Tucson Report

RHYS BOWEN: For those of you who are still knee deep in snow, I thought I should share some sunshine and warmth. This weekend I took part in the Tucson Festival of Books. For those of you who have never attended, it is huge! They reckon over 100,000 visit during the two days. It takes place at the University of Arizona with panels going on in all the various auditoriums and in tents along the mall. Hundreds of authors, ranging from children's writers, poets, science fiction, to cook books. There is a culinary tent with demonstrations. CSpan is there. And the mall is lined with booths: publishers, bookstores, non-profits, national parks.

Unfortunately I didn't have time to browse because I was given a full schedule, and let me tell you that it takes half an hour to walk from one end of the mall to the other. So on Saturday I had a signing at a booth, had to run back to meet my escort to be taken to my panel (at the other end again), then had to grab a bite for lunch before I was back at the other end to conduct a workshop on writing the historical mystery.

On Sunday the same sort of thing. I signed in the morning with Tess Gerritson whom I had never met, although we share the same agent.

Then a panel on women in wartime: with the fabulous Kate Quinn (of Alice Network fame) and Lynda Loigman whose new book is The Wartime Sisters

Packed house. Lots of good questions, and I learned so much. Kate's new book, just out this week, is called THE HUNTRESS. There is plenty of buzz about it. It features the Night Witches--an all female squadron of Russian  bomber pilots in WWII. They were called Night Witches because they used to cut the engine on their planes and coast in silently to drop their bomb, restart the engine and get out of there. So the Germans thought they sounded like witches on broomsticks. They would return to base, take ten minutes to refuel, reload and be off again. Over ten missions per night, seven days a week for three years. And only 27 percent of them were killed!

What a great story. And Lynda's was equally fascinating. Two sisters working in the Brooklyn Armory, which was  like a small town during the war, with all amenities, entertainment, gossip columns. One of the things I like about conferences and panels is that I always learn such a lot and come away with fabulous books to read.

The other thing I like is having time to catch up with dear friends. On Saturday night I had dinner with Cara Black and Kent Kruger. We sat outside, under the stars, and had Middle Eastern food. And laughed a lot. Perfect.

 Now it's back to work again. I'm so near the end of my first draft that it's hard to stop.
And by the way--everyone sold out of my new book, which was very nice!

I do hope this has brought a glimpse of sunshine to you! If you want to plan a winter escape next year, then you might want to consider this festival. I met a lot of people who had flown down for a week in Arizona, escaping from blizzards and cold.
 Which bookfairs have you attended?