Fiction

“Sfortuna”

Publication: March/April 2024, Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine

An international adventurer gets involved in a scheme to steal a priceless Italian art treasure.

“Lyrics and Music”

Publication: February 13th, 2024, Murder Neat, A SleuthSayers Anthology

What lengths will a country singer go to in order to get out of a dead-end contract? 

“The Devil in the Details”

Publication: January/February 2024, Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine

An English professor believes that he finds a solution to all of his current problems in the text of Paradise Lost

“The Ties That Bind”

Publication: September/October 2023, Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine

A hike in the mountains and the history of a long-dead town are interwoven into a couple’s current predicament.

“License to Kill”

Publication: May 6th, 2023, Black Cat Weekly

The ex-wife of an attorney must use her skills to avoid being charged with his murder. 

“The Case of the Kosher Deal”

Publication: April/May 2023, Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine

The Spud Stud is back. This time with a body at the world headquarters of the Potato Advisory Board.

“Steer Clear”

Publication: March 6th, 2023, Reckless in Texas anthology

The sudden disappearance of Bluebonnet, Fort Worth’s prize steer, has the mayor demanding answers. To avoid the wrath of his lieutenant, Detective Alpert must shake off his hangover long enough to find Cowtown’s favorite bovine. Steer Clear is a locked barn mystery.

 

“One of the best short stories of the year.” Robert Lopresti’s, Best Short Story List

“A Study with Scarlett”

Publication: March/April 2023, Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine

It is easier to see the details of another’s mistakes than one’s own. In this story, an unfortunate advertising error catches the attention of a beautiful client.

“Friday, February 30th”

Publication: January 8th, Black Cat Weekly

What would you do on a day without consequences?

“A Rat Tale”

Publication: November/December 2022, Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine

The second story featuring the animal avocat, Bernard de Vallenchin. He defends another difficult client in pre-revolutionary France. The story is loosely based on a 1522 trial in the ecclesiastical court of Autun.

“Future Tense”

Publication: October 1st, 2022, Black Cat Weekly Magazine

The Panopticon determines who wins and who loses in a near-future society. But can the system be gamed?

“Every new story from Mark is a treat.”
–Barb Goffman, award-winning author

“The Case of Fowl Play”

Publication: July/August 2022, Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine

The Spud Stud saga continues. In this fourth installment, our hero finds himself with a dead body during the Thanksgiving holiday celebration.

“Boxed In”

Shortlisted: Margery Allingham Short Mystery Competition

A parolee must sort through the evidence when his job site becomes a murder scene.

Honored to have my short story named as a finalist for this prestigious international award offered by the Margery Allingham Society and the British CWA.

“The Case of the Truculent Avocado”

Publication: April, 2022  through Black Cat Mystery Magazine

Barb Goffman, one of the most acclaimed writers and editors in the mystery field, again selected one of my stories for reprint to the Black Cat community.

“DIY”

Publication: March/April 2022, Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine

A scheme to shoplift a few home improvement supplies goes awry.

“Dry Bones”

Publication: November/December 2021, Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine

A parolee trying to shed his past in this story set in Fort Worth.

“The Map Dot Murder”

Publication: September/October 2021, Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine

A social studies teacher in a small west Texas town dies. He leaves behind a cryptic clue. A story about staying put.

“Catch and Release”

Publication: June 2021, The Fish That Got Away

A story in the anthology from the Guppy chapter of Sisters in Crime. An attorney must deal with rejection.

“The Case of the Brain Tuber”

Publication: April/May 2021, Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine

The third story in the “Spud Stud” series. Our hero visits the Potato Hall of Fame. Death spoils the cocktail party celebrating this year’s inductees.

“Exhibiting Signs of Death”

Publication: March 2021, Mystery Weekly Magazine

A quick stop at the museum gift shop leads to a locked room mystery.

 

“Thanksgiving Eve”

Publication: November 27, 2020 through Black Cat Mystery Magazine

Barb Goffman, one of the most acclaimed writers and editors in the mystery field selected my holiday-themed story to make available to the Black Cat community.

“A Beastly Trial”

Publication: July/August 2020 in Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine

In pre-revolutionary France, an attorney must defend a difficult client. The story is loosely based on a 1457 murder trial in Savigny, France.

“The Case of the Cereal Killer”

Publication: May/June 2020 in Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine

In this sequel to “The Case of the Truculent Avocado”, the Spud Stud is called upon to solve another murder clogging the aisles of the local grocery store.

“The Wreck of the Edward Fitzsimmons”

Publication January/February 2020 in Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine

Christmas–a story about good deeds and bad jobs going awry.

“Thanksgiving Eve”

Publication November/December 2019 in Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine

Thanksgiving–A time to celebrate families coming together. Or is it?

“Blind Spot”

Publication May/June 2019 in Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine

Named one of the “Other Distinguished Stories of 2019” in The Best American Mystery Stories 2020.

I set this story on a diverse and interesting street here in Fort Worth. A neighborhood patrol officer perhaps finds that his knowledge of his beat has its limits.

AHM_MayJune2019_400x570

“Bull Dog Gravy”

Publication May 3rd, 2019 in the Anthony Award-winning anthology Malice Domestic 14: Mystery Most Edible.

When a Chicago businessman is found dead, his hired man must return to his Kentucky roots to solve the crime.

I am honored to again be included with so many great writers.

Available through Wild Side Press

“A Cold Spell”

Publication April 23rd, 2019 in Odd Partners: An Anthology

A murder, a misguided witch hunt, and the unlikely pair of investigators who brings it down. This mystery is set in the spirit-infested world of colonial Massachusetts.

This anthology from the Mystery Writer’s of America and edited by Anne Perry has stories from some of the greatest mystery authors writing today. I’m very excited that they chose to include my story.

Available through Amazon.

“The Case of the Truculent Avocado”

Check out the podcast for the Truculent Avocado at Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine.

“The Case of the Truculent Avocado”

Publication January/February 2019 in Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine

Why was the avocado murdered? Why does a private investigator dress up as a potato? A trip to the grocery store has never been so complicated.

“Buried Past”

Publication September/October 2018 in Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine

A man who searches Germany for the unexploded bombs of World War II must confront his own past.

“The Black Drop of Venus”

Publication: July/August 2018 in Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine

My second Black Orchid Award-winning novella is set aboard the HMS Endeavour during the expedition to observe the transit of Venus across the sun. A murder aboard ship puts Captain James Cook and his chief scientist, Joseph Banks, to work solving the mystery.

“The Measured Chest”

Publication: April, 2017 in Malice Domestic 12: Mystery Most Historical

At the beginning of the 19th Century, a ship of the fledgling United States Navy provides the setting for this murder mystery. The ship’s carpenter, a man who lives between the ranks, is called upon to use his detailed knowledge of the vessel as well as life experience to solve the murder before the ship makes port.

In this wide-ranging historical collection, I am honored to find my story included along with such great contributors as: Martin Edwards, Victoria Thompson, Charles Todd, and Elaine Viets among others.

Available at Wild Side Press

“A Meter of Murder”

Available at Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine

The Black Orchid Award-winning novella finds John Milton, the blind 17th Century poet, taking time out from the composition of Paradise Lost to lead a murder investigation. Ably assisted by his friend, fellow poet and Member of Parliament, Andrew Marvell, the pair are challenged to solve the murder of another Member of Parliament. Written in the style of Rex Stout’s Nero Wolfe series, the novella pairs the observational abilities of Andrew Marvell with the cerebral powers of John Milton.

“Thielman clearly knows his Restoration London and his Rex Stout. I enjoyed this novella a lot.” –Robert Lopresti