Join ACWL

American Crime Writers League is a professional organization restricted to currently active writers published in the United States in the field of crime fiction and true crime. To be eligible for membership, a writer who was not an ACWL member as of May 1, 2005 must meet criteria set by the ACWL Membership Committee:

1) Publication of at least one full-length book or three short stories, the most recent published within two years of applying. These works must be printed works. The publisher of the works must be on ACWL's Accepted Publishers List. This list was developed and is maintained by the Mystery Writers of America, an organization of professional mystery writers, as part of their membership requirements. The list is used with the knowledge and permission of Mystery Writers of America.

2) Self-published authors that meet the Guidelines for Self-Published Authors (developed by Mystery Writers of America).

3) Other criteria of being professionally published as set by ACWL's Membership Committee and approved by its membership.

ACWL reserves the right to refuse membership to anyone.

Note: At this time, membership in ACWL is free to qualified applicants. We reserve the right to reinstate the membership fee specified below in the future.

Dues are $25 per calendar year, due on January 31.

For new members joining after October 1, the $25 membership pays for the remainder of the current year and the entire next year.

A membership application may be found at Application.PDF and a brochure is available at Brochure.PDF.