Oline Cogdill
It was hard to miss Ruth Cavin, the long-time crime fiction editor for St. Martin's Press, at mystery fiction conferences.
Tall, graceful and usually wearing sneakers, Cavin often was surrounded by a cadre of much younger editors, publicists and authors.
And with good reason.
Cavin, who died Jan. 9 at age 92, really was a legend in her own time.
She was one of those responsible for the Minotaur Books imprint that launched myriad authors.
Cavin was one of those editors who took great pleasure in new writers. The list of authors who came under her direction is endless. My colleague Sarah Weinman has a nice tribute to Calvin. Mike Shatzkin offers a lovely, personal tribute to Calvin, who he had known all his life.
I agree with everything these two said, and can add nothing more.
Cavin was a force of nature. The energy she exhibited put those decades younger to shame.
Cavin leaves a wonderful legacy for the mystery genre. Rest in peace.
