Conventional Wisdom

Guest Post by Marcia Talley

Looks like 2013 will be a banner year for Sisters in Crime members who have the time and inclination to attend a mystery-related conference or convention. Whether you’re a published author or an aspiring one, a mystery fan or a publishing industry professional, you should find a conference to suit you among the popular events listed below.


Love Is Murder
Chicago, IL • February 1–3
This forum allows writers and readers to further their knowledge of writing, publishing, and the business of book production. David J. Walker will be local guest of honor; Lee Goldberg, Bob Mayer, and Michael Harvey are featured authors. www.LoveIsMurder.net

Sleuthfest on Saturday
Sarasota, FL • February 16
Rescue your manuscript, your book, your career. Hands-on workshop led by bestselling authors Elaine Viets and Kristy Montee (P.J. Parrish).
Craft-oriented panels, e-book presentation, agent/editor presentation and pitch sessions. www.mwaflorida.org/sleuthfest.htm

Book ‘Em North Carolina
Lumberton NC • February 23
The second writers conference and book fair at Robeson Community College will host more than 75 authors and publishers for book signings, panel discussions, and more. www.BookEmNC.org

Left Coast Crime
Colorado Springs CO • March 21–24
“Where murder is the last resort” is for readers, writers, librarians, and other mystery and thriller enthusiasts. Craig Johnson and Laura Lippman will be guests of honor; David Corbett, toastmaster; Parnell Hall, “Last Resort Troubadour”; Tom and Enid Schantz, fan guests of honor; Stephen J. Cannell, ghost of honor. www.LeftCoastCrime.org/2013

2013 Edgar Symposium
New York, NY • May 1
Craft-oriented panels presented by leading crime writers and Edgar-award nominees. Grand master interview. Details TBA. www.mysterywriters.org

Malice Domestic 25

Bethesda MD • May 3–5

The conference honoring the traditional mystery will feature Laurie R. King, guest of honor; Laura Lippman, toastmaster; Aaron Elkins, lifetime achievement; Carolyn Hart, Amelia Award; Peter Robinson, international guest of honor; Cindy Silberblatt, fan guest of honor; Dick Francis, Malice remembers. www.MaliceDomestic.org

Festival of Mystery at Oakmont
Oakmont, PA • May 6
Mystery Lovers Bookshop sponsors this popular annual multi-author event. Book signings and author interviews. www.mysterylovers.com/books/events

Nancy Drew Conference
Boston/Somerville, MA • May 28 – June 2

Calling all fans of our favorite girl sleuth, Nancy Drew. This year’s theme books are #27, The Secret of the Wooden Lady and #83, The Case of the Vanishing Veil. Field trips, ghost tours, parties, book exchanges and merchandise. www.ndsleuths.com/ndsconventions.html

Crimefest
Bristol UK • May 30–June 2
The annual convention draws top crime novelists, readers, editors, publishers and reviewers from around the world and gives delegates the opportunity to celebrate the genre in an informal atmosphere. Robert Goddard is the featured guest author/toastmaster. Also featured are Lindsey Davis, Jeffery Deaver, Sophie Hannah, David Hewson, Peter James, Simon Kernick, Denise Mina, Dana Stabenow and many more. www.CrimeFest.com

California Crime Writers
Pasadena CA • June 22–23
LA-SinC and Southern Chapter of Mystery Writers of America co-sponsor this biennial event geared to emerging and established mystery writers. Sue Grafton and Elizabeth George will be keynote speakers. www.CCWConference.org

Thrillerfest VIII
New York NY • July 10–13
ThrillerMasters Anne Rice and R. L. Stine; Spotlight Guests Michael Connelly, T. Jefferson Parker, and Michael Palmer; and Silver Bullet Award Recipient Steve Berry will highlight the event. www.thrillerfest.com

Book Passage Mystery Writers Conference
Corte Madera, CA • July 25-28
Editors, agents, and publishers share with participants what they need to know to get published. Authors offer classes on setting, dialogue, suspense and point of view. Panels of detectives, forensic experts, and other crime-fighting professionals provide invaluable information that allows writers to put realism into their work.
Details TBA. http://bookpassage.com/mystery-writers-conference

Theaksons Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival, (AKA Harrogate)
Harrogate UK • July 18–21
Chair Val McDermid will be joined by Special Guests Kate Atkinson, Charlaine Harris, Susan Hill, and Ruth Rendell interviewed by Jeanette Winterson. http://harrogateinternationalfestivals.com/crime/

Deadly Ink
New Brunswick, NJ • August 2 -4
Hank Phillippi Ryan is Guest of Honor; Rosemary Harris is Toastmaster; Fan Guest of Honor is Bob Daniher. www.deadlyink.com

St Hilda’s Crime and Mystery Weekend
Oxford, UK • August 16-18

P.D. James Birthday Celebration

“From Here to Eternity: The Present and Future of Crime Fiction.” Now in its twentieth year, this classic conference at St Hilda’s College in Oxford, England features Jill Paton Walsh as Guest of Honor/Conference Lecturer. Other speakers include P.D. James, Val McDermid, Peter Robinson, Andrew Taylor, Frances Fyfield, Martin Edwards, Penny Evans, and Tom Harper/Edwin Thomas. After dinner speakers are Bernard Knight and Priscilla Masters. Natasha Cooper will chair. There is no website, as generally this conference has flourished through simple word of mouth. To get added to the mailing list or to request a booking form, contact Eileen.Roberts@st-hildas.oxford.ac.uk.

Scene of the Crime
Wolfe Island, Ontario, Canada • August 17
Wolfe Island — the largest of the Thousand Islands – hosts this mystery conference featuring author panels, readings, discussions, a writing workshop by Barbara Franklin, a coffee and muffin breakfast, full lunch (including church lady pie!) and their famous church supper. The 2013 Grant Allen award for contributions to Canadian crime and mystery writing will be awarded to Andrew Pyper, author of LOST GIRLS, THE GUARDIANS, and the forthcoming DEMONOLGIST. Other authors attending include Ian Hamilton, Janet Bolin, Linda Wiken/Erika Chase, and Gloria Ferris. www.sceneofthecrime.ca

Killer Nashville
Nashville, TN • August 22-25
This conference offers over 60 sessions and 7 session tracks (general writing, genre specific writing, publishing, publicity & promotion, forensics, screenwriting, sessions for fans); manuscript critiques (fiction, nonfiction, short story, screenplay, marketing, query); a mock crime scene for you to solve; networking with bestselling authors, agents, editors, publishers, attorneys, publicists, and representatives from law and emergency services. www.killernashville.com

The Writers Police Academy
Jamestown, NC • September 5-8
Hands-on, interactive and educational experience writers can use to enhance their understanding of all aspects of law enforcement and forensics. This conference features real police, fire, and EMS training at an actual police academy. Top instructors and experts! In 2013, the registration fee will be partially underwritten for Sisters in Crime members. www.writerspoliceacademy.com

Bloody Scotland Crime Writing Festival
Stirling, Scotland • September 13-15
The best of Scottish crime fiction featuring fifty authors.www.bloodyscotland.com

Creatures, Crimes & Creativity
Baltimore, MD • September 13-15

A literary conference designed to gather readers and writers of mystery, suspense, thriller, horror, sci-fi, fantasy and steam punk. It will present three days of panels and workshops of interest to both writers and fans. The main objective is to provide opportunities for authors and fans to meet and mingle, chat and network, and strengthen the bond between the creators of genre fiction and those who enjoy reading it. There will be presentations from two impressive key note speakers (Jeffrey Deaver and Christopher Golden) and interviews with two inspiring local special guest authors (John Gilstrap and Trice Hickman).http://creaturescrimesandcreativity.com

Agatha Christie Festival
Torquay, UK • September 15-22
The English Riviera transforms itself into the murder mystery capital of the country, with ladies and gents in their period finery immersing themselves in tea parties, theatre, dinners on steam trains and vintage bus tours in honor of the Queen of Crime, who was born in Torquay on 15th September 1890. Garden parties to die for, lunches at Burgh Island, exclusive Twilight Tours of Christie’s home, Greenway, and plenty of Devon Cream Teas. http://www.englishriviera.co.uk/agathachristie/agatha-christie-festival

SinC Into Great Writing! Workshop
Albany NY • September 18
"CREATE" Your Writing Career is the title of this year's pre-Bouchercon SinC into Great Writing Workshop. Cathy Pickens will lead the session on the creative process, including developing, learning to tap into creativity more deeply, and producing creative work more readily. Robert Dugoni will lead the session on selling your novel. More information and registration form coming in Spring. www.sistersincrime.org/sincintogreatwriting


Bouchercon 2013
Albany NY • September 19–22
Honorees at the world mystery conference include Sue Grafton for lifetime achievement, P. C. Doherty as international guest of honor, Tess Gerritsen as American guest of honor, Steve Hamilton as toastmaster, and Chris Aldrich and Lynn Kaczmarek as fan guests of honor. www.Bcon2013.com

Magna cum Murder Crime Writing Festival
Indianapolis, IN • October 25-27
This year, the conference will be held in Indianapolis (rather than Muncie) at the historic Columbia Club on Monument Circle. Guest of Honor, Steve Hamilton. Dinner speaker, Hank Phillipi Ryan. http://cms.bsu.edu/academics/centersandinstitutes/ebball/magnacummurder

New England Crime Bake
Dedham, MA • November 8-10
Details TBA. www.crimebake.org/index.htm

Crime and Justice Festival
Melbourne, Victoria, Australia • November 15-17
The public, writers, social commentators, judicial luminaries and the legal profession come together to both celebrate and promote contemporary writings in the fields of justice and human rights, and to overlay these discussions with guest writers in the genre of crime fiction. www.crimeandjusticefestival.com/crimeandjusticefestival/Home.html

Know of a crime or mystery conference I haven’t mentioned? Leave us a comment!

Marcia Talley is the Agatha and Anthony award-winning author of the Hannah Ives mysteries including All Things Undying and The Last Refuge. Book twelve in the series, Deadly Passage, will be published in the summer of 2013. She is a past president of Sisters in Crime. www.marciatalley.com

California Crime Writers: A Writing Craft Report

By Jackie Houchin

[Originally published at jackiehouchin.com]

Although I don't actually write crime fiction (I read and review it), I took the Writing Craft workshops at the California Crime Writers Conference, all taught by an impressive lineup of top-notch writers.

"Grammar for Dummies, Part I," presented by author/copy editor June Casagrande, was a fact-filled session that tested our knowledge (in a 66-example quiz), surprised us by revealing many common errors and challenged us to use the best reference manuals (Chicago Manual of Style, Merriam Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, and Garner's Modern American Usage).

In "Part II," June explained basic sentence structures (simple, compound, complex), showed many examples of each and powered through 16 specific tips for improving our sentences.

"Cut back on commas!" she said. "I'd rather be in a room with a roaring drunk than see too many commas and semicolons."

Oh, that our elementary school teachers were so informative and fun!

"Crime writers are not expected to be perfect in grammar," she said, "but they do need to come off as professionals." Her workshops and "keeper" handouts will help both newbie and seasoned writers to do just that.

"What's the purpose of dialogue?" asked author Gary Phillips in his "How to Talk" workshop. He picked up a marker, held it poised over a pad clipped to a tripod and looked at his audience.

"To create characters," said one attendee, breaking the ice for further suggestions.

"To move the story along."

"To convey information."

As others spoke, Phillips distributed a handout with snippets of dialogue by several well-known authors.

"Who will volunteer to read the first page?" he asked.

Attendees read aloud paragraphs by Robert B. Parker, Laura Lippman and SJ Rozan, then discussed style, technique and ratio of dialogue to narration.

"There are two purposes for dialogue," Phillips stated,"... to service the plot (summing up information to speed the plot forward) and to reveal characters (the emotional stuff)."

He challenged us to write a scene "about two characters who were high school friends, an ex-prisoner and a college grad, meeting up again for some reason."

Some really good results were then read aloud and critiqued.

In a bit of humorous advice, SJ Rozan told attendees of her "How to Avoid the Sagging Middle" workshop to: "Write 40,000 words of beginning, then start writing the ending."

After the laughter subsided, she taught specifics on how to deal with that most important part of a story.

"What you do depends on the type of problem you have. Are you completely lost? Or have you 'hit a wall' with no place for your characters to go?

"If you are completely lost, you can ... kill someone or discuss your problem with your editor. Write a 'reverse outline' from where you are stuck back to the beginning to see what's missing. Or remember why you wanted to write this book (the theme).

"If you are up against a wall with your characters, you can - on Raymond Chandler's advice - 'Have a guy come in with a gun.' In other words, think outside the box, conjure up five of the most bizarre things that could happen that are not part of the plot (a UFO lands ... a dog runs through with something weird in its mouth ...).

"Trust your subconscious. Offer it some ideas to work out. Remember what your character knows (not you as writer) and think what she would logically do next."

And finally, "If you give up in the middle, you'll never get another one done."

Juliet Blackwell had us take a cold hard look at our commitment to writing in her "Get Over It" motivation workshop by asking, "How badly do you want to write? What is your true writing goal? To be published... make money... get famous? How important is that goal to you - and what are you willing to give up to get there?"

She showed us practical ways to stop sabotaging ourselves and encouraged us by saying, "Young adults are reading a lot right now. They'll be adults soon and they'll want to read your books."

Jan Burke's "Bad Guys and Side Kicks" was another session packed with helpful advice.

"Start with the villain," was her opening comment.

"Why? Well, consider what a mystery is – a whodunnit – a who done it?"

He's the source of tension and conflict. Figure out what he wants and why, and get him into the story quickly.

"Readers learn a lot about the protagonist from the villain."

The victim is also important - and not just a "dead body." Make sure you show the reason why the villain chose this victim. Consider the seven deadly sins. The kind of villain - and his means of killing - depends on the genre. Is it a cozy, a thriller, a classic detective? What drives the villain (revenge, notoriety, fear of discovery, unusual appetite)?

Run out of ways the killer can threaten? Ask what scares you. Brainstorm 50 scary things that don't necessarily cause death (a flushing toilet in the middle of the night).

Other characters need to be tied to the victim, too. Sidekicks can't solve the crime, but they can inform the sleuth, inform the reader, accidentally mislead, have a sense of humor and provide a person the sleuth can discuss the case with.

Burke's best writing advice was to "find three books you love and three books you hate. Study them to see how/why the bad ones failed and the subtle ways the good ones succeeded."

In a "Keynote Dialogue" with Denise Hamilton (Okay, I deviated from the craft tract one time because I was a little afraid of Dorothy Howell's "Love and Sex" workshop), SJ Rozan talked about writing rituals (she needs her mug of Queen Anne tea first), word count (she likes 750-1,000 words per day), brainstorming and spare writing.

"Words are powerful. You don't need that many of them," she said.

Rozan also candidly confessed, "Someday I want to write a James Michener epic with multiple POVs, maybe not even a crime novel."

The wildly entertaining Kerry Madden, in "Understanding the Story Arc," advised us to "get the memories down" and "write through the fear."

She also said, "Don't worry about plot, just write the story and the plot will take care of itself."

This made sense when I remembered SJ Rosen's description of plot. It's the "car" that takes your story to the end - how it all happens. Story is the "journey" of your characters - what the book is about. If the plot isn't working, get a new "car."

Too soon, the conference and the weekend were over. Other writers took the Business, Matters of Crime, and Nuts & Bolts tracks and went home just as determined to put what they'd learned into their writing. Many also left with promises from agents to read their work. All were encouraged by the talented authors who freely shared their knowledge.

"Writing should be a pleasure," said T. Jefferson Parker. "Read something wonderful, something that makes you happy and edifies you. Then go write."






Jackie Houchin is a freelance writer, book reviewer, and theatre critic. She’s a member of Sisters in Crime, Mystery Writers of America and California Writers Club.

The 'Don Knotts Golden Donut Short Story Contest' Seeks Entries

This week, the Writers' Police Academy (WPA) announced that the Don Knotts Golden Donut Short Story Contest is open for entries.

The contest is seeking short stories of exactly 200 words (including the title) about the photograph published here and on the WPA website. The photo was taken by Sunday Kaminski, a Maryland-based photographer whose work has appeared in shows, exhibits and publications including Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine.

The entry guidelines:
-Use exactly 200 words, including the title.
-The image in the photograph must be the main subject of the story.
-The story must be polished and complete (with a beginning, middle and a twist of an ending).
-All stories must be submitted electronically.
-The submission deadline is midnight, August 19, 2011.
-A $20 entry fee must accompany each entry. The proceeds go to the Writers' Police Academy fund to benefit the Guilford Technical Community College criminal justice foundation.

For detailed submission guidelines, go to the WPA website and click on Short Story Contest in the blue menu ribbon at the top of the screen.

The contest winner will receive the Don Knotts Golden Donut Award sponsored by the High Point (North Carolina) Public Library and Krispy Kreme. The award will be presented at the Writers' Police Academy banquet on Saturday, Sept. 24.

The contest is open to everyone. Registration and attendance at the Writers' Police Academy is not required to participate.


**Photograph by Sunday Kaminski. The image may not be copied, reproduced or used in any manner without the express written permission of Sunday Kaminski.

SinC Extends Member Discount for Writers' Police Academy

Sisters in Crime is extending the member discount for SinC members attending the Writers' Police Academy taking place Sept. 23 to 25, 2011, near Greensboro, North Carolina.

The offer, originally scheduled to end on June 16, was extended due to its popularity. SinC members are now eligible for the deeply-discounted registration fee of $100 throughout the entire registration period of the conference. SinC national will pay the balance of the $255 registration.

If you’re not a Sisters in Crime member, you can sign up for a SinC membership to receive the discount. The annual membership fee for a SinC professional membership is $40. For more information on membership, go to www.sistersincrime.org.

The Writers' Police Academy provides a hands-on interactive experience designed to help writers increase their understanding of all aspects of law enforcement and forensics.

The three-day training program offers access to active-duty police instructors, an on-site working fire station and working police, fire and EMS equipment.

Sisters in Crime will sponsor a mix-and-mingle reception on Friday, Sept. 24, from 7 to 9 p.m. The get-together will be followed by a “night owl” presentation by Lee Lofland, author of Police Procedure and Investigation, a bestseller in the Writers Digest “Howdunit” series.

To register, or for more detailed information on the Writers' Police Academy, go to writerspoliceacademy.com.

Writers’ Police Academy: SinC will pay more than half your way

Sisters in Crime members can attend the Writers’ Police Academy, to be held Sept. 23 to 25, 2011 near Greensboro, North Carolina, for a deeply-discounted registration fee of $100. SinC national will pay the balance of members’ $255 registration.

Act quickly to take advantage of this offer, which is in effect until June 15, 2011.

If you’re not a Sisters in Crime member, you can sign up for a SinC membership to receive the discount. The annual membership fee for a SinC professional membership is $40.

The Writers’ Police Academy, helmed by SinC member Lee Lofland, provides a hands-on interactive experience designed to help writers increase their understanding of all aspects of law enforcement and forensics.

The three-day training program offers access to active-duty police instructors, an on-site working fire station and working police, fire and EMS equipment. Law enforcement professionals participating in the event include ATF special agent Rick McMahan; Lt. Josh Morris of the Central Point Police Department, assigned to the FBI as the commander of the Southern Oregon High-Tech Crimes Task Force/FBI Cyber Crimes Task Force; Dave Pauly, retired from the U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Command as a Special Agent-in-Charge/Commander and forensic science officer, and others.

Exhibits and demonstrations will focus on crime lab work, firefighting equipment, command post vehicles and motorcycles, as well as the work of dive teams, the state police, K-9 teams and hazardous material teams.

Sessions and workshops will examine the use of force, 3-D laser modeling, bloodstain patterns and cold cases, including how cases go cold and the realities of homicide units. Dr. Katherine Ramsland will offer a special presentation on “Psychological Sleuthing and the Tools of Forensic Psychology.”

The keynote speech will be presented by award-winning author Christopher Reich, the author of eight espionage thrillers. His most recent work, Rules of Betrayal, is the third installment in the series featuring Dr. Jonathan Ransom, a surgeon who previously worked with Doctors Without Borders, and his wife, Emma, a secret agent.

Sisters in Crime will sponsor a mix-and-mingle reception on Friday, Sept. 24, from 7 to 9 p.m. The get-together will be followed by a “night owl” presentation by Lee Lofland, author of Police Procedure and Investigation, a bestseller in the Writers Digest “Howdunit” series.

To register, or for more detailed information on the Writers’ Police Academy, go to www.writerspoliceacademy.com.

SinC Into Great Writing: Mapping the New World of Publishing

Sisters in Crime presents its annual “SinC Into Great Writing” seminar on Wednesday, Sept. 14, from 1 to 9 p.m. at the Holiday Inn Select in St. Louis, Mo.

This year, SinC Into Great Writing focuses on navigating the changing landscape of publishing. The official title of the workshop is “SinC Into Great Writing: Mapping the New World of Publishing (Or, How to Succeed in a Business That’s Really Trying).”

The day includes speakers and sessions focused on practical professional development topics for crime fiction writers.

Keynote speaker David Wilk, Chief Executive Officer of Booktrix, a publishing and marketing services consultancy, will speak on “Planning for a Long Career in a Changing Industry.”

The afternoon programs include:

• Traditional, Small Press, Self-Publishing, E-books. Or…? Making the Decision That’s Right for You

• Everything You Need to Know About Getting Your Book Into (or Back In) Print, and Were Dying to Ask

• Look, Ma! I’ve Been Kindled: A Step-by-Step Guide to E-book Publication

The dinner speaker, New York Times bestselling author and Edgar Award winner Meg Gardiner, will talk about “Lying for a Living.” Meg is the author of the five-book Evan Delaney series and the three-book Jo Beckett series. Her most recent title is The Liar’s Lullaby, a Jo Beckett novel.

The after-dinner panel discussion, “Brazen Hussies Speak Out: Marketing Your Novel in an Electronic World” includes Gina Panittieri, President, Talcott Notch Literary, and Debbi Mack, author of the two-volume Sam McRae mystery series. The first book in Mack’s series, Identity Crisis, cracked the extended New York Times e-book bestseller list in March 2011 at number 35.

SinC Into Great Writing takes place the day before Bouchercon officially begins. For those attending Bouchercon, the Holiday Inn Select is two blocks from the Bouchercon conference hotel. Bouchercon registration is not required to attend this event.

Registration is $50 for Sisters in Crime members, or $150 for nonmembers. (The annual dues fee for national membership in SinC at the professional level is $45.)

To register online, go to http://sistersincrime.org/cde.cfm?event=351458 .

First Novel, First Malice

By Janice Hamrick

Before I finished my first novel, I thought that publication was the golden end of a very long and sometimes meandering journey. Just over a year ago, when I received that magic call telling me that my novel would be published, I thought I’d reached the far country. I rejoiced, I celebrated, I did the happy dance (and, trust me, you don’t want to see the happy dance). However, eventually euphoria wore off and it slowly dawned on me - I had no idea what to do next.

The post-contract process kept me occupied for a bit. I had edits and then copy edits. I started working on the second novel. But months began to pass, and I started to feel that I should be doing more.

I made a website and a Facebook page. I found and joined Sisters in Crime and started attending the monthly meetings. But I just had the nagging feeling that I should be doing more. I knew how to write. Now I needed to learn how to be a writer … and quickly. But how? I started asking around, and finally the only published author I knew answered with three simple words: “Go to Malice.”

So I went. I arrived at the Hyatt Regency Bethesda fairly late and the Malice registration desk had closed for the evening. On a whim, I decided to go to the hotel bar and have a glass of wine. And that’s when the magic of Malice began for me. Within five minutes of climbing onto that bar stool, two Malice attendees approached and asked me to join them.

The next person to walk up was a member of my own Sisters in Crime chapter in Austin – someone I knew only through email and couldn’t have found by myself if I’d searched all evening. Malice is full of such moments of serendipity.

The next days were even better. From Malice Go Round (speed dating for authors and fans) to fascinating panels where authors described their experiences, I started to learn what I needed to know. In the halls and in conference rooms, I met authors who offered tips and encouragement and who answered my questions about things from social media to signing autographs.

They gave me a solid glimpse of what waits for me, and I now have at least an inkling of ways to avoid the pitfalls and seize the opportunities. I also was privileged to meet the most wonderful fans – people who love to read mysteries and who work tirelessly to support the genre and reading in general. I’d arrived at the conference alone and wound up as part of an amazing community.

I came away from Malice with all my questions answered and with connections and friendships that I hope will last a lifetime. I could hardly lift my suitcase because it was so full of the books written by the fascinating people I’d met. New authors, experienced authors, friends, and fans. And I’m already looking forward to my second Malice.


Janice Hamrick is the winner of the 2010 Mystery Writers of America/Minotaur Books First Crime Novel competition for Death on Tour, the first novel in a series starring Texas high school history teacher Jocelyn Shore. Born in Oklahoma and raised in Kansas, Janice now lives in Austin, Texas, with her two daughters. When she is not writing, she spends her time traveling, planning to travel, or plotting murders (usually fictional).

Readers & Mystery Reading at the Popular Culture Association

By Barbara Fister

As I was saying, my panel at the Popular Culture Association Meeting in San Antonio focused on mystery readers.

First up, Mary Bendel-Simso and LeRoy Panek of McDaniel College in Maryland talked about an amazing project that anyone interested in the history of the mystery will want to check out: the Westminster Detective Library. They are documenting 19th century detective fiction published in the popular press, with the goal of making available online all short fiction dealing with detection published in the United States before Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s 1891 publication of “A Scandal in Bohemia.”

Crime stories were enormously popular and had a huge audience in newspapers and magazines. The trick is to find the old newspapers and comb through them for stories and poems. Their research shows that the mystery was a beloved genre long before most histories indicate, and includes some surprises such as the use of fingerprints in a story in 1861 and women detectives featuring in stories from the 1860s onward.

The second speaker was a dynamo named Katherine Clark, whose topic was “Who is the American Mystery Reader and Why Does it Matter?” For her dissertation research she surveyed more than 700 mystery readers, who she found tend to be avid readers, loyal fans of the genre, and devoted to it throughout their lives, starting in childhood. Unlike the readership for the romance genre, which tends to fall off in middle age, mystery readers are fans for life. She had fascinating things to say about readers and their tastes, as well as insights into the publishing industry. I was entrusted with keeping time for the panel, so was crushed when I had to give her the “five minute warning.” I could have listened to her for hours!

Finally, I spoke about Sisters in Crime, taking a look at its origins, reporting some of the findings of the Sisters in Crime/Bowker study of the mystery consumer, and sharing results from a member survey. I was fortunate beforehand to have the help of archivists at both Rutgers University, which houses the organization’s papers, and the Newberry Library in Chicago, which has a collection of Sara Paretsky’s papers, some of which deal with the formation of the organization. (It’s pretty exciting to get an e-mail with .pdfs of early memos and meeting minutes from our founding! Okay, I admit it, I’m a nerd.)

Looking back, I found that our mission remains remarkably consistent and that, in spite of progress, the issues that led to the founding of the group remain relevant. If you’re curious, you can read the paper here. The fact that Sara Paretsky was just about to be recognized as a Grand Master at the Edgar awards was a happy note on which to end my brief history.

At this conference, I was delighted to find a thriving and close-knit community of mystery fans who happen to be academics. Like most mystery fans, the members of the Mystery and Detective Fiction area of the association are welcoming and enthusiastic about the genre. I’ve already been unofficially declared a Sisters in Crime liaison to the group and will try to attend next year’s conference in Boston.

There will be opportunities for writers to participate, and plans are afoot for Frankie Bailey, our next president and a member of the Popular Culture Association, to be on the program. That reminds me: I suppose I should warn her.

Barbara Fister is the author of the Anni Koskinen mysteries. The most recent title in the series is Through the Cracks. She is an academic librarian and serves on the SinC board as Secretary.

Presenting 25 Years of Sisters in Crime to the Popular Culture Association

By Barbara Fister

I recently attended the national meeting of the Popular Culture Association in San Antonio, Texas where I gave a paper titled “Sisters in Crime at the Quarter Century: Advocacy, Community, and Change.”

I was on a panel with two other fabulous presentations, had a chance to attend other sessions organized by the wonderful andwelcoming Mystery and Detective Fiction section of the association -- and had the opportunity to hang out with some dedicated and smart fans of the genre.

This was my first experience of the Popular Culture Association meeting, and what a trip this gathering is! There are panels on film, fashion, fan studies and fan culture, or you can focus on pulp studies, punk culture, or even the vampire in literature, culture and film. Lest you think this some peculiar grab-bag of obsessions, well . .. it sort of is, but the obsessions are backed up with serious scholarship. And there’s plenty to think about when it comes to our favorite genre.

Among the sessions I attended were one on the armchair detective and mysteries with a strong sense of place. John Scaggs pointed out that there are a number of features of this kind of book: a focus on authenticity, local food and wine, the presence of a foreigner, conflict between tradition and change, and a picture postcard quality that sometimes conflicts with the ugliness of the crimes that arise from the setting. What was particularly fun for me was that he focused on Martin Walker’s Bruno Courrèges series, which we were just discussing in a reading group that I belong to. It gave me lots of ideas to bring back to our discussion.

Barbara Emrys talked about the cross-genre mixing of horror and supernatural elements with the conventions of the mystery genre demonstrated in Crimes by Moonlight, an MWA short story anthology edited by Charlaine Harris. One of my favorite take-away points from the ensuing discussion was when Barbara Emrys compared the detective in the serial killer story to the archetypal slayer of monsters. It was one of those light bulb moments.

Among the events organized by the Mystery and Detective Fiction group was a presentation by Susan Wittig Albert, who gave a fascinating talk about her start as an academic, teaching college, becoming an administrator and rising to university vice president before turning full-time to writing.

She got her heart’s desire when she was hired to reincarnate Carolyn Keene by writing new adventures for Nancy Drew. But she was also happy to create her own series character in China Bayles and to write additional series, including the Cottage Tales of Beatrix Potter, the new Darling Dahlias series, and with her husband Bill Albert, a Victorian series written under the name Robin Paige.

She described her busy calendar writing and promoting her work (emphasizing her start as a “production writer” – though I would call her a productive writer) and gave a stirring short history of the genre since 1980, with a shout-out to Sisters in Crime. Yes, she is a member, and I notice her biography in Wikipedia features a photo of her wearing a Sisters in Crime t-shirt.

After that event, the incredibly welcoming people of the Mystery and Detective Fiction group went to dinner at Rosarios, where we ate Tex Mex food, sipped Margaritas, and talked about mysteries. After that, a group went to do some sightseeing and get ice cream, but I was wiped out and only made it as far as the plaza in front of the Alamo before having to call it a night.

My panel, “Readers Reading Mysteries,” was early the next morning, and in addition to my talk on Sisters in Crime, there was a fascinating presentation by Mary Bendel-Simso and LeRoy Lad Panek on the Westminster Detective Library and an extraordinary talk by Katherine Clark on “Who is the American Mystery Reader and Why Does it Matter?” But I think I’d better save this for another blog post.


Barbara Fister is the author of the Anni Koskinen mysteries. The most recent title in the series is Through the Cracks. She is an academic librarian and serves on the SinC board as Secretary.