~Post by MysteryPeople Crime Fiction Coordinator Scott M.
September 15th through 18th is the annual mystery conference Bouchercon. Named after book critic Anthony Boucher, who saw the literary merit of the genre, it is a conference where mystery writers mix with their fans. Whether you’re into hard boiled, cozy, thriller, historical, or any of the other sub genres, you can count on some of you favorites to be there. I was personally honored to have been asked by 2011 chairperson Jon Jordan of Crimespree magazine to help run the conference as “Stunt Coordinator.” I’m also psyched that it’s in my hometown of St. Louis. Not a bad idea to hold a convention dedicated to crime friction in the town where Stagger Lee shot Billy over his Stetson hat.
We have dozens of panels with up to six authors, scheduled for the mornings and afternoons. They’ll range from approach to the craft, to the state of the genre, to more lighthearted discussions with funny anecdotes. I’ll be moderating a panel that will focus on crime fiction that takes place in the West. It will be an eclectic mix with cozy writer Jackie King, traditional western author Larry Sweazy, Ann Parker, who writes a great series that takes place in 1880s Leadville, Colorado, and my buddy and creator of the Walt Longmire series Craig Johnson. I’ll also be doing a special evening panel: Bad Seed: Sex, Violence, and Bad Language; Everything That Makes A Book Great. The panel will focus on how authors use these rougher elements in their books. I’ve picked some of the funniest and smartest writers around to fill out this panel, and the cash bar in the room should make us even funnier and smarter.
The conference will combine its traditional events with new special events. We we will be having our silent auction that will support public libraries, and the annual basketball tournament where you can watch the diminutive SJ Rozan knock down anybody who gets in her way. Since we’re in the home of The Bowling Hall Of Fame, there will be a pin-splitting face off between teams of writers. Saturday night, we’ll hold our dance with Cruisin’, the sixties retro-band fronted by Max Allan Collins with any other musically inclined writers willing to sit in. Max created one of my favorite private eyes, Nate Heller, as well as one of my favorite crooks, Nolan. I can’t wait to meet him.
The co-chair of this Bouchercon 2011 was supposed to be David Thompson, the much loved manager of Houston’s Murder By The Book, who passed away unexpectedly last year. We’ve all put extra care and effort into making this a conference that he would be proud of.
It’s still not too late to sign up, so I hope to see you in St. Louis.
BookPeople 