Mysterious Galaxy Co-Owner Edits Noir Anthology

Noticing that her home city was missing from the Akashic Noir series, Maryelizabeth Hart, co-owner of Mysterious Galaxy [1] Bookstore in San Diego, California, took matters into her own hands. She pitched San Diego Noir to publisher Johnny Temple, who was immediately receptive, said Hart. The book, which includes both established and first-time authors, was released in May, and was a finalist for the T. Jefferson Parker Award for Mystery & Thrillers.

Mysterious Galaxy Bookstore, in San Diego, California, has always carried — and enjoyed — the Akashic Noir titles, said Hart. The series currently includes 48 anthologies, each comprised of stories set in various cities worldwide, and more are in the works.

“While I knew there were a lot, I hadn’t realized there were more than three dozen, covering lots of the globe, until sometime in 2010,” said Hart. “At which point I thought, ‘Hey — what about San Diego?!’”

Hart was also under the impression that each book was edited by established authors or editors. She was encouraged, however, when she saw that Phoenix Noir was edited by Patrick Millikin, a bookseller at the Poisoned Pen in Scottsdale, Arizona.

“The hardest part of editing the anthology was the finite number of stories that could be included,” said Hart. “I had a number of goals regarding the authors I wanted to include, which were shared by Johnny, including wanting to have diversity in the author mix,” especially relating to established and new authors.

Hart knew the authors through various Mysterious Galaxy connections, and she said it was equally thrilling to include multiple award winners, like T. Jefferson Parker and Luis Alberto Urrea, as well as first-time authors, like Astrid Bear and Diane Clark.

Hart recently attended an event at the San Diego Public Library, along with many of the book’s contributors, where they were asked to define noir.

“To me, a noir story is one in which there isn’t necessarily justice, especially via the system; but other elements can also play into it, like ambiguous or extremely petty motives or protagonists,” she said. “In San Diego Noir, justice is sometimes but not always served — it was important to me to that the stories have a variety of outcomes, so that the reader had a variety of experiences.”

Hart attended the Southern California Independent Booksellers Association trade show “wearing three hats — bookseller, editor, and reporter,” she said, and has attended many author events hosted by other bookstores, which is “a fascinating experience from ‘the other side.’

“I have to say, it was a thrill to be seated at the Authors Feast and see my name, photo, and the San Diego Noir cover on the screen in the company of so many authors I love and admire, especially my fellow T. Jefferson Parker Award nominees.”

The anthology has become a Mysterious Galaxy favorite, and customers made it the store’s #1 May paperback bestetseller. “My fondest hope is that it will do really well, and Akashic will be interested in a second volume,” Hart said.