Bill Pronzini (born April 13, 1943) is an American

writer A writer is a person who uses written words in different writing styles, genres and techniques to communicate ideas, to inspire feelings and emotions, or to entertain. Writers may develop different forms of writing such as novels, short sto ...

detective fiction Detective fiction is a subgenre of crime fiction and mystery fiction in which an criminal investigation, investigator or a detective—whether professional, amateur or retired—investigates a crime, often murder. The detective genre began around ...

. He is also an active

anthologist In book publishing, an anthology is a collection of literary works chosen by the compiler; it may be a collection of plays, poems, short stories, songs, or related fiction/non-fiction excerpts by different authors. There are also thematic and ge ...

, having compiled more than 100 collections, most of which focus on mystery,

western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...

, and

science fiction Science fiction (often shortened to sci-fi or abbreviated SF) is a genre of speculative fiction that deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts. These concepts may include information technology and robotics, biological manipulations, space ...

short stories A short story is a piece of prose fiction. It can typically be read in a single sitting and focuses on a self-contained incident or series of linked incidents, with the intent of evoking a single effect or mood. The short story is one of the old ...

. Pronzini is known as the creator of the

San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...

-based Nameless Detective, who starred in over 40 books from the early 1970s into the 2000s.

Biography

William John Pronzini was born in

Petaluma Petaluma is a city in Sonoma County, California, United States, located in the North Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area. Its population was 59,776 according to the 2020 census. Petaluma's name comes from the Miwok village named ''Péta ...

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

in 1943. He attended local schools. He has been married three times. The first marriage was to Laura Patricia Adolphson (1965, divorced 1966); the second was to Brunhilde Schier (July 28, 1972, separated December 1985, divorced a couple of years later). He married mystery writer Marcia Muller in 1992. They have collaborated on several novels: ''Double'' (1984), a Nameless Detective novel, ''The Lighthouse'' (1987), ''Beyond the Grave'' (1986), several books in the Carpenter and Quincannon mystery series, and numerous anthologies. DeAndrea, William. "Pronzini, Bill" in ''Encyclopedia Mysteriosa''. MacMillan, 1994 (p.285-6).

Writing career

He published his first novel, ''The Stalker'', in 1971. However, his best known works are the Nameless Detective series, which he began in 1971. Edward D. Hoch, "Pronzini, Bill" in ''Twentieth Century Crime and Mystery Writers'', edited by James Vinson and D. L. Kirkpatrick. St. James Press, 1985. pp. 735-39. As of 2017, there are 46 books in the series, including a number of short stories. While the stories involve the usual range of crimes typical to mysteries, they depict relatively little violence. Otto Penzler, of The Mysterious Bookshop in New York City, has published a vodcast review of Bill Pronzini's work and career.

Short stories

Pronzini has written and published more than three hundred short stories. They have been published in a variety of markets, including some of the last issues of both ''

Adventure An adventure is an exciting experience or undertaking that is typically bold, sometimes risky. Adventures may be activities with danger such as traveling, exploring, skydiving, mountain climbing, scuba diving, river rafting, or other extreme spo ...

'' and '' Argosy'' magazines, generally considered the first American

pulp magazines Pulp magazines (also referred to as "the pulps") were inexpensive fiction magazines that were published from 1896 until around 1955. The term "pulp" derives from the wood pulp paper on which the magazines were printed, due to their cheap nature. ...

. Pronzini's work has also appeared in ''

Charlie Chan Charlie Chan is a fictional Honolulu Police Department, Honolulu police detective created by author Earl Derr Biggers for a series of mystery novels. Biggers loosely based Chan on Hawaiian detective Chang Apana. The benevolent and heroic Chan ...

Mystery Magazine'', ''

Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine ''Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine'' is a bi-monthly American digest size fiction magazine specializing in crime fiction, particularly detective fiction, and mystery fiction. Launched in fall 1941 by Mercury Press, ''EQMM'' is named after the fic ...

'', '' Man from U.N.C.L.E. Magazine'', ''

The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction ''The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction'' (usually referred to as ''F&SF'') is a U.S. fantasy and science-fiction magazine, first published in 1949 by Mystery House, a subsidiary of Lawrence Spivak's Mercury Press. Editors Anthony Bouche ...

'', '' Mike Shayne Mystery Magazine'', and '' Alfred Hitchcock's Anthology''. His short story collection ''Carpenter and Quincannon, Professional Detective Services'' (1998) is based in the 1890s and centers on Sabina Carpenter, a Pinkerton detective widow who is working in her late husband's profession.

Awards

Pronzini has received numerous awards and award nominations for achievement in the mystery genre. His

début novel A debut novel is the first novel a novelist publishes. Debut novels are often the author's first opportunity to make an impact on the publishing industry, and thus the success or failure of a debut novel can affect the ability of the author to pu ...

''The Stalker'' was nominated for the 1972

Edgar Award The Edgar Allan Poe Awards, popularly called the Edgars, are presented every year by the Mystery Writers of America which is based in New York City. Named after American writer Edgar Allan Poe (1809–1849), a pioneer in the genre, the awards hon ...

in the "Best First Mystery Novel" category. Pronzini won the

inaugural In government and politics, inauguration is the process of swearing a person into office and thus making that person the incumbent. Such an inauguration commonly occurs through a formal ceremony or special event, which may also include an inau ...

Shamus Award The Shamus Award is awarded by the Private Eye Writers of America (PWA) for the best detective fiction ( P. I. = Private investigator) genre novels and short stories A short story is a piece of prose fiction. It can typically be read in a sing ...

for "Best Private Eye Novel" in 1982 for his novel ''Hoodwink''. The following year, he was nominated for his second Edgar Award, this time in the "Best Critical or Biographical" listings for ''Gun in Cheek''. The next year, 1984, Pronzini won his first award for a short-story, winning the "Best Private Eye Short Story" Shamus Award for "Cat's Paw". His novel ''Bones'' was nominated for the "Best Private Eye Novel" Shamus in 1986. In 1987, Pronzini was awarded "The Eye", the Shamus award for "Lifetime Achievement" in the mystery genre, the highest accolade awarded. The same year, Pronzini received his first

Macavity Award The Macavity Awards, established in 1987, are a group of literary awards presented annually to mystery writers. Nominated and voted upon annually by the members of the Mystery Readers International, the award is named for the "Macavity, mystery cat ...

for his Critical Work ''1001 Midnights'', along with Marcia Muller. The next year he won in the same category for ''Son of Gun in Cheek''. 1989 brought a nomination at the

1989 Anthony Award Bouchercon is an annual convention of creators and devotees of mystery and detective fiction. It is named in honour of writer, reviewer, and editor Anthony Boucher; also the inspiration for the Anthony Awards, which have been issued at the conv ...

s for "Best Novel", for ''Shackles''; and another Shamus nomination for short-story "Incident in a Neighborhood Tavern". That same year, his novel ''Snowbound'' was awarded the French

Grand Prix de Littérature Policière The (or the Police Literature Grand Prize) is a French literary award, literary prize founded in 1948 by author and literary critic Maurice-Bernard Endrèbe. It is the most prestigious award for crime fiction, crime and detective fiction in Franc ...

.Guide des Prix littéraires
online ed. ''Le Rayon du Polar''. Synopsis of French prizes rewarding French and international crime literature, with lists of laureates for each Prize. Grand Prix de littérature policière: pp. 18-36. Another two short-story nominations at the Shamus Awards followed for "Here Comes Santa Claus" in 1990 and "Home is the Place Where" in 1996. That year his novel ''Blue Lonesome'' was nominated for the "Best Novel" 1996 Anthony Award. The next year, ''Sentinels'' received a "Best Novel" nomination at the 1997 Shamus Awards; the year after ''A Wasteland of Strangers'' won Pronzini's only "Best Novel" Edgar Award. ''Boobytrap'' won the Shamus Award in the same category in 1999. "The Big Bite" in 2001 and "Devil's Brew" in 2007 were both Shamus Award "Best Private Eye Short Story" nominees. In 2010 he was nominated for "Best Novel" for his ''Schemers''.

Bibliography

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pronzini, Bill 1943 births Living people American male novelists American mystery writers Analog Science Fiction and Fact people American anthologists Anthony Award winners Edgar Award winners Macavity Award winners Shamus Award winners Western (genre) writers