Sisters in Crime
Desert Sleuths Chapter
An Organization for Writers, Readers, and Fans of Crime Fiction and Mystery
Welcome!
Desert Sleuths is a proud member of Sisters in Crime, an international organization that promotes the ongoing advancement, recognition, and professional development of women crime writers. Sisters in Crime helps women achieve equality in the industry by raising professionalism, serving as the voice for excellence, and achieving diversity in crime writing.
Desert Sleuths is located in the Phoenix Metropolitan area and serves members throughout the State of Arizona and beyond! Our members include bestselling, award-winning authors, emerging writers, fans of mysteries and crime stories, and other writers of other genres. We are an inclusive organization. Whatever your gender, level of experience, or genre, you are welcome to join us!
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Current Events
Desert Sleuths programming is largely virtual unless the speaker is in the Greater Phoenix area. Then we may announce an in-person location and have a hybrid meeting.
Monthly Member Meetings: 6:00 p.m.; Presentation: 6:30 – 7:30 p.m.
(East Coast: add 2 hours; Central, add 1; MT, add 0; Pacific, subtract 1)
Our monthly Zoom presentations are free and open to all. Members can view the video replay in our chapter space on SinC LinC. The current month’s program is highlighted below. See our entire month-by-month programming under the 2026 Events page.
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February
Friday, February 28th
Sonoran Writers Conference Proposal Deadline
Desert Sleuths and Tucson SinC members — Submit your proposal or sign up to be a moderator or panelist TODAY!
Don’t let opportunity slip away. Be one of our presenters, workshop speakers, moderators, or panelists at this May 9th conference by and for writers, booksellers, and book publishers.
We have panel suggestions on self-promotion; writing from family history; justice and criminology; genre writing; Agatha Christie; writing humor in mysteries; and craft: plotting, setting, and characters. And more are coming in. Add your name, and join us on May 9th for the writers conference hosted by Anthology, Inc. (Mesa, AZ).
Complete the form here.
April
Wednesday, April 15th, 6:00 p.m. – 7:30 p.m. (MST)
(East Coast: add 3 hours; Central, add 2; MT, add 1; Pacific, -0)
Register with us before the event to get your Zoom registration link.
Members, please come to the chapter member meeting at 6:00 p.m.
Mastering the Outline: The Power of the Three-Act Structure, with Claire-Dee Lim
Writers are divided on outlining. Some find it too confining, preferring the freedom of discovery. Others value it as a roadmap that clarifies direction and keeps them from writing themselves into a corner. I fall into the latter camp.
In this presentation, we’ll examine how three-act structure concepts can provide a strong foundation for your story outline while still leaving room to explore character, theme, and nuance. We’ll also break down a few bestselling novels to show how you can apply the same framework to your own work.
Claire-Dee Lim is a screenwriter, author, and writing professor. Her credits include Firehouse Dog, Love Match, and The Power Object. She has taught at Gnomon: School of Visual Effects, Games & Animation, and the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising.
Click here for more details and registration
Looking Forward – 2026 Events
Scheduled 2026 events are listed on the 2026 events page
2026 Events
All 2025 events are listed on the 2025 events page
2025 Events
Did You Attend WriteNow! 2025?
The Friday workshop and Saturday program are available for replay to paid attendees.
All 2024 events are listed on the 2024 events page
2024 Events
Did You Attend WriteNow! 2024?
The Friday workshop and Saturday program are available for replay to paid attendees.
All our 2023 events are listed on the 2023 events page.
2023 Events
Did You Attend WriteNow! 2023?
The Friday workshop and Saturday program are available for replay to paid attendees.
All 2022 Events
Covid-19 Guidelines from SinC National and AZ DHS
SinC National has published their meeting guidelines for this stage of the Covid-19 pandemic:
2021 In-Person Meetings Guidelines
The AZ DHS has as well:
Arizona Department of Health Services recommendations