Buried remains dug up in Barrhaven reveal a 90-year-old mystery. A murder occurs during a fiery plane crash at an Orléans convent in the 1950s. These locally focused stories are part of a new crime anthology offered by the Crime Writers of Canada and Capital Crime Writers. A Capital Mystery is the first of its kind based here.
The anthology contains the work of 21 new and established local authors, whose stories are set in Ottawa past and present.
“I like to work on collaborative projects,” said Mike Martin, a writer and co-editor of the collection. “That’s where the seed of A Capital Mystery came from. How could we profile the Ottawa crime/mystery writing community, which I know is strong? Also, how can we tell more stories based in Ottawa?”
Martin, a former chair of Crime Writers of Canada, considers Ottawa a fertile place for the genre, owing in large part to its active community of writers.
Capital Crime Writers has supported and fostered a community of crime fiction writers since the 1990s. Seventeen of its members contributed to A Capital Mystery. The group evolved out of the Ottawa Romance Writers Association, which began in 1988. According to its website, members were driven more towards mystery writing. Members invite guest speakers from law enforcement and related fields to provide insight to authors about the world their genre covers. This has fostered a collaborative and tight-knit writing community.
Barbara Fradkin, one of the anthology’s contributing authors, is known for her Inspector Green series. She said she finds the region’s geography inspiring as a setting.
“There are a lot of different geographical features where you can drown or bury or throw people off cliffs,” she said, pointing out the area’s rivers and the Gatineau Hills.
Calling Ottawa a “crucible” for launching crime writers, Fradkin points to the area’s diverse communities, which enrich the possibilities for this kind of book.
“You’ve got your inner-city pockets of homelessness and drug addiction to your wealthy suburbs and your far-out rural areas, where conflicts between people and their struggles are very different,” she said.
Fradkin said she is is happy to see Ottawa getting a chance to shine through crime fiction.
“This is a very exciting thing because there have been anthologies that are based in, say, Vancouver or Toronto,” said Fradkin. “And it’s nice that Ottawa’s getting its chance to also show its dark side.”
Brenda Chapman, another established local crime writer, whose story in the anthology is set in Westboro, says Ottawa’s positive image is a motivator for darker themes.
“Authors like to delve into that kind of thing. When we’re writing crime, we might exaggerate it,” she said, noting anywhere in Ottawa could be seen as a good crime setting.
“We have a pretty strong tradition of crime fiction writing in Ottawa.”
Having a collection set in Ottawa benefits readers and the authors, the writers say. Readers recognize their own communities and the authors gain a writing credit, which helps their career.
“Mostly, the connection people make is with the city that they recognize,” Martin said.
Author Elizabeth Hosang, another contributor, cites the city’s professional population as a reason it’s a good place to set a crime story.
“There are a lot of professional people – retired teachers or social workers or even librarians,” she explained. “We are a high-tech capital. Having a writing group that can support and nurture that interest, I think that goes a long way.”
The book is available for pre-order at Ottawa Press and Publishing. It will be in bookstores on Oct.15, with an evening launch event at Club Saw on Oct. 16.
