The Beloved Spouse™
has commented more than once over the years about how little I drink, so it
seemed only right when I got back to the room a little after 1:30 Saturday
morning to shake her awake and say, “You’re always saying you’ve never seen me
drunk. Here’s your chance.” As might be expected, Friday’s night at the bar
placed the 8:30 Saturday panels in irretrievable jeopardy.
Saturday October
14
10:00 Anthony Best
Novel Nominees
Given this year’s
nominees, a good time was guaranteed, especially with Hank Phillippi Ryan as
moderator. No one disappointed. The highlights:
Reed Farrel Coleman
plays the movie of his book in his head then describes enough for the reader to
create his own.
Louise Penny didn’t
think her first book would be published, so all her decisions were made to
please herself. (Maybe this is why I don’t care for most best sellers: The
decisions are too obviously made to please the greatest number of people, of
which I am not one.)
Laura Lippman
understands she’s not going to write anything “new,” but sees her job as
engaging the reader who’s “read it all.” Plot is not enough. She’s always a
little embarrassed when people flatter her, doesn’t feel she’s deserving. She’s
always struck by the fact they gave her their time to read the book.
Laura Lippman: She
can’t write a better Mystic River
than Mystic River, but there are
other things she can do very well.
When Hank asked all
the panelists what they’re working on now, Louise Penny noted she’s busy
promoting next year’s Anthony Award winner, which came out last month.
(Actually I said that, not Louise. I do have to wonder if it’s time to rename
the best novel award in Louise’s honor and retire her from the pool. Give
someone else a chance.)
12:40 20 on the
20s: Joe Clifford (That’s right. A panel at 10 and the next at 12:40. So I ate
lunch and did a little shopping. Sue me.)
There are few more
fascinating people than Joe Clifford. Promoting his newest Jay Porter novel, he
also let slip plans for a book of the things his seven-year-old son Holden
says. Having followed Holden on Facebook since he was born (all right,
technically I’m friends with Joe, but Holden’s way more fun), this book
promises to be far more entertaining than Shit
my Dad Says.
In discussing Jay
and the inspiration for the novels, Joe uttered what might have been the best
bon mot of the conference: Teen angst is what happens when you realize the
things your parents taught you when they were your only source of information
are untrue.
1:00 Confined
Crimes: Small town settings – the advantages and limitations of using a smaller
stage for crimes.
With my Penns River
series set in a small town, this is always a destination panel for me. (Also a
soft spot in my heart, as a small town discussion in Cleveland broke my
Bouchercon panel cherry.) Lynn Cahoon made sure I wasn’t disappointed, leading
a sterling cast through a wide-ranging discussion.
Small town settings
appeal to Lori Roy because you can’t escape your past in a small town.
Eryk Pruitt: You’ll
never get better samples of small town dialog than at the local BBQ shop.
Lori Roy: Outsiders’
eyes can change everything. Bringing an outsider as the editor of the Boston Globe was what made the Spotlight story possible.
(Note to future
panelists: when you say something like, “I write character-driven fiction,” it
can’t help but sound like you’re saying your peers on the panel are hacks who write
cartoon characters.)
Eryk Pruitt talked
about the feeling of isolation in small towns. Spoke of taking a break from
work and seeing the grain elevator and water tower are the town’s perpetual
skyline, and how the banal and gossipy conversations never change, except for
the names. While everyone in town is close, they can feel isolated from the rest
of the world and end up thinking, “Is this all there is for me?”
Karin Salvalaggio learned
while researching a book that residents of Bozeman MT often left their doors
unlocked. This sometimes became an issue when college students, walking home
drunk, got tired and let themselves in to crash on strangers’ couches. (She’d
done so well on the liars’ panel the other day I had to ask her if this story
was bullshit.)
4:00 The Blue
Detectives: Police procedurals
Another typical
destination panel for me. The Penns River books are primarily procedurals, and
I scored a procedural panel in Raleigh. Caro Ramsey kept things moving and fun
with great rapport with her panel, especially Jeffrey Siger. Caro’s smart and
funny, but with her Scots accent she almost needs subtitles at times.
Andrew Case: “A
falling knife has no handle. Never try to catch it.” Used in real estate and
stocks when people try to time the bottom of a market.
Caro Ramsey:
Scottish police are unarmed except for batons and sarcasm. They’re taught to
engage in a non-threatening manner. She admits it works because they’re pretty
sure they’re dealing with a suspect who does not himself have a gun.
Jeffrey Siger’s pet
peeve with police stories is some writers’ need to wrap up every little detail.
Andrew Case’s is when
a non-cop breaks a bunch of rules to solve a case and never faces any
consequences because he was successful.
Jeffrey Siger: You
act differently when you carry a gun. (Not said as a good or bad thing or as a
political statement. Just an explanation why he doesn’t wear one even though
he’s qualified and has a permit.)
5:30 Noir is the
Beat-Up Black: You are compelled like a victim to a dark alley to attend this
panel, even knowing it can only end…
Noir has achieved
the status of pornography in the writing world: No one can define it, but
everyone knows what it is when they see it. (I’ll have more to say on that in a
few weeks.) Rob Brunet’s panel did yeoman’s work describing their own
definitions, begun by Rob quoting Gary Phillips: Noir is a doomed character on
a doomed path.
Christopher
Brookmyer: The level of violence that must appear onscreen should be tied to what
you need to show about the character.
Christopher
Brookmyer: Film can show what violence looks like but only books can describe
what it feels like.
Saturday evening
was spent on a fun dinner and drink (just one, thank you very much) with John
McFetridge and his lovely wife Laurie Reid; Seana Graham, Peter Rozovsky, Dave
McKee, and a gentleman whose name I apologize for not remembering. (John, if
you have it, please comment.) An early panel I wanted to see the next day would
be followed by lots of driving, so one drink was it for me.
Sunday, October
15
8:30 The Bodies
Politic: Political mysteries and how politics can lead to murder
Political thrillers
aren’t usually my cup of tea, but moderator Robin Spano and panelist Nik Korpon
are friends and I hate to blow off a day of any conference (I paid for the
whole thing, damn it), so I went. Good move. Robin nailed her first panel as
moderator and Nik was as good as expected. Other highlights:
Tom Rosenstiel: It’s
acceptable in Washington to lie to a microphone but not face-to-face to a
colleague.
Tom Rosenstiel:
Definition of an English spy thriller: Suddenly, nothing happened.
Tom Rosenstiel: The
political center in Washington meets privately and informally because to appear
publicly as anything other than pure invites a primary challenge.
Mark Greaney:
Reading David McCullouch’s book on John Adams shows what we’re going through
now is nothing new.
Cheryl L. Reed:
Other countries—such as Ukraine—have already dealt with their fake news crises.
We just have to figure ours out.
And so we were
done. Next time I’ll talk a little about the peripheral entertainment that made
the week such a rousing success, followed by a comparison of border agents of
various countries, namely Canada and the United States.
