I realized a little while ago that I missed my anniversary. No, not the important one. I never miss that. Rather, my three-year anniversary as the mystery/thriller critic for the Chicago Sun-Times.
I wrote my first monthly round-up column for the paper back in July 2003. Since then, I've written thirty-one total columns for them, including reviews of one hundred fifty-nine books. (Assuming I counted right.)
How I got the position in the first place was really a matter of luck. I was in the right place at the right time and took advantage of the opportunity. I had started writing newspaper reviews earlier in 2003, including a handful of stand-alone reviews for the Sun-Times. (A tip of the hat to my old pal Roger Ebert for helping me land that gig.)
That summer, the person who previously held the position of mystery critic became ill and had to resign. (I'm embarrassed to say that I don't remember the man's name. I never knew him.) When that happened, I offered to Henry Kisor, the book editor at the time, to assume the position, if the need was there.
Henry told me that the position of mystery critic was usually filled by someone who already wrote for the paper. He said they'd probably be sending out the word through the staff to see if anyone was interested in taking it over. In the meantime, though, if I wanted to write a couple of columns, he'd be glad to have me do them.
So now, here we are... Three years later, and I'm still doing them. Since then the Sun-Times has gone through a lot of changes. It has a new owner, the book section has shrunk and been tarted up, reviewers have been let go, there's a new book editor... But I'm still plugging away, doing my column every month.
Every once in a while, I think of giving it up. I seriously considered quitting earlier this year, and was actually somewhat relieved at the thought of it. But so far, I've decided to keep going. Even now that we've got the baby, and it's definitely tougher to get all the reading done, I'm staying with it.
Part of why is because I'm afraid that if I quit, the position will simply go away. The Sun-Times would still review mysteries, I'm sure, but in the number they do now? I don't know. With me onboard, at least, there's a strong and convincing advocate for these books, and I don't want that to go away.
So, Happy Anniversary, Chicago Sun-Times! I think you owe me a present.
