When Judith won the trophy in2014, she had sold a few stories to That’s Life and been published in a few obscurejournals with three readers. Flying to Melbourne and attending the event made her feel recognised as a writer. When she returned to Perth, there was a work thang summing up the year so far and the University Librarian said “and now we have an award-winning writer”, which was terribly exciting, she says. Since then, she has been published in a lot of anthologies and her flash fiction ha...
Sep 08, 2023•18 min•Season 2Ep. 15
In 2013, Candice Graham was studying her Masters in Clinical Neuropsychology when she won the Scarlett Stiletto Award. Just one year prior, she won the Catherine Leppert Best Environmental Theme Award with her first ever Scarlet Stiletto entry. Candice reportedly remembers thinking at that time (surrounded by such talented ladies) that first prize was probably out of her reach. Above all else, Candice believes the Scarlet Stiletto Awards teach us what we’re capable of – both in writing and murde...
Sep 01, 2023•40 min•Season 2Ep. 14
Eleven years elapsed between Josephine Pennicott’s first Scarlet Stiletto shoe for “Birthing the Demons” in 2001 and her second shoe for “Shadows” in 2012. This taught her a lot about tenacity and belief in self. Winning the Scarlet Stiletto helped Josephine gain attention from a major publishing company, which led to her securing a literary agent. Since then, she has had five books published both in Australia and internationally. Her mystery novel Poet’s Cottage was a Spiegel bestseller in Germ...
Aug 26, 2023•41 min•Season 2Ep. 13
Angela Savage is an award-winning writer, former CEO of Writers Victoria, and current CEO of Public Libraries Victoria. Her debut novel, Behind the Night Bazaar , featured Jayne Keeney, the Thai-based P I in her story which won third prize in 1998. The book won the Victorian Premier’s Literary Award for Unpublished Manuscript, and all three of her Jayne Keeney PI novels were shortlisted for Ned Kelly Awards. Angela’s short stories have been published in Australia and the UK and she won the 2011 ...
Aug 19, 2023•36 min•Season 2Ep. 12
Sometimes an investigation on a hot case unearths a revelation about a cold case. In today’s story, a rookie Constable must sort through her suspicions to find the prime suspect… Fin J Ross has become a repeat offender, winning several Scarlet Stiletto category prizes in the past ten years. She finally kidnapped the coveted Scarlet Stiletto trophy at the 2022 awards with her entry, “Tuesday Jocks”. She has two published novels, and several short stories published in various anthologies, along wi...
Aug 11, 2023•41 min•Season 1Ep. 11
Bad dreams often come from bad deeds, but who’s bad deeds…. Janis Spehr lives in northern Victoria. She has published five story collections and a novel with Ginninderra Press. She is currently writing her second novel, The Blue Door. Her writing journey has taken her away from crime fiction but she retains fond memories of the Scarlet Stiletto. She won first prize two years on a trot, 1999 and 2000. Credits Concept designer, co-producer and narrator: Susanna Lobez Co-producer: Carmel Shute Anno...
Aug 04, 2023•38 min•Season 1Ep. 10
Everyone seems to be buying, selling, even collecting online – but scammers are lurking in cyberspace and even hard copy vintage books are targeted, as you’ll see in today’ s story. When Liz Filleul won the Scarlet Stiletto Award in 2004, she had recently rediscovered the children’s books she’d loved growing up in England – books like the Famous Five, the Chalet School, the Lone Piners, and Antonia Forest’s Marlows series. This inspired her winning entry, “Brought to Book”. At the time, Liz hope...
Jul 27, 2023•36 min•Season 1Ep. 9
Some crimes are solved by intuition or gut instinct. Others by serendipity. In today’s story an OpShop provided clues... Cate Kennedy has been writing short stories for going on 30 years, ever since entering the first Scarlet Stiletto Awards in 1994 and winning two trophies in a row (after which she was invited to become a judge). Cate rapidly became one of Australia’s most admired and awarded short-story writers. She’s also written and published a novel, a travel memoir, and three collections o...
Jul 21, 2023•21 min•Season 1Ep. 8
The outback of Australia can hold many mysteries and secrets. And its vastness can cover a criminal’s tracks and a family’s hidden past... Hayley Young lives in Canberra with her family and enjoys writing across multiple genres. In 2021, she was at work (sneaking a snack) when she returned a missed call to learn she had won the 28th Sisters in Crime Scarlet Stiletto Award and Scriptworks Award for a Great Film Idea. Winning inspired further dedication to her love of writing, and in 2022 her succ...
Jul 13, 2023•39 min•Season 1Ep. 7
Murders happen in the strangest places and for the strangest reasons… as today’s story illustrates. When Aoife Clifford won the Scarlet Stiletto in 2007, she was at home with two small children, suffering terrible morning sickness with what was soon to be her third. Now her eldest has left home and her third crime novel is about to come out in hardback in the UK and she is writing her fourth. The Scarlet Stiletto opened publishing doors but just as importantly introduced her to a community of cr...
Jul 09, 2023•35 min•Season 1Ep. 4
Sometimes is gets very hard to tell the good guys from the bad guys. And often the good guys can get burnout, like Lizzie in today’s story. In 2003, Jacqui Horwood was an emerging writer working at Victoria Police and scratching away at short stories. In 2016 she was an emerging writer who had two draft manuscripts and a number of published short stories under her belt. The shoes have boosted her confidence and remind her that she can do it. She is still an emerging writer. She was a judge for S...
Jul 06, 2023•31 min•Season 1Ep. 6
Crime can come close to us in more ways than one. Would you rather have a loved one who is a victim? Or a perpetrator? The Mother in today’s story, has both. Eleven years elapsed between Josephine Pennicott’s first Scarlet Stiletto shoe for “Birthing the Demons” in 2001 and her second shoe for “Shadows” in 2012. This taught her a lot about tenacity and belief in self. Winning the Scarlet Stiletto helped Josephine gain attention from a major publishing company, which led to her securing a literar...
Jun 29, 2023•40 min•Season 1Ep. 5
Sometimes it is hard to look past the “usual suspects” when a crime is investigated. Perhaps it even takes a smidge of “women’s intuition... Ruth Wykes is an author and editor who lives and works on Victoria’s Mornington Peninsula. Ruth has co-authored two true crime books: Women Who Kill with Lindy Cameron and Invisible Women with Kylie Fox (both Clan Destine Press). Ruth is currently writing her debut crime novel and belongs to a small but passionate writers’ group who meet regularly to write ...
Jun 15, 2023•29 min•Season 1Ep. 3
Do we really wonder WHY women kill? We watched the TV series of that name… well a lot of us did. Long before Coercive Control was even a thing, women were responding to it, with dreams of their own domestic revenge.In today's Scarlet Stiletto Bite - the character Cyndi, an ordinary suburban woman does a bit more than dream… Back in 2005, a friend suggested to Julie Waight that she enter the Sisters in Crime Short Story Competition. She plucked out one of her many short stories, ( Dust Devils ) e...
Jun 08, 2023•26 min•Season 1Ep. 2
We all feel cynical sometimes, don't we? Today on Scarlet's Stiletto Bites, we meet a super cynic. She's seen everything, but her cynicism leads her to discover seriously sinister crimes. Thursday Night at the Opera by Christina Lee, the Scarlett's Stiletto winner in 1998, and warning: there are a few dark themes in this story.About the Author, Christina LeeChristina Lee won the Scarlet Stiletto twice, much to her surprise, in 1992 and 1994, with an Honourable Mention or Third Place or something...
Jun 01, 2023•21 min•Season 1Ep. 1
Imaginative crime stories with quirky comic moments, deadly characters and a frisson of feminism
May 19, 2023•1 min
