Welcome! I'm a four-time Agatha Award-nominated mystery writer.

What's new in 2012?

My newest short story, "The Lord Is My Shamus" appears in the new anthology Chesapeake Crimes: This Job Is Murder, published by Wildside Press. The book is available from the publisher now as well as indie bookstores One More Page and Mystery Loves Company. It should show up on Barnes and Noble and Amazon any day now. It's available in trade paperback and should soon be available in electronic form, too.

My short story "Truth and Consequences" was nominated for an Agatha Award for best mystery short story published in 2011.


What was new in 2011?

My short story "Truth and Consequences" appeared in Mystery Times Ten, a young-adult mystery anthology released in July by Buddhapuss Ink. It's available in trade paperback and on Kindle.    This story marks my first foray into the YA world. In this story, 14-year-old Cara can't wait ten more days to learn what her Christmas presents will be. So she begins snooping around her house, uncovers a mystery involving her family, and ultimately turns her entire family's lives upside down.

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Hours of great reading await, with mystery and crime tales from some of the 20th most renowned authors, including Johnston McCulley (creator of Zorro), Sax Rohmer (creator of Fu Manchu), G.K. Chesterton (famous for Father Brown) — and a handpicked selection of modern stories by contemporary masters, including Nora Charles, Marcia Talley, Elaine Viets, and many more! (The many more include Art Taylor, Carla Coupe, Toni L.P. Kelner, and C. Ellett Logan.)

• "Volunteer of the Year" has been re-released in a slightly different version in the anthology Magnolia Blossoms and Afternoon Tales, a collection of 20 stories and 5 poems, all involving southern characters and southern settings. The book is published by the Gulf Coast Writers Association. It's their third annual anthology. As a northern girl who thinks she was southern in a prior life, my inclusion in this book means so much to me.

• My story "Biscuits, Carats and Gravy" is out! It's published in The Killer Wore Cranberry, an e-book anthology of funny mystery stories published by Untreed Reads. My story also is available for individual purchase. The premise: Dotty is hosting Thanksgiving, and everything's going great until Dotty learns her deceased mother's engagement ring will be given to an airhead who's about to join the family. Dotty comes up with a plan to save the ring involving some horrible gravy. And then the wheels come off the bus... You can buy the book, or my story individually, from all the online retailers, including the publisher directly. The book is downloadable to e-readers as well as as a PDF onto your computer. Learn more at http://www.untreedreads.com.

NEW: I received a very nice review for "Biscuits, Carats, and Gravy" from author Victor J. Banis: "I just read Barb Goffman's short story by that name (Untreed Reads) and I have to say it's hilarious! Highly recommended to one and all (Oh, it case you don't get it, the theme is Thanksgiving)." Thank you, Victor!

• My story "An Officer and a Gentleman's Agreement" appears in Murder to Mil-Spec (which stands for military specifications). This anthology of military-related stories is published by Wolfmont Press, which is donating all its profits from the book to Home for Our Troops, a charity that builds homes for veterans who were seriously wounded while serving our country. My story is about a veteran with a deadly secret who threatens a powerful general's career. Can the veteran regain his honor?

• In June my story "The Contest" was published in the 2010 Deadly Ink Short Story Collection, published by Deadly Ink Press (which is donating all profits to the Christopher Reeve Foundation). The story's focus: In a bad economy, how far will you go to get a job?

• In the spring my story "Volunteer of the Year" was published in Chesapeake Crimes: They Had It Comin', the fourth installment in the award-winning Chesapeake Crimes series. This story is about a woman being honored for her charitable works. Life should be great, yet on the biggest night of her life, she risks her soul to save her conscience. This anthology, published by Wildside Press, was edited by Donna Andrews, Marcia Talley, and me.