Mystery Weekend Roundup for July 12, 2013

Marcus Sakey Talks Mystery at The Loft Conference

I missed the Loft Conference in April, which is a shame, because they invited award winning novelist Marcus Sakey to talk about the mystery novel. Marcus is not just a great mystery writer but is very generous by sharing what he's learned with other mystery writers.

Thanks to this video, you can gain some great insight on what it takes to be a successful writer. I've already watched it. It's a little under an hour, and better than anything else that's on TV tonight, that's for sure.

 

 

 

Local Appearances

 

Paul Ferrante will discuss his mystery novel, Last Ghost At Gettysburg, at the Fairfield Library on July 23rd in Fairfield, Connecticut. Just in time for the 150th anniversary of the battle that saved the Union.

 

Jenny Milchman will be at Foodies in Omaha, Nebraska to discuss her suspense novel, Cover of Snow, on July 21st, then off to Steamboat Springs, Colorado (July 24th) and Boise, Idaho (July 27th). More details can be found on her tour guide.

 

Craig Johnson, author of A Serpents Tooth, maintains an equally busy schedule, putting in appearances in Washingston and Oregon this month, appearing at Seattle Mystery and Elliott Bay in Seattle on July 13th and The Book Bin on July 13th.

Rosemary Harris, author of several deadly fun horticultural mysteries, including Pushing Up Daises, will appear at the Kent Memorial Library in Suffield, Connecticut on July 17th at 7 PM. Bring a shovel. There may be bodies buried in the garden.

 



 

Upcoming Mystery Conferences

 

Some great conferences coming up in the next couple of months. In California, Book Passage has it's mystery conference starting July 25th. The faculty features a who's who of mystery, including Alex Kava, Cara Black and Susan C. Shea.

 

And in New Brunswick, New Jersey,  Deadly Ink starts August 2nd, with guest of honor Hank Phillippi Ryan and toastmaster Rosemary Harris. 

 

North of the border, mystery fans and writers are gathering on an isolated island which is the birthplace of Canada's first crime writer, Grant Allen. The one day conference, The Scene of the Crime, starts August 17th on Wolfe Island. Frankly, it's worth going there just to brag to your friends. And bring your dramamine. The ferry is the only way on or off the island, so be early. Life jackets provided. Just in case, you know.

 

And you thought your weekend would be boring?

 

Don't Throw Out Those Old Comics! You May Have a Budding Author on Your Hands

 

Proving what every male has known since childhood, comic books are a vital and important part of our American heritage, and may provide inspiration for the next great mystery writer. Just ask Walter Mosley, who confesses that comics had a profound influence on his story telling abilities. According to the interview at Comic Book Resources, "They taught me about writing dialect and how a monster can also be a hero." One of his favorite comic super heroes, Spiderman, was one of mine also. Nice to know we have at least that much in common.

 

Read more about Mosley's favorite reading material at this earlier interview via the New York Times

MYSTERY WEEKEND ROUNDUP JUNE 14, 2013

Deadline Alert!

Submissions for the Book Passage Mystery Writers Scholarship ends today!! You still have a few hours (until 5 PM Pacific Time...which gives you East Coast writers some extra time) to submit via email a 1500 word fiction sample. More details:

2013 Conference Scholarship

One Mystery Writers Conference Scholarship will be awarded this year, including full conference tuition to the the 2013 conference (travel and accommodations not included). To be considered, please submit up to a 1500 word sample of your fiction writing, plus one paragraph about what this conference would mean to you in your writing life. The scholarship is sponsored by William C. Gordon, the author of The Chinese Jars and King of the Bottom.

Submissions must be received by 5:00 pm PST on Friday, June 14, 2013. Email submissions to bpconferences@bookpassage.com. The selected entry will be announced on our website and via an email to those who have submitted on Monday, July 1, 2013.

More on this mystery writers conference, which starts July 25th, is HERE.


More Conference News

• Thrillerfest starts in less than 30 days, featuring a heavy hitting lineup of guests, including Ann Rice, R L Stein and Michael Connelly. Kickoff on Wednesday, July 10 in New York City. Details and schedule can be found at their website.

• The Writer's League of Texas is hosting an Agents & Editors Conference on June 21-23rd in Austin, Texas.  This is the perfect place to make a pitch for that just finished novel.

• Hunt County Writers has a writer's retreat and conference July 5th and 6th in Middleburg, VA. Founded by a revolutionary soldier in 1787, Middleburg is the setting for a murder mystery published in 2005 by Jan Neuharth entitled The Hunt.

• Las Vegas is hosting the Public Safety Writers Conference from July 11 to the 14th. The large number of police, emergency personnel and firefighters makes this a great conference for those who want to inject realsim into their crime fiction. And by joining the Public Safety Writers Association, you can get a one-time free manuscript review by one of their published authors.

Writers Tip: Even if you aren't attending, check out the schedules of as many conferences as possible to see the latest bios for agents and publishers. It's a great way to see what categories they represent and helps narrow your search.


Podcast: Florida Crime Fiction and the New Face of America

Join On Point for a great podcast broadcast with guests Adam Gopnik (the New Yorker) and Oline Cogdill (book reviewer from Mystery Scene). They discuss the rise of Florida and Noir Crime Fiction



Contest News

Compliments of the MWA website comes this tidbit for flash fiction fans: a “Mysterious Photograph” contest appears in each issue of Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine, where you can submit your 250 word story inspired by the photograph they post. Winning stories are published in a later issue.

Mystery Times 2013 short story contest is accepting entries until July 15th. The top two winners will receive a new Kindle. All winners will be announced in August and receive publication in the book, scheduled for a November 2013 release.


Before you toss that wretched first sentence that won't stand the light of day, consider submitting it to the Bulwer-Lytton Fiction Contest. Compose the worst opening sentence to the worst novel ever written and send it in! Deadline is June 30th. Check out the link, where www stands for "wretched writers welcome". Winner receives a pittance and the admiration of their jealous friends on facebook.




Obits

Just saw this in the latest SINC Quarterly Newsletter from June. Robin Hathaway, mystery writer and member of SINC and MWA, died February 16, 2013. She was living proof that it's never too late to start writing, putting pen to paper only in her 50s. At age 64, when most people are thinking of retirement, her first novel, The Doctor Digs A Grave, won the Malice Domestic Award from St. Martin's Press. A year later, she won an Agatha. You can read more in her obituary from philly.com. She will be sorely missed.