Anthony Neil Smith, author of the compelling and critically acclaimed novel “Yellow Medicine,” invited me and the other contributors to Issue 1 of his reborn Plots with Guns journal for a web chat on crime fiction hosted by Gerald So. Due to a bug in Yahoo! Messenger, I couldn’t read Neil’s questions or comments during the chat, but I did my best to seem like I actually had a clue as to what was being discussed (just like in real life). Despite the Messenger bugs, folks still managed to exchange some interesting thoughts about novel writing, short stories, selecting submissions, our understanding of noir and the notion of transgressive crime fiction. Also joining in were crime novelists Victor Gischler and Harry Hunsicker.

The transcript of the chat is here. Check it out.

Also, be sure to watch Neil’s short YouTube video, below, on why he started Plots with Guns. It’ll make you wanna check out the ‘zine, if you haven’t already.