IC:  How long have you been editing EQMM? How did you work your way to that position?

JH:  I've been the editor of EQMM since 1991. The magazine has had only three editors in its fifty-seven years of publication. Frederic Dannay (who, together with his cousin Manfred B. Lee, was better known as Ellery Queen) served as editor-in-chief for the first forty-one years (1941-1982), and then Eleanor Sullivan took over from 1982 until her death in 1991. Unlike Eleanor, who served as managing editor for Fred before becoming editor herself, I didn't work my way up at the magazine. I was working in book publishing, as the mystery editor for Walker & Company, when I got a telephone call from Eleanor, who was very ill and knew she couldn't continue to edit the magazine. She was inviting several editors to interview for her job. It all happened very fast. It wasn't anything I ever expected.

IC:  Are there particular features in short mystery fiction, absent in full length novels, that made this area of the field particularly appealing to you?

JH:  Yes, I like the tighter construction of a good short story, the sense you can get of a perfect whole. And I think characterization is often done more effectively in a short story. I know this goes contrary to what many people believe. I've often heard fans of mystery novels say that they don't read short stories because they don't find in them the kind of character development provided by a full-length novel. But in my view, the short story has the advantage of forcing the author to be more selective in what she tells a reader about a character, and that selectivity often results in a truly memorable portrayal. It's a mistake to think you don't need to worry about characterization in a short story. It's in the area of plot that the short story differs from the novel: In the short story you can't develop a terribly complex plot.

IC:  When you want to sit back and relax, what kinds of things do you like to read?

JH:  These days, lots of things other than mystery fiction. I think everyone needs a break from what they do every day -- especially if they want to keep coming to the job fresh. I like to read or re-read classic novels, and also to see what's being published by other (non-mystery) magazines that contain short stories.

IC:  Is a cover letter with a submission important? If so, why?

JH:  We like to have a cover letter, but no more than a sentence or two to tell us whether you are published or unpublished. This is important in enabling us to decide whether your submission is eligible for our Department of First Stories. If your story's a first, it may actually be a little easier to make the sale to us, because we like to feature at least one first story per issue. If you are clearly not eligible for the Department of First Stories (e.g. you have credits in national publications) there's no need to list all your credits. If we decide to buy your story, we'll ask you for specifics at that time, as we may want to use the information in introducing your story to readers. We are not influenced by a writer's publishing history in evaluating the submission -- in fact, we rarely read the cover letters until after we've determined whether we like the story. So don't spend a lot of time on your cover letter.

IC:  Do you want to see writing credits for the author if they aren't in mystery fiction?

JH:  Yes, because certain writing credits even outside the genre may disqualify the submission for our Department of First Stories.

IC:  What is the accepted/preferred word length for EQMM stories?

JH:  EQMM accepts manuscripts from 1,000 to 20,000 words. Except in unusual cases, novella-length stories (more than 10,000 words) are purchased only from top writers in the field. Most of our stories fall within the 3,000- to 7,000-word range. We also (very occasionally) publish minute mysteries of about 250 words.

IC:  How much does EQMM pay for stories?

JH:  For new authors, from three to eight cents per word. Payment goes up with the length of time an author has been publishing with us, and we have a more flexible scale for well-established authors.

IC:  What is EQMM's normal response time?

JH:  A little less than three months, usually.

IC:  Would you consider a story in which there is only a single character or is dialogue between two or more characters a must?

JH:  There are very few "musts" at EQMM. We're looking for a spark of genuineness and originality. Stories do not necessarily have to include dialogue -- indeed, a number of the stories we've published are entirely without it. I'm sure we've published stories with a single character as well, though I cannot bring one to mind.

IC:  How do you feel about experimental fiction (unconventionally written short stories) in short mystery fiction?

JH:  It depends on what you mean by unconventional. We've occasionally published stories that cross genres (mostly with science fiction), and we've certainly kept up with new developments in the field -- "British Noir" being, perhaps, the latest. Still, we tend to stay away from the bizarre and the supernatural.

IC:  How do you feel about stories in which no actual crime occurs or about tales of "suspense" in which there is no concrete physical threat implied?

JH:  EQMM has always stretched the definition of what counts as a mystery or suspense story about as far as it will go, but I'm not sure I can answer your question precisely. "Suspense" is such a broad term. Actually, all successful stories are suspenseful at least to the extent that they leave readers hanging until the end about matters that deeply concern their protagonists. When we talk about suspense in the mystery field, however, I think we generally mean it to apply to cases in which the suspense is laced with danger, threat, menace, or violence -- and stories with any of those elements would be eligible for EQMM. Of course, whether danger, threat, or menace is implied can sometimes be up to the reader. I would say that Joyce Carol Oates's "The Sky Blue Ball" the story mentioned in the next-to-last question of this interview, is heavy with implied menace. Other readers may disagree.

IC:  Would you rule out printing stories written in long-ago styles, i.e., seeming period pieces?

JH:  Not at all. We publish a large number of stories with historical settings, and sometimes also in the style of an historical period.

IC:  How do you feel about humorous or absurd parodies of the classics? Would you print one once in a blue moon, or would you encourage their submission?

JH:  Fred Dannay loved parodies of the mystery classics, and EQMM published quite a number of them during his tenure. I'm not as enthusiastic about them as he was, but we are still open to the category.

IC:  What, if any, trends do you see in submissions?

JH:  We're seeing fewer classical whodunits. I think this probably has to do with changes in the British crime-writing scene. We've always published a lot of stories by British authors; in the past, primarily fairly-clued whodunits or "twist in the tail" suspense stories. Now we're seeing a lot more hard-boiled fiction coming out of Britain.

IC:  Do you see the magazine as keeping up with trends or being a trend-setter when it comes to short story mystery fiction?

JH:  We like to make sure we're representing the full range of the genre in EQMM -- and that requires us to keep abreast of changes in the field. Some writers tell us that they use the stories they write for us to experiment with new ideas or styles, so in that sense I suppose we may be ahead of some trends. We've also published the first fiction of many important authors who later influenced the direction of the genre with their novels. Does that make EQMM a trend-setter? I'm not sure I'd say so. I mostly see us as independent of the pressures, trends, and directions of mystery book publishing. That's one of our great strengths: We offer writers an opportunity to choose what subject matter they like, because we are not as vulnerable to swings in the market as book publishers are. A good example: It's been extraordinarily difficult for writers to sell private-eye books featuring male protagonists over the past few years -- book publishers say they just aren't selling. At EQMM, we don't have to follow this kind of sales trend since we're selling the magazine as a whole and not a particular piece of fiction.

IC:  How important are current trends? In other words, if EQMM doesn't print a particular type of story for an entire year, should a writer assume that kind of story isn't wanted?

JH:  No. If a particular type of story doesn't appear in EQMM for a long time, it's probably only because we aren't receiving strong examples of it in our submissions.

IC:  Do you see many authors regurgitating movie plots or movie trends in their submissions?

JH:  I haven't noticed that, but I suspect that a lot of inexperienced writers are drawing their characters from TV and movies rather than from life -- maybe unconsciously.

IC:  Do you get many submissions "over the transom?" How likely are these to be read?

JH:  Yes, around 100 per week. And every single one is read -- cross my heart! That doesn't mean that each story is read all the way through; the fact is, experienced editors don't need to read an awful lot to make a reliable judgment about a story. At EQMM we're really very careful not to miss something that would be suitable for us. First reads are done by my assistant, but I look at every submission that comes in -- even those he rejects. We're always looking for more good first stories than we can find.

IC:  Many short story markets have closed. Has this affected the number of submissions you normally receive?

JH:  No. I think our submissions have been at about this level for decades. We did see a temporary increase in submissions around the time of the MWA Golden Anniversary Short Story Contest.

IC:  EQMM stories don't seem to go in much for foul language, sex, graphic violence, etc. Is that an editorial no-no?

JH:  Yes. All three are no-nos. Our only taboos.

IC:  Are there any subjects that are taboo for your magazine?

JH:  Only explicit sex, unnecessary violence, and excessive profanity.

IC:  What sorts of subgenre are you most likely to consider? Least likely to consider? (subgenre: amateur detective, courtroom drama, espionage/spy, Gothic mystery, hard-boiled detective, historical, light horror, locked room puzzle, malice domestic, medical mystery, noir/dark mystery, police procedural, private investigator, (P.I.)/detective, psychological suspense, romantic suspense, satire, surrealistic, suspense, thriller, true crime, urban horror, whodunit)

JH:  We're unlikely to buy Gothic mystery, light horror, romantic suspense, surrealistic, true crime, or urban horror. All the other categories you've listed are fine.

IC:  I'd like to know how the submissions you get break down by gender. I've read that 30 percent of the stories printed in EQMM are by women. I've actually counted the stories and that figure seems to be about right. Why aren't at least 50 percent of the stories in the magazine by women? Do you get fewer submissions by women or does EQMM just buy more from men?

JH:  I'm pleased that someone asked this question. The first time I heard that writers were counting the number of stories we publish by men as compared to women I was flabbergasted. EQMM has given a start to so many important women in the field: Joyce Harrington, Sue Dunlap, Nancy Pickard, Christianna Brand (first US publication), and has showcased so many more -- publishing the first short stories Ruth Rendell ever wrote, soliciting submissions from virtually all the notable women writers in the field -- that I found it incredible that anyone could believe we had some sort of gender bias. (I assume that must be what underlies this question.)

It is true that there are more stories by men than women in most issues of EQMM (though I have never counted to come up with a percentage!). But if you want an explanation, it can only come from women writers themselves. As most readers know, EQMM is fortunate in receiving a very large number of submissions from "big name" authors. We publish a lot of these stories -- not, I must add, because they are written by well-known authors, but because they are so often better than the submissions that come in over the transom or by lesser-known writers. Relatively few of the top women authors submit to EQMM; virtually all of the top men in the field do. Perhaps you could give me the explanation? It may have to do with the mystery book market. My colleagues in book publishing tell me that books by women writers are now the strongest sellers. Perhaps that's leaving the women with less time to write short stories for magazines such as EQMM.

As far as those 100 manuscripts a week that come in unsolicited, I can't tell you what the percentage is from women as compared to men. We don't keep a log of them -- couldn't possibly, we wouldn't have time to do anything else. It really doesn't matter, though, how that breaks down, because in evaluating submissions we generally start with the first line of the story, not with the author's name or publishing credits or anything else that would reveal gender. We rarely read a cover letter or even a title page unless the story itself is strong, so we usually don't know whether an author from the "slush pile" is male or female unless we like the story.

IC:  What was it about Joyce Carol Oates's "The Sky-Blue Ball" in the January 1997 issue of EQMM that struck you?

JH:  The sinister aloneness of the girl, the increasing menace (in the reader's mind, not the character's) of the unknown on the other side of that wall.

IC:  I have read many stories written by others that have perfectly obvious outcomes (to me) and yet other readers just don't "get it." I notice the same thing with my stories. No matter how logical I think my endings are, a number of readers don't understand. My question is this: would a story with a slightly ambiguous ending be automatically rejected by EQMM? I would imagine that your editors have heard everything so many times that they can see the outcome a mile away, so how do you decide what will satisfy the average reader?

JH:  Ambiguous endings are fine as long as they're intended to leave the reader with something interesting to think about. Our readers are sophisticated and intelligent -- they don't need everything spelled out.

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