I arrived Thursday midday to my hotel in downtown Indianapolis (that's the view from my room). Checked in to the overflow hotel, hiked it through a park and across the street to the Hyatt where the convention lives, registered, and got the lay of the land (below).
Started to see a bunch of folks I knew and was greeted by a bunch of folks I didn't. Yup, that's progress.
I didn't involve myself in much because soon I was to attend the Sisters in Crime Librarian's tea. This was another brilliant idea from SinC (and they have many, including a Library Grant of $1000 to be given to the librarians who can come up with ways that SinC has helped/inspired them). The idea of the tea was to introduce writers to librarians, commado style. We brought copies of our signed books and left them on a table for the librarians to scoop up at the end of the event. In between, it was a bookmark fest (left). They were flying across the tables like shrapnel (where am I getting these combat metaphors?) Anyway, there were about 100 librarians there, if I heard them correctly, and almost as many writers. We each stood up and gave a very brief spiel, and then sat down to a high tea of sorts.
Then Charlaine Harris moderated a panel of library lovers: S.J. Rozan, Nancy Pickard, Carolyn Hart, and Eve Sandstrom (below right). A very worthwhile event.
After that, I had just enough time to get back to the Hyatt for the Macavity, Barry, Crimespree, and Derringer Awards. I'm sure you can find all the results on other websites (as I should have posted them last night to be timely) but didn't. I didn't win for the Sue Feder Memorial Historical Mystery Award, (Rhys Bowen won it) but I guess we can say "next time!" The nomination was a thrill and it was certainly nice to be included with that august crowd.
Afterwards, I took my agent Joshua Bilmes on his continuing pilgrimage to visit Borders. Yes, folks, inexplicably, he has an ongoing love affair with these bookstores, and last night's foray was number 211. I got to watch him in action as he checked the stock and faced the books outward. Not mine, mind you. Borders isn't carrying my books. But Charlaine's and another of his sci fi clients who is doing quite well, were a presence at Borders as well as the Barnes & Noble we visited.
It was 10:30 by the time I got back to my room and thought I should get to bed since the Sisters in Crime breakfast came early at 7:30 the next morning (below). The "seal of office" was passed on to the incoming president and I visited again with sisters and guppies (the Great UnPublished online sisters--a great group that I find impossible to leave). After the breakfast was my panel, More Noir Than You Are with moderator Frankie Baily, and panelists Christa Faust, Victor Gischler, Charlie Newton, and me. A funny, informative, standing room only panel, where everyone seemed to enjoy themselves. People came up after and bought my books because they said how much they enjoyed it (and we each read a slice of our novels and others commented how interesting mine sounded and based their purchases on that. Something to think about, you moderators).
After signing--and though I didn't have a line of folks like some of the others, I had a steady stream--I sauntered over to the agent and editor panel, where my own wonderful editor at St. Martin's, Keith Kahla, was moderating. My agent Joshua was also on the panel, along with publisher Michael Pietsch, Kelley Ragland, and agent David Hale Smith. (Funny, every time I see agent panels, they always have people who rejected one of my manuscripts. Well, after fourteen years, what do you expect?)
Ragland said that she, as an editor, isn't necessarily looking for something that will be a bestseller right away. The "range of possiblity is more exciting," she said, as did most all the panelists. "Passion" was the by word; were they passionate about a book? Could they build readership with this author?
When Keith asked what is the most challenging aspect about publishing, Pietsch remarked that it was getting a book noticed in the "enormous noise of the industry." A case of incredible choices for consumers. The internet offers amazing possibilities for viral marketing, if this can be harnessed properly. But Joshua said he worried about the threat of file sharing, that which plagues the music industry and nearly brought it to its knees.
It was a good panel, one that was probably particularly good for those writers starting out.
Afterwards, it was time for the Guppies lunch at Buca di Beppo, which has swelled from twenty Guppies to...well, more than twenty. A quirky Italian place with too much good food. Didn't go to anything after that as I needed to get some business done and to get ready for the Shamus awards tonight. Nominee or winner? It's already been a done deal for months (I otta know. I judged the best hardcover Shamus category a while ago. And my lips are sealed!) We shall see tonight!
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