I am very excited to be travelling to St. Louis tomorrow to go to Bouchercon 2011,the Spirits of St. Louis–the Sisters in Crime annual conference bringing together mystery writers and readers for four great days of interaction.
The hotel, Renaissance St. Louis Grand, looks fabulous. I’ll be sharing a room with my good friend, mystery and true crime writer Kathryn Casey. Our biggest problem is deciding which of the many break-out sessions we want to attend.
If you are going to Bouchercon, too, be sure to check out our panels. On Thursday at 10 am, Kathryn joins Neal Baer, Connie Dial, Matt Hilton, Morley Swingle and moderator Michael Black for No Way To Treat a Body: Crime investigation from the front line.
At 11:30 am on Friday, I’ll be talking about how true crime informs my fiction in She’s Not There: Writing from the Headlines with Karen Olsen, Pam Callow, Ryan David Jahn along with moderator Kathleen Ryan, my longtime Twitter pal.
On Saturday at 4, I’ll join other Severn House authors for a book signing at Mystery Mike’s in the book room.
It will be exciting to finally meet face-to-face with some of the writers I’ve come to know online over the years as well as those whom I’ve come to know through reading their books. I am as much of a mystery book fan as I am a mystery writer. And of course, it will be a delight to be among a group of people who love books.
I hope I get a chance to talk a walk down to the famed golden arches and peek inside the historic courthouse. I’d also like to pay a visit to Left Bank Books. I stopped and signed some books there the last time I was in St. Louis. Finding the time will be tricky but I’m going to try.
If you’re going to Bouchercon 2011, please find me and introduce yourself. Can’t wait to get there!