyn McWilliam had been writing crime short stories for years, placing in Queen of Crime Awards and being published in anthologies. Winning a Scarlet Stiletto Award in 2012 for “Nursing a Suspicion” for Best Investigative Story was the pinnacle of her success in stories. She went on to publish a crime novel, Malevolent Desire, on Amazon in 2015. Send your feedback to admin@sistersincrime.org.au C...

Claire McKenna won 3rd prize in the 2012 Scarlet Stiletto Awards in “The Autumn Dog Cannot Live to Spring”. Hailing from the remote outer suburban wilderness of Melbourne, Claire is a short story writer, novelist, adventurer and urban explorer up to no good. She is currently writing a follow-up fantasy series that aims to be more confusing and confronting than her last. Send your feedback to admin...

Best Investigative story, 2013 Sandi Wallace dreamed of being a crime writer from around the age of six. Her first big win for a crime story was for “Silk Versus Sierra” in 2013, and on the Awards night, she landed a publisher for her debut crime novel… the beginning of her dream come true. Credits Concept designer, co-producer, and narrator: Susanna Lobez Co-producer: Carmel Shute Production Mana...

In a world where the neutralisation of emotions is compulsory, an enforcement officer risks everything when she starts to succumb to her feelings. 2nd Prize Scarlet Stiletto Award and Cross Genre Award Credits Concept designer, co-producer, and narrator: Susanna Lobez Co-producer: Carmel Shute Production Manager: Tim Coy Graphic Designer: Caz Brown Copyright Sisters in Crime Australia

“Brought to Book” won Kath Harper the Body in the Library First Prize in 2012. Kath grew up in a family of word nerds, and worked as a nanny/housemaid, fruit packer, customer service officer and school teacher before finding her niche as an editor, indexer and proofreader. She has won or been highly commended in a number of story-writing competitions, including the Body in the Library and Malice D...

Much Ado About Nunning” by Western Australian author, Helen Iles, won the prize for Best Film Idea in 2012. Helen writes crime fiction, adult fiction, young adult fiction, textbooks, poetry, and children’s picture books. Helen has been published locally and internationally. Her novel, Dark Secrets was long-listed for the Davitt Award 2019. She has won the Bronze Quill three times, the National Hor...

“Fish for Freedom” won the Malice Domestic prize in the 2012 Scarlet Stiletto Awards for WA author Sarah Evans. She has since had many short stories and novels published both in Australia and overseas. Last year her crime series was optioned for TV. Credits Concept designer, co-producer, and narrator: Susanna Lobez Co-producer: Carmel Shute Production Manager: Tim Coy Graphic Designer: Caz Brown C...

Aoife Clifford’s story, “Quit”, took out the award for funniest short story in the 2012 Scarlet Stiletto Awards and was runner up in the Body in the Library Award. When Aoife won the Scarlet Stiletto in 2007, she was at home with two small children, suffering terrible morning sickness with what was to be her third. Now her eldest has left home and her fourth crime novel came out in 2024.­­­­­­­­­­...

At the time of winning the Scarlet Stiletto Young Writers’ Award in 2007, Jane Blechynden was a ten-year-old schoolgirl whose biggest concern was whether she should experiment with a side fringe. The Sisters in Crime award inspired Jane to continue writing, and she went on to win the Tim Winton award in 2009. Although Jane is still an avid reader, her literary career is now focused on writing exem...

Lesley Truffle won 3rd prize in the Scarlet Stiletto Awards in 2010 for “A Man of Fashion”. She was then an aspiring novelist, then walking the beach at 3am plotting a story about women behaving badly. Two of her novels, Hotel du Barry and The Scandalous Life of Sasha Torte , have been published by Harper Collins in Australia and also in Spain, Italy and Germany. Lesley was born in London but came...

“Still Life” won Dianne Gray the second prize in the 2000 Scarlet Stiletto Awards. She has taken out several category awards. She has since published four novels and a book of award-winning short stories. She has won numerous national and international writing awards and loves nothing better than a good old-fashioned murder mystery. She lives in peaceful bliss on a sugar cane farm in regional Quee...

“Shifty Business” by the late Liz Cameron took out 3rd Prize in the 2002 Scarlet Stiletto Awards and was selected for inclusion in Scarlet Stiletto: The First Cut, a selection of stories from the first thirteen years of the competition, published in 2007 by Mira and launched by Sigrid Thornton. Credits Concept designer, co-producer, and narrator: Susanna Lobez Co-producer: Carmel Shute Production...

Bronwyn Blake was a new writer when “Dead Water” won an award for Best Lesbian Protagonist in the 1995 Scarlet Stiletto Awards . . . an exciting boost for an unconfident beginner. She has since had 13 books published in hard copy and as e-books, including Nick Riley’s Ninth Life for Lothian’s Crime Waves Series, which won the Sister’s Davitt Award for Junior Crime, 2002. A number of her books have...

“After Azaria” was Ann’s first ever crime story. Receiving a Scarlet Stiletto, Best Procedural award for it was a fantastic motivator for writing more short crime and for Dangerous Devotions , a novel, published by Clan Destine Press in 2023. Ann has recently founded Rocking Boat Books – which runs creative writing workshops for, and publishes children’s books authored by, people with neurodiversi...

Her story in verse - Froth and Trouble or Sun Hill Blues -was entered in the Scarlet Stiletto competition back in the days when everyone watched the same TV shows because streaming services and ‘catch-up ‘ did not yet exist. When the plots of a popular prime time series called The Bill began to focus on the private lives of the characters instead of crime many fans were annoyed and Margaret's stor...

Louise Connor's story, “Divine Intervention”, won third prize in the 2nd Scarlet Stiletto Awards in 1995. A founding member of Sisters in Crime, Louise has twice won 3rd prize in the Scarlet Stiletto awards. Her working life was mostly spent as a ratbag, rabble-rouser in the union movement, working mostly for the MEAA, which represents workers in the media, film and television, theatre workers and...

Kylie had always wanted to be a writer, but it wasn’t until winning the Dorothy Porter Award for her story in verse, “Poppies”, that she realised it was something she could actually pursue. Since then, along with working full time and raising five children, Kylie has had success with several short stories, and had two books published. Kylie is currently working on a new novel and a new true crime...