Charlotte MacLeod

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Charlotte MacLeod (November 12, 1922 - January 14, 2005) was a mystery fiction writer.

[edit] Life and work

Born in Bath, New Brunswick, Canada in 1922, Charlotte (Matilda) MacLeod emigrated to the United States in 1923, and became a naturalized U.S. citizen in 1951. She attended the Art Institute of Boston. During the late 1940s and early 1950s, she worked as a copy writer for Stop and Shop Supermarkets in Boston. She eventually moved on to join the staff of N. H. Miller & Company, an advertising firm, where she rose to the level of vice president, and retired in 1982.

While continuing to work at the advertising company during the day, MacLeod began writing mystery books, over 30 in all, and also wrote about Canada under the pen name Alisa Craig. She specifically tailored her books to avoid too much violence, gore, or sex. One series focused on college professor Peter Shandy, another on Beacon Hill couple Sarah Kelling and Max Bittersohn.

Described as a "true lady" and often seen with hat and white gloves, MacLeod began writing at 6 AM, continued through the morning, then used the afternoon for rewrites. She only started new books on Sundays and during writing would stay dressed in a bathrobe to avoid temptation of leaving the house for an errand. Her work sold over 1 million copies in the United States as well as Canada and Japan. MacLeod was co-founder and past president of the American Crime Writers League, and in 1988 was nominated for an EDGAR Award for The Corpse in Oozak's Pond.

MacLeod spent her final years in Maine. Toward the end of her years she suffered from Alzheimer's disease and died on January 14, 2005 in a Lewiston, Maine nursing home.

[edit] Bibliography

  • Rest You Merry (1979)
  • The Family Vault (1980)
  • The Luck Runs Out (1981)
  • The Withdrawing Room (1981)
  • The Palace Guard (1982)
  • Wrack and Rune (1982)
  • The Bilbao Looking Glass (1983)
  • Something the Cat Dragged In (1984)
  • The Convivial Codfish (1984)
  • The Curse of the Giant Hogweed (1985)
  • The Plain Old Man (1985)
  • The Corpse in Oozak's Pond (1987)
  • The Recycled Citizen (1988)
  • The Silver Ghost (1988)
  • Vane Pursuit (1989)
  • The Gladstone Bag (1989)
  • An Owl Too Many (1991)
  • The Resurrection Man (1992)
  • Something in the Water (1994)
  • The Odd Job (1995)
  • Exit the Milkman (1996)
  • The Balloon Man (1998)

Non-series books:

  • Maid of Honor (1984)
  • The Fat Lady's Ghost (1968)
  • Ask Me No Questions (1971)
  • Cirak's Daughter (1982)


As Alisa Craig:

  • A Pint of Murder (1980)
  • The Grub and Stakers Move a Mountain (1981)
  • Murder Goes Mumming (1981)
  • The Terrible Tide (1985)
  • The Grub and Stakers Quilt a Bee (1985)
  • A Dismal Thing to Do (1986)
  • The Grub and Stakers Pinch a Poke (1988)
  • Trouble in the Brasses (1989)
  • The Grub and Stakers Spin a Yarn (1990)
  • The Wrong Rite (1992)
  • The Grub and Stakers House a Haunt (1993)

Edited by Charlotte MacLeod:

  • Christmas Stalkings
  • Mistletoe Mysteries

Awards and Nominations:

  • Nero Wolfe Award (1 win)
  • Edgar Allan Poe Award (2 nominations)
  • American Mystery Awards (5 wins)
  • Bouchercon Lifetime Achievement Award
  • Malice Domestic Lifetime Achievement Award
Languages