by Sandra Murphy
On October 31 I flew to Dallas for the 50th anniversary of Bouchercon, the country’s largest mystery conference for readers, writers, editors, and publishers. Four days of panels, meet-ups in the halls and lobby, and late nights left me feeling exhausted but exhilarated.
Each hour brought a wide selection of panels, often a hard choice to make. Thursday started with breakfast at 7 am, multiple panels beginning at 9:30 am, plus a book signing with James Patterson (extra cost). The day’s offerings included why write mysteries, self-publishing, using real-life cases in fiction, interesting ways to kill people, snappy dialogue, teenage sleuths, don’t quit your day job, crossing genres, research, red herrings, short story vs. book length, maintaining the pace in a thriller, paranormal mysteries, and love interests. Those are only a few of the panels up to 5 pm.
More than 1,800 of us basically took over the hotel by booking 800 rooms (overflow at other hotels) and using all of the 160,000 square feet of meeting spaces. I did see two wedding parties wander through. It must have felt disconcerting for the wedding guests to overhear murder plots in the elevator, but they all managed to escape unharmed, although perhaps traumatized.
I met people I knew only from Facebook, hoping they looked like their photos. Our conference ID hung at about waist length, which avoided awkward placement, but it was hard to focus in time to say, “I know you!” when we passed in the halls. Claiming a spot in the lobby was a good move. People stopped by for a moment or an hour, talked writing, books, short stories, and their work in progress. At least four people fleshed out complete stories for the current anthology I’m editing, hoping to be included (60s music with a crime, submissions now closed).
Water and granola bars were plentiful and free, a nice alternative to hotel prices for snacks and meals.
Friday’s offerings included writing supporting characters, police procedurals, Southern charm, adapting a book for the small (or big) screen, Western mysteries, marketing, thriller series, deadly poisons, short fiction, diversity, bodies and books, writing action, humor and crime, audiobooks, keep the pages turning, how important is location, moving the mystery from a village to the big city, a writer’s imaginary friends, differently abled characters, and writing unlikable women characters.
Saturday I attended the librarian’s tea, a highlight. The ballroom became filled. Small plates held miniature scones, tarts, eclairs, and cookies. Several varieties of tea were offered. The speaker was Chef Darren, who served as chef to Queen Elizabeth and Princess Diana. His slide show of the palace and the members of the royal family gave insight most people never see. Forge Books donated enough books that each attendee received one by Hank Phillippi Ryan, Spencer Quinn or another Forge author.
A panel about the value of critique groups emphasized that while we most often write alone, there are ways to connect with other writers who help you out of a sticky spot or assist in unknotting a tangle of clues. The Poison Lady explained that anything can be used to kill a person, even water. I just wish she hadn’t said that just as I took a big drink from my water bottle.
Families can be a loving group of people or the people you should fear. An afternoon panel showed how family drama can add thrills to the page. “I Won’t Write That” was the title of a panel whose members agreed there’s not much they wouldn’t write about. Their one rule is that whatever is on the page must move the story along and be pertinent. No adding gruesome for shock value. Another favorite was “I Didn’t See That Coming,” a panel on how to write a twist. It takes skill to blend the twist seamlessly into the story, especially when the twist surprises even the writer, who then has to backtrack to give the proper lead-up. A twist is not something that occurs out of the blue, but when it works, will change reader’s perception of what they’ve read earlier in the book. At its best, a twist will make readers go back to page one and start again, just to find out where they went wrong.
What I’ve related is only a small part of what was offered. I missed how to pick a lock or get out of handcuffs using only a paperclip, the K9 demonstration, and the awards for the Anthonys, Derringers, and others. From 7 am until 6 pm and after, many choices arose.
In all, the conference cost about $1,500, but my costs were higher than some, as that included updating my dog, Ozzie’s, shots for him to go to the kennel. The conference itself cost $175, hotel (no roommate) $500, meals about $75, the kennel $280. Another cost was a cab to and from the St. Louis airport, at $50 each way. I opted not to drive in potentially bad weather or leave my car in airport parking, a cost of about $75.
Would I do it again? Absolutely. The energy felt contagious and mingling with people who understand the joy and frustration of writing is priceless. I promoted A Murder of Crows, the anthology I edited, and solicit stories for the next anthology, based on 60s rock and roll with a crime. The contacts I made seem invaluable.
If you have a chance to go to a conference, go. Costs can be reduced; some offer scholarships or discounted rates in exchange for volunteer work at the conference or if you agree to sit on a panel. A roommate reduces the hotel bill. Bring snacks.
Most of all, have a good time. Then go home and write!
Sandra Murphy is the editor of the WPNews, writes short stories, magazine articles, guest blogs, and is the author of From Hay to Eternity: Ten Devilish Tales of Crime and Deception. She is also the editor of A Murder of Crows and is currently editing Rebellion, Revolution and Rock ‘n Roll—The Sixties in Music, both for Darkhouse Books.