Bouchercon Memories

 The winner of KILLIN' TIME IN SAN DIEGO is Lenita, in California! Lenita, please send an email to julia spencer fleming (all one word) at Gmail.com and I'll connect you to editor Holy West!

 

JULIA SPENCER-FLEMING: How to describe Bouchercon? It's a party that moves from someone's suite to the bar to the restaurant to the publisher's shindig to the hotel lobby. It's a four-day university with the best crime fiction authors in the world telling you whatever you want to know about writing mysteries. It's a massive family reunion, if you actually enjoyed seeing everyone in your family.

 

At my first B'con, in Austin, I was nervous and shy (I know, it's hard to believe,) and had the great good fortune to meet Steve Hamilton, who sat down with me and gave me SO much information about the world of crime fiction writers. 

 The next year, in Las Vegas, I swept the awards and barely remember it. What I do recall was the awful hotel/casino (it got demolished a year later!) the bug that bit my butt at the breakfast bar (which will be the title of my children's book, if I ever write one) and getting phone updates on the League Championship final during the Opening ceremonies (Boston vs. Yankees, with Ross and Lee Child parked in front of the overflow bar TV, cheering on their respective teams.)

Julia, Edith Maxwell &"Sherry Harris" in Albany

Lots of my memories are crowded with people, but some are just lovely solitary moments - walking back to my hotel in San Francisco listening to street musicians playing in the warm dark. Looking out the porthole of my room at the Queen Mary at the glittering lights of Long Beach. Starting each morning in St. Petersburg soaking up the sun while swimming laps in the hotel pool.

What about you, Reds? What are some of your memorable Bouchercon moments?

JENN McKINLAY: My favorite Bouchercon was Dallas in 2019 - all the Reds were together. Why can’t I remember the name of this drink? Perhaps I had a few too many.

 

A great many of these were consumed

  

Other memorable times were…meeting Sue Grafton for the first time in Long Beach (2014) and chatting for a half hour in a hallway. No one else approached her, which I found shocking! It was also my first Bouchercon - so wow, just wow! 

 

Another fave was Toronto (2017) where I went to the top of the CN tower! I always try to do some touring while at a conference and that tower has a glass floor. So cool! 

 

Another stellar BCon moment was Raleigh (2015) where I was told my series was getting moved into hardcover and I found out I hit #8 on the NYT which made me useless for the entire conference. Seriously, I had to meet with the head buyer for Barnes and Noble over dinner and I was as dumb as a potato. Luckily, he was very understanding and we’re still in touch. I think that’s why conferences are so important. You get to meet people and form friendships that are truly sustaining in an occupation that can be, frankly, rather lonely.

RHYS BOWEN: My first Bouchercon I knew exactly 2 people. I was chatting with one of them but had agreed to have dinner with the other. A man in the group invited me to join them for dinner. I explained I had a dinner commitment. As they walked away my acquaintance hissed, “You just turned down Jeffrey Deaver!” 

(I was clueless obviously)

My most memorable was winning two Anthony awards  in Toronto only the award was a giant tombstone I could hardly lift. I had to stagger through customs with an incredibly heavy box , trying not to look suspicious 

Rhys, Louise Penny and Debs in New Orleans

 

Other fond memories are all the Jungle Red game shows, good food  in New Orleans, walking into Austin with matching purple cowboy hats   My least favorites were the horror in Las Vegas and the dystopian Albany site.

 

JULIA: We really need T-shirts that say, "I Survived the Las Vegas Bouchercon." And Albany... sigh. Well, at least it was close enough to visit family and friends upstate.

HALLIE EPHRON: Oh dear, I do remember Albany. An impossible city for a conference of that size. I felt bad for the folks who worked so hard to organize it.

I vividly remember my first Bouchercon - it was in Denver (in 2000? Egads). I knew *NO ONE*! I remember after eating alone I wandered over to the bar where Lee Child was holding forth, and chickened out on hanging out. Only now do I realize what a welcoming place that conference can be, wherever it’s held.

My all time favorite (after the Jungle Red game panels which have been fabulous) was when I got to interview GoH Elizabeth George. She is so lovely and smart and it was a breeze. 

 

GOH Elizabeth George & Hallie

 

HANK PHILLIPPI RYAN: Well, so many, and I think I remember the good ones more clearly. Certainly being Guest of Honor in Dallas, that was…well, I am still floating. I still kind of can’t believe it.  And I got to interview James Patterson, who was incredible, hilarious, and absolutely brilliant. I adore him, and we have stayed pals.  (Did you know he mentioned me and how much he loved  that interview in his autobiography? Aww.)

What is Patterson saying to Hank?

 

Anyway, yes, chatting with Sue Grafton. And  the time in maybe Cleveland, where I saw a guy putting out WHIrl360  tote bags, which I knew was for my favorite book at the time, Trust Your Eyes. And I said: “Are you putting out those for Linwood Barclay? I love that book, may I have one?” And turns out, it WAS Linwood Barclay, so that was nice.

And the moment in St. Louis  when William Landay told me he was worried that there were so many arcs of Defending Jacob, because he feared no one would buy it because everyone would already have it. I remember I said: Boucheron is NOT everyone. 

And when Robert Crais had to cancel at the last minute, and the Bouchercon people, in a real Hollywood moment, asked me if I could fill in for him and interview David Baldacci the next day. Well, of COURSE I could. And did. And it was great.

And winning the ANTHONY four times.  PLUS another time winning with the Reds for this very blog! (Where was that, you all?) And every moment with the Reds!

 

JULIA: St. Petersburg! I missed the awards because I was deep in conversation with Brad Parks and lost track of the time. Go on, Hank, I cut you off. What about your first?

HANK: Oh, my first Bouchercon? In Baltimore. I was MISERABLE, and lonely,  and decided to give up on this whole writing thing. Lee Child, who just happened to be there when I was looking pensive, and asked me about it,  told me not to. And I always do what Lee Child says.

LUCY BURDETTE: My first Bcon was in Milwaukee– 2000? I knew not a soul and I was petrified! Terrified! If I hadn't wanted to get published so badly, I probably would have flown right home. I am truly not a natural extrovert, so a big conference like that was very challenging. I have so enjoyed the times the Reds are able to all get together, especially to do a game show. My favorite might have been the one that Julia’s Ross filled in. He was hysterical! This is the photo of the Reds winning best website in St. Petersburg. Oh but wait, Dallas was great fun too, and it was an honor to interview our own Debs!

 

Some extremely happy & honored Reds in St. Petersburg

 

DEBORAH CROMBIE: Oh, so many Bouchercons, so hard to choose! My first Bouchercon was in Pasadena in 1991! I was so nervous and so overwhelmed. But people were so nice and I made friends I still have to this day. I remember Jonathan Gash (he wrote Lovejoy, if you remember) stopped and spoke to me and I thought, “Wow, a real author just talked to me!"

Dallas was fabulous for so many reasons, but some of the others that stand out in memory: Las Vegas (the worst hotel, ugh); Raleigh (my luggage went to California); Albany (we all know how many times we walked up and down those hills but, still, I had a great time at that one); Toronto (Susan Shea and I discovered a pen shop!); St. Petersburg, where the Reds won Anthony!  I am so excited to be making more memories in San Diego.

 

Debs & our own Ann Mason in Toronto

 

 JULIA: Notice how everyone has a happy memory of Lee Child at Bouchercon? That goes to show what a truly lovely gentleman he is. Now it's your turn, dear readers. Share your memories of B'con or any other literary conference/ festival you've been to. And if you're appearing in San Diego today, tomorrow or Sunday, let us know in the comments! 

G.S. Norwood--Everyday Magic

DEBORAH CROMBIE: Here on Jungle Red Writers we have few bigger thrills than introducing a friend to our readers. So it is my great pleasure today to bring you G.S. Norwood--or, as our regular readers know her, Gigi Norwood! Gigi and I have not only been writing buddies for many a year, we share a love of urban fantasy as well as mystery. And although she writes in both genres, DEEP ELLUM PAWN hits all my favorite urban fantasy notes. Here's Gigi to introduce you to Ms. Eddy Weekes and a bit of magic.

GIGI NORWOOD: I believe in magic.  Not the David Copperfield, big stage illusion kind.  Not the Harry Potter wave-a-wand-and-say-the-right-words kind.  I believe in the natural kind that arises from the energy shared by people who gather around a common belief.

You’ve probably felt that energy yourself, humming through a crowd of grandparents, parents, grand and great-grandchildren at the start of last movie in the Star Wars triple trilogy.  If you gasped along with the little ones as the snowflakes began to fall at the end of the first act of The Nutcracker, you have felt it.  It’s the energy that whispers amazing things are possible, and Tinkerbell will survive, if only we believe.

To write urban fantasy, as I do, you have to believe that kind of life-force energy hums just under the surface of even the grittiest city.  You have to peel back the layers of concrete and asphalt right down to the dirt, then call on the folklore and fairy tales, old songs and old wives’ tales that have grown up around a place. You weave in history and legend until the story has one foot in reality, and one foot in fantasy.

My novelette, Deep Ellum Pawn, began with that mix of practicality and possibility.  I had an old Charlie Daniels song stuck in my mind.  The Devil Went Down to Georgia is catchy, but I couldn’t help but wonder why anyone would want a fiddle made of gold.  Gold is a dense metal, heavy to hold, and not very resonant.  A golden fiddle—particularly one from the Devil himself—would likely sound less than musical.  So, what do you do with it?  Melt it down? Take it to a pawn shop?

The moment that thought popped into my mind a character followed.  That’s how I met Ms. Eddy Weekes, owner of Deep Ellum Pawn.  It’s a dusty pawn shop in one of Dallas’ oldest neighborhoods, but there’s more going on behind the façade than anyone might suspect.

The story flowed quickly, and I began to wonder if I’d made it up, or if some force beyond my imagination was prompting me to write it all down the way it “really” happened.  Every time I paused to research a new plot point, I found not only the answer I was looking for, but reams of additional information that made the whole idea even richer and deeper.

For example, hellhounds make an appearance in the story.  And why not?  The dance halls and street corners of Deep Ellum gave many American blues legends an early career boost.  The district is only a few short blocks away from the building where bluesman Robert Johnson recorded his song, Hellhound on My Trail.  Johnson himself gave me my first clue about how to manage hellhounds when his lyrics mentioned hotfoot powder—a folk charm used to harden the threshold of a home against supernatural invaders.  A bit further down the hellhound trail I learned that to look one in the eye three times means death.  Great stuff for an urban fantasist.

When different ideas, drawn from history, folklore, and my own imagination, all fall together to make a coherent and entertaining whole, that feels like magic to me.

So what about you, Reds and Readers?  Have you ever had a project come together “as if by magic”?  Have you felt the energy that moves through a crowd to make magic seem real?  Do you believe?

 

Deep Ellum Pawn cover art © 2019 by Chaz Kemp

Amazon Kindle Edition Link: https://amzn.to/36Z8GNT

Dance of the Snowflakes credited to the Royal Ballet

Author photo: Marcy Weiske Jordan

G. S. Norwood is the younger of two sisters behind the independent publishing company, Weird Sisters Publishing.  She has spent the past thirty-seven years getting paid to put words on paper, including work as a reporter, feature writer, and composer of program and liner notes for the Dallas Winds.  Deep Ellum Pawn is her first published fiction. 

Big D, Little a, Double L - A - S!

The winner of Edith Maxwell's JUDGE THEE NOT is Mary D! Mary, please contact Edith at edithmax at Google mail.

JULIA SPENCER-FLEMING: Howdy, pards. We're not fixin' to brag, but we've got news. You're going to want to mosey on up to the bar and make your reservations right away, because the Jungle Reds are coming to Dallas!

That's right: not two, not four, but all seven Reds will be boot scootin' and line dancin'- okay, my Texas lingo has just shorted out picturing Rhys boot scootin'.  The whole lot of us will be at Bouchercon in Dallas, this year, and it will be the first time since 2012 you've been able to see the whole crew together. Here to help get out the details is my Imaginary Friend!

Imaginary Friend: Julia, I'm so excited about the chance to meet all the Reds in person! Are you going to have one of your wildly popular, hysterically funny game show panels? 

Julia: Yes, we are, Imaginary Friend! This year, we're playing "Who Wants to be a Mysteryaire?" Everyone in the audience will have a chance to be part of the lifeline team for each of the Reds, as we pit two teams against one another, competing to see who knows the most mystery book, movie, and author-related trivia. We'll have categories like "Which Red?" and "Pets in Mysteries" and "Where's the Body?" among others.

Imaginary Friend: That sounds like a blast. Can I do anything to help?

Julia: I'm glad you asked that, Imaginary Friend. We'd love all our Red friends and family to email - don't put them in the comments! - possible questions to me at juliaspencerfleming at Google mail.

Imaginary Friend: Why to you?

Julia: Because I'm the moderator.

Imaginary Friend: Is that an important position?

Julia: Very.

Imaginary Friend: I'm sold! When and where will you be presenting "Who Wants to be a Mysteryaire?"

Julia: We don't have a location yet, but it will be Thursday, October  31, at 2:30.

Imaginary Friend: Thursday?

Julia: Yes, at 2:30. It's Halloween, so please feel free to come in costume!

Imaginary Friend: Is the con even open Thursday afternoon?

Julia: YES IT IS, IMAGINARY FRIEND.

Imaginary Friend: Yeah, okay, if you say so. I may need a little incentive to get there that early. Are you giving away prizes or some such?

Julia: We are giving away an AWESOME prize for one lucky attendee: a Jungle Reds Gift Basket and an invitation to be a "Red for a Day" - an appearance on our blog, with all the bells and whistles!

Imaginary Friend: Wow, I could promote my book big time.

Julia: You mean your imaginary book?

Imaginary Friend: That's harsh. 

Julia: You're right. I'm sorry. I'm just a little touchy about the Thursday time slot.

Imaginary Friend: Better give everyone the details again, so they won't forget.

Come see the Jungle Red Writers in "Who Wants to be a Mysteryaire" at the Dallas Bouchercon, Thursday, October 31 (Halloween!) at 2:30!

Please send in your mystery-related trivia questions to Juliaspencerfleming at Google mail! 

One lucky attendee will win a big, bursting Jungle Reds basket and be selected as "Red for a Day!"

Dear readers, are you planning to come to Bouchercon? Do you have fond memories of past cons? Do you think my Imaginary Friend and I are spending too much time alone in the house? Hop on the comments and discuss!