Attention Fans of Sherlock Holmes

If you know the opus of Arthur Conan Doyle, you're aware that most Sherlock Holmes stories are first person narratives, faithfully reported by the famous sidekick Dr. Watson. A few are third person, including "The Adventure of the Mazarin Stone" from The Case Book of Sherlock Holmes, Doyle's last collection of Baker Street detective stories.

So it's an interesting "what if" to imagine this story "re-told" by Watson. And an exciting challenge. One that writer Ann Margaret Lewis took up.

Despite the difficulties it presented, Ann believed it could be done and set out to prove it. Taking Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's text, she reorganized it, edited it for first person voice, and added sections in Watson's point of view to the story.

And it's a wonderful surprise to learn that Ann's version will appear, courtesy of the Conan Doyle Estate, over three issues of The Serpentine Muse starting in September. This is a great honor for Lewis and a coup for Sherlock Holmes fans everywhere.

Permalink source: The Drawing Room

UPDATE 6.27: I was fortunate enough to read a sneak preview of this new version, thanks to Ann Lewis. And it truly captures Doyle's style while retaining the element of suspense found in the original third person narrative.

Ann is currently working on a major pastiche or two (what is the plural of pastiche? I looked up pistachios but that's not right :-) about Holmes and his interactions with Pope Leo XIII titled "Sherlock Holmes: The Church Mysteries" - A collection of short Sherlockian pastiches addressing Sherlock Holmes' dealings with the venerable pontiff of his time.

Also, check out "The Watson Chronicles" which explores the later years of Watson's association with Sherlock Holmes beginning in 1902. For excerpts, visit Ann Lewis' Works in Progress.