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National Crime Reading Month

The CWA Team

Chair: Maxim Jakubowski

Maxim Jakubowski was born in London but educated in France. Following an editorial career in book publishing, during which time he launched two crime imprints, Black Box Thrillers and Blue Murder, he opened the Murder One bookstore in London, which lasted for 20 years. He now writes and edits full-time.

He has compiled over 120 anthologies including The Mammoth Book of Best British Crime, Pulp Fiction, Vintage Crime, Future Cops and London, Paris, Rome and Venice Noir. He won the Anthony award for non-fiction for 100 Great Detectives. He is the author of 16 novels, some of which are in the mystery field together with others in different areas, several of which have made the Sunday Times top 10 bestseller list. A director of London’s Crime Scene festival, he was also the co-chair of the Nottingham Bouchercon and is a regular broadcaster on matters literary on TV and radio, and a frequent attendant at crime festivals in the UK and overseas.


Secretary: Dea Parkin

Dea Parkin has been an associate member of the CWA since 2012 through her editorial consultancy Fiction Feedback, which specialises in critiquing and editing crime and historical fiction. Sometimes, gloriously, both together. Her own speciality is as a copy-editor. Dea became Secretary of the CWA in 2016 and enjoys her work on the Board, liaising with CWA members and editing the CRA website and monthly CRA Newsletter, as well as overseeing the Debut Dagger, the Dagger in the Library and the Margery Allingham Short Mystery competitions. She writes a little, never as much as she’d like, and reads a lot, mainly crime fiction.