If you wander around the Mystery Writers of America website, you will come across a page entitled The Helen McCloy Scholarship. Intriguing, right? So you may ask yourself, who is Helen McCloy? And I am able to answer your question, right from the MWA website:
“Helen McCloy (1904-1994) was a mystery author, editor, publisher, and agent. Creator of psychiatrist sleuth Dr. Basil Willing, McCloy served as president of MWA in 1950, won the Edgar® Award for mystery criticism in 1954, helped to establish MWA’s New England Chapter in 1971, and was named an MWA Grand Master in 1990.”
I might add that she was the first female president of MWA. Sounds like a busy lady, doesn’t she? First published in 1938, her numerous psychological dramas caught the tail end of the Golden Age. She wrote both novels and short stories well into the 1970s. Here are some of her book covers, very similar to those I remember sitting on a shelf in the living room when I was a child.
You can see more of her work on the Helen McCloy Amazon page.
And so, there is a scholarship in her honor which provides a $500 stipend to unpublished mystery writers striving to perfect their craft. The scholarship application process is open to U.S. Citizens or permanent residents only and can be used to off-set fees, tuition, etc. for writing workshops, classes or seminars. I urge you to click through to the MWA Helen McCloy Scholarship page for complete information, including what and how to submit.
All applications must be postmarked no later than February 28, 2014.
Good luck.
Terrie
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