Murder mystery – G. B. Ralph

Mysterious Murders short story competition winners announced

5 a.m. was an early wake-up for me to join the Mysterious Murders short story competition winners call this morning, but totally worth it to celebrate with my fellow judges and the first, second, and third-place winners! A huge congratulations to Theresa Baumgartner, Lee Adam, and Kathy Schilbach who each met the “murder mystery with…

G. B. Ralph

21 Dec 2025

Writing

Competition, Crime fiction, Judging, Murder mystery, Mysterious Murders, Mystery, Short Stories, Writing, Writing competition

Mysterious Murders Short Story Competition: shortlist announced

It’s been such a treat reading so many excellent entries from such talented writers for the Mysterious Murders Short Story Competition alongside my four fellow judges. Shortlist On 1 December the shortlist was announced! A huge congratulations to the six finalists who’ve each crafted a brilliant short story featuring a murder mystery with a fun…

G. B. Ralph

3 Dec 2025

Writing

Competition, Crime fiction, Judging, Murder mystery, Mysterious Murders, Mystery, Short Stories, Writing, Writing competition

Final weekend for the Mysterious Murders short story competition

It’s time to put the final touches on your Mysterious Murders Short Story Competition submission because entries close on 1 October 2025! It’s free to enter and open worldwide for original work of up to 3,000 words written in English, with a top prize of £3,000. It’s time to put pen to paper, fingers to…

G. B. Ralph

27 Sep 2025

Writing

Competition, Crime fiction, Judging, Murder mystery, Mysterious Murders, Mystery, Short Stories, Writing, Writing competition

Reminder: Mysterious Murders short story entries due this September

You have just one month left to submit your murder mystery with a fun twist for the Mysterious Murders Short Story Competition. It’s free to enter and open worldwide for original work of up to 3,000 words written in English, with a top prize of £3,000. Entries are due by the end of September, so…

G. B. Ralph

1 Sep 2025

Writing

Competition, Crime fiction, Judging, Murder mystery, Mysterious Murders, Mystery, Short Stories, Writing, Writing competition

Short story competition: Mysterious Murders

Do you have a mystery short story up your sleeve? Time to put pen to paper, fingers to keyboards! I’ve recorded a quick rundown which you can watch on TikTok or Instagram (they’re both the same video!) or scroll down for the transcript. What are the key details for the competition? The Mysterious Murders short…

G. B. Ralph

26 Jul 2025

Writing

Competition, Crime fiction, Judging, Murder mystery, Mysterious Murders, Mystery, Short Stories, Writing, Writing competition

Mysterious Murders short story competition (open now!)

I’m helping judge a short story competition and we’re now open for entries! The theme is “Murder mystery with a fun twist” which is 100% my jam. So, if you have an idea and a pen, we’d love to read your story! The Mysterious Murders short story competition was created to honour the late Anja…

G. B. Ralph

8 Jul 2025

Writing

Competition, Crime fiction, Judging, Murder mystery, Mysterious Murders, Mystery, Short Stories, Writing, Writing competition

Book research at the Kimbolton Sculpture Festival

My next murder mystery, Poison at Penshaw Hall, features a sculpture competition. So when I heard there was an upcoming sculpture competition in a small rural community not too far away, I knew I had to go. On the advertised Saturday morning earlier this month, I joined my friends Rachel and Jill for a day…

G. B. Ralph

24 Apr 2023

Writing

Book research, Books, Event, Manawatū, Milverton Mysteries, Murder mystery, Murder on Milverton Square, New Zealand, Poison at Penshaw Hall

Anthony Horowitz on murder mystery twists

Anthony Horowitz is so eloquent and enthusiastic in this discussion of twists in murder mysteries. At under fifteen minutes, this video clip and is packed with information. Penguin have summarised some of the key points from the interview in this article on their website, and I’ve jotted down some of my own notes further down,…

G. B. Ralph

15 Mar 2023

Reading

Books, Crime fiction, Interview, Murder mystery, Mystery, Twists, Whodunit, Writing advice

Refilling the creative well: 6 fantastic TV series

For a brief intro about why I’m doing this, see my recent post:Refilling the creative well: 9 recent reads There is so much great TV at the moment! Here are the shows I enjoyed the most since my last update: Crime comedies / fun thrillers Fantasies Keen for more stories? Already powered through all those TV…

G. B. Ralph

14 Mar 2023

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