The Crime Writers’ Association

CWA Margery Allingham Short Mystery Competition – Winner Announced

The Crime Writers’ Association (CWA) has announced the winner of its Margery Allingham Short Mystery Prize. Camilla Macpherson beat strong competition with her short story, ‘Heartbridge Homicides’. Camilla lives in The Hague in the Nether...


Join the CWA

Join the CWA Who can join? We offer full membership for those in the UK and overseas who have had published a full length work of crime fiction or non-fiction, and provisional membership for those who have a contract from a recognised publishing ho...


Notes on Word Count for CWA Writing Competitions

Different competitions have different rules – and different levels of rigour in the way they apply them. For the Debut Dagger we are super-strict. We ask for entries not to exceed 3,000 words (1,500 words for the synopsis) by even a word. The ti...


St Hilda’s College Crime Fiction Weekend

The Crime Fiction Weekend at St Hilda’s College, Oxford, celebrates its 30th year in 2023 with an all-star line-up of bestselling authors. Centred on this year’s theme, ‘Celebrations: innocent parties, guilty pleasures’, our guest speakers wi...


Crime Writers Emerging from Lockdown with JG Harlond

Escaping through a picture window... My study has a sliding picture window opening onto a balcony. From my desk I can see the Sierra de Las Nieves in the Province of Málaga, Spain. This was where the Moors of al-Ándalus harvested snow for sherbet ...


CWA Christmas Party

It’s beginning to look a lot like… The supermarket shelves are full of mince pies, the lights on Oxford Street are twinkling and various celebrities are heading to the Australian jungle. This can only mean one thing. It’s time to book your t...


Bloody Scotland Crime Writing Masterclass

In association with the University of Stirling, this masterclass for writers features Booker shortlisted Graeme Macrae Burnet; author (& Slice Girl!) A K Benedict; and advice on writing a synopsis and pitch by Alison Belsham (who won Pitch Perfec...


CWA Dagger Awards Dinner

Thursday 25 October Grange City Hotel, 8-14 Cooper's Row, London EC3N 2BQ 7pm - late   The publishing world gathers to celebrate the very best in crime writing. Whether your interest is professional or simply through a love of crime fiction ...


Crime Writers in Residence – at home with Jim Eldridge

The CRA: Please tell us a little about yourself and the books you write. I have been a writer for almost 50 years, the first 30 as a scriptwriter, then writing children's books, and - since 2016 - writing historical crime fiction for adults. My curr...


It’s All In the Point of View by Jared Cade

If you ask most people what point of view is, they will probably answer along the lines: ‘It’s whether you write in the first person (I thought he looked ill) or third person (She thought he looked ill). It’s a little more complicated than that...


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