David Rosenfelt & The Tara Foundation

In case you were dying to know where and how Andy Carpenter really lives...Edgar-award nominated author David Rosenfelt shares his home and his heart with dogs he and his wife give a second chance to through their Tara Foundation. David's next book is NEW TRICKS.

MEET THE MEN OF MYSTERY

TWO LAMBDA LITERARY AWARD FINALISTS IN SOUTH FLORIDA

Sorry, this event has been cancelled!

Sunday May 3, 4:00 PM

Borders Books and Music
2240 E. Sunrise Blvd.
Ft. Lauderdale, FL 33304
(954) 566-6335

Monday May 4, 7:00 PM

Murder on the Beach Mystery Bookstore
273 Pineapple Grove Way
Delray Beach, FL 33444
(561) 279-7790

Neil Plakcy and Anthony Bidulka, two of the best practioners of the gay mystery genre, both finalists for the 2009 Lambda Literary Award for best gay men’s mystery, join forces to talk about their books, their handsome, sexy heroes, and the future of the gay mystery.

Anthony Bidulka’s five-book series about Saskatchewan private eye Russell Quant has garnered a Lambda Literary Award, renown among Canadian mysteries, and critical acclaim. SUNDOWNER UBUNTU takes Russell on a professional and personal journey from the Canadian prairies to the plains of Africa, as he searches for a man missing for twenty years—and learns the meaning of ubuntu, a traditional African concept loosely translated as “we’re all in this life together.”

Neil Plakcy is a two-time finalist for the Lambda Literary Award, and his third mystery, MAHU FIRE, won the Hawaii Five-O Award for best police procedural, given by mystery fans at the 2009 Left Coast Crime conference. His mystery series follows the life of Honolulu homicide detective Kimo Kanapa’aka, who is dragged out of the closet in the first book, MAHU, now back in print from Alyson Books.

Congratulations, Ron Block!

I'm a little late in offering up my congratulations to my old boss, Ron Block. He moved on from being the Circulation Manager at the Southwest County Regional Library in Palm Beach County, to being the Circulation Services Coordinator for the Jacksonville Public Library. He was nominated for Paraprofessional of the Year and received an Honorable Mention. He is fabulous so I wasn't the least bit surprised. (pictured here with Adriana Trigiani, who was guest speaker at Much Ado About Books in Jacksonville and one of my favorite authors!)

Here's what LJ posted:

Other Paraprofessionals of Note
"In addition to Adams, LJ saluted two other notable entrants nominated for the award...LJ also noted Ron Block, circulation services coordinator, Jacksonville Public Library (JPL), FL, who chairs JPL’s Circulation Review Unit of librarians and support staff. JPL’s user-friendly policy helps make it easier for the homeless living in shelters to get library cards. He is one of 16 trainers who teach in the library’s Destination Leadership program.

The Paraprofessional of the Year Award is sponsored by Brodart Library Supplies & Furnishings, McElhattan, PA, which underwrites the $1500 cash prize and a reception to honor the winner at the American Library Association annual conference in July. The award recognizes the essential role of paraprofessionals in providing excellent library service."

Well deserved, Ron!

And the Pulitzer tor Forgotten Fiction Goes to . . .

From NPR's All Things Considered:

"Unscientific List Of Least-Known Fiction Winners" included:

His Family by Ernest Poole (1918)
Early Autumn by Louis Bromfield (1927)
Scarlet Sister Mary by Julia Peterkin (1929)
Laughing Boy by Oliver Lafarge (1930)
Years of Grace by Margaret Ayer Barnes (1931)
The Store by T.S. Stribling (1933)
Lamb in His Bosom by Caroline Miller (1934)
Now in November by Josephine Winslow Johnson (1935)
Honey in the Horn by Harold L. Davis (1936)
In This Our Life by Ellen Glasgow (1942)
Journey in the Dark by Martin Flavin (1944)
Guard of Honor by James Gould Cozzens (1949)
The Way West by A.B. Guthrie (1950)
The Town by Conrad Richter (1951)
The Travels of Jaimie McPheeters by Robert Lewis Taylor (1959)
The Edge of Sadness by Edwin O'Connor (1962)
Elbow Room by James Alan McPherson (1978)

Guest Blogger: LAURIE R. KING

Laurie R. King is a recovering academic, who can give up research any time. Her new novel, The Language of Bees, comes out April 28th. It required a great deal of research, some of which you can read about at www.LaurieRKing.com

It takes a determined imagination to see Aladdin’s Cave in most modern libraries. The libraries of my childhood, sure—a few towns still have their old Carnegie building, dark and dim and ruled by exotic divinities with their fingers at their lips to better shush the worshipper, dusty temples stuffed to the rafters with treasures and impossible for the poor staff to move around in, but ripe with potential for the would-be explorer. If you find one of these, they may even use the old Dewey Decimal system, which was positively designed for the explorer mentality, launching out into deepest, darkest 916 (Africa) with nothing but a flashlight (683) and guide book (967.)

A modern library is another matter: brightly lit, smelling faintly of the espressos served in the foyer, the hum of computers at every corner, the Library of Congress organization stiff on the metal shelves.

However, a novelist is nothing if not determined. After the first shock of the new, after a brief dip of the hat to the lost card catalogues (as rich a ground for eccentric cataloguers as ever Africa was for eccentric Englishmen) the writer grumpily drops her book bag next to the computer, and walks away from civilization as she knows it.

However, all is not lost to a researcher truly determined to conquer new lands and explore unseen lands. Big research libraries, caught between the Scylla of limited space and the Charybdis of unquenchable demand, have carved out for themselves new frontiers, and called them Depositories.

Say I am writing a book on 1920s India (a book I am going to call The Game) and want to illustrate the life of the British officers who, despite youth and lack of training, were handed vast tracts of land and near-absolute power. Say I come across passing reference to a means of permitting these young men to work out their frustrations that doesn’t involve local girls: give them the task of exterminating large and well-armed vermin, a job that involves both enormous exertion and considerable danger. Say I fire up my terminal in the library and ask it, not expecting much, about “pig sticking.” And say it tells me that there is a book of precisely that title, published in precisely the period about which I am writing, waiting patiently for someone to require it once every forty or so years.

And that is the NRLF, the University of California’s Northern Regional Library Facility. There is also a SRLF, since California is a long state, and both call to mind huge underground caverns, temperature controlled, brilliantly lit (unnecessarily so, since it’s all done by machine and machines don’t need to see, but this is my fantasy so it glares under buzzing fluorescents) and tended by retrieval machines, which pluck each odd-sized, frayed, elderly and unloved volume from its respective place and sends it joyously off to be useful to some novelist. Who keeps the volume on her shelves for some months, patting and cooing over it, until the time expires and she returns it to its brightly lit cave, to await the next user, forty years hence.

I have a photograph of the books I borrowed last year from my local university’s McHenry library, a stack four feet high, all of which filled some niche or other in The Language of Bees. The novel is set in August, 1924, and involves a Surrealist artist who comes to my protagonists for help when his wife disappears. The books I borrowed, some from the shelves and many from the NRLF, include the following topics: Surrealist art; Aleister Crowley: London’s Café Royal; Augustus John; Scotland; prehistoric sites in the United Kingdom; Bohemian life; historical Shanghai; Kipling and others on Sussex; bees—many books on bees; and the Georgics by Virgil.

This is a partial list, and does not include what I had on the shelves already concerning the 20s, England, Sussex, bees, and art history.

Incidentally, the very first note I scribbled down for the book I’m working on now, a sequel to The Language of Bees, was:

This book should use as little research as possible.

(Which translates: I can give it up any time.)

Of course, that intent lasted about ten minutes, until I found my character’s aeroplane coming down rather briskly into some trees in the Lake District, and I was back into the Aladdin’s cave of research, plunging into the McHenry library and the University of California’s NRLF for information about the Lake District, and 1924 Amsterdam, and medical practices of the period, and the roots of MI5, and…

Guest Blogger: JANE K. CLELAND

I Love Librarians
by Jane K. Cleland

All of my nieces are librarians. Isn’t that odd? Any family can have a librarian in it... heck... I bet some families have two... but all? Okay... we’re a small family... I only have three nieces... but still... all of them are librarians. Lucky me. Librarians are a remarkable breed of people. They’re curious, knowledgeable, smart, and helpful. No wonder I love librarians.

One of my nieces is a communications expert, researching ways and means of framing and disseminating her clients’ messages. Another is a cognitive expert, assisting scientists in researching issues surrounding thinking and assimilating information. My third niece is an elementary education expert, working with youngins to instill a love of reading and learning. I’m in awe of all three.

I come by my attitude of respect and appreciation honestly; my mother loved librarians, too. When I was a mere slip of a girl she taught me that if you wanted to know something you could always consult a librarian because they either know everything or they know where to find out everything.

When I was in sixth grade, I consulted a librarian as to whether Paul Revere’s horse was a mare. (I needed it as a rhyme in a poem, and being an honest girl, I couldn’t just say it was a mare if it was, in fact, a stallion. Note of interest: She found a contemporary reference stating that Paul Revere’s horse was a mare; I thought you’d want to know.) When I was in eighth grade, a librarian held me enraptured as she discussed the Great Molasses Flood of 1919. (Yes, you read that right. Twenty-one people died a gruesome death, asphyxiated by molasses.)

To this day, I love working with librarians as I work to introduce readers to my protagonist, antiques appraiser, Josie Prescott. As an author, I’m in the enviable position of getting to do just that—a lot. As many of you know, I tour extensively [Jane's tour schedule] as I work to introduce readers to Josie.

I also work with Deborah Hirsch, a principal librarian at the New York Public Library to coordinate a series of monthly programs for the Mid-Manhattan Branch in my role as chair of the Library Committee for the Mystery Writers of America/ New York Chapter. [http://www.mwa-ny.org/library.php#events]


In fact, even when I’m traveling overseas, it’s not uncommon for me find myself in a library, like this one I just visited in Grenada. I love the buildings. I love the books. I love the reverence implicit in the hushed conversations. But mostly, I love the librarians.

www.janecleland.net

WRITING CONTEST

The More Than A Few Good Men website is sponsoring a writing contest - for men only.

Writer Tom Matlack has assembled a stellar group of male writers to contribute essays about important events in their lives—everything from becoming a father, losing a father, losing a job, failing in love and much more—to an anthology that has yet to find a home with a publisher.

More Than a Few Good Men is an anthology of essays about what it means to be a man in America today. The authors, a wide cross section, draw upon their experiences with either childhood, coming of age, work, relationships, fatherhood or death and explore the perspectives they have gained from those moments.

Contributors include such accomplished writers as Mad Men creator Matt Wiener, Memoirs of a Geisha novelist Arthur Golden, and Not That You Asked essayist Steve Almond. An NFL Hall of Famer, a former Sing Sing inmate, a one-time Wall Street wunderkind, and a photojournalist imbedded with U.S. troops in Iraq are among the other contributors.

More Than a Few Good Men will be published in spring 2010. All proceeds from the book will benefit the Good Men Foundation, a charitable organization founded to support men and boys at risk.

Until May 1, they are accepting essays from anyone, anywhere, to be considered for one more slot in the book. People can submit their essay here: http://www.goodmenbook.org/writing-contest.html.

There is a $1,000 prize for the chosen essay which will be included in the book. There are two runners up who will each receive $500 and publication on the website. All money made from sales of the book will go to the Good Men Foundation, which has been established to help at-risk men and boys across America.

Personalized books

I love this idea.

"Penguin Group USA is pleased to announce the availability of nine new titles in our Penguin Personalized program. As part of Penguin 2.0, a suite of digital services developed to offer readers new and innovative ways to interact with Penguin content, Penguin Personalized allows readers to insert personal dedications directly into select Penguin Group adult titles.

In addition to the previously available Charles Dickens classic, A Christmas Carol and Other Christmas Writings, the following titles are now ready for you to personalize.

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain
The Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton
Captains Courageous by Rudyard Kipling
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button by F. Scott Fitzgerald
Peter Pan by J. M. Barrie
This Side of Paradise by F. Scott Fitzgerald
Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson
Walden & Civil Disobedience by Henry David Thoreau
The Wonderful World of Oz by L. Frank Baum

For all the details, visit the Penguin 2.0 website.

Guest Blogger: KRISTIN CALLENDER

Hi Bookbitch fans and readers. I am Kristin Callender, author of The Truth Lies in the Dark. Thank you for joining me on my Book Blog Tour, and thank you Stacy for having me as a guest on your blog.

Read through to the end to find out how you can win an autographed copy!

The Truth Lies in the Dark is a mystery about a woman who finds out she had been raised with a dead girl's identity. Who is Amanda and who will stop at nothing to make sure she never finds out? As dark secrets from her past are exposed, so are the connections to the very people she loved and trusted; including her loving husband. Nothing is what it seems and everything is at stake.

During this Book Blog Tour I have discussed different parts of my writing process, characterization, publishing and marketing journey. Today I want to talk about how the main character, Amanda Martineau used public libraries as a resource in her journey for the truth.

Amanda, devastated by the loss of both of her grandparents and desperate to get her and Nick's life back on track, joins him on a business trip that takes them from Connecticut to San Bernardino, California. Nick's long hours working and an unfinished letter left by her grandfather push her to find answers to the many questions surfacing about herself. Where does she begin? At the library, of course.

Amanda goes to the public library in San Bernardino to look for clues to her past. All she knows is that she lost her memory after surviving a plane crash that claimed her parents in Nevada. Her grandparents then moved her across the country to start a new life, but reoccurring nightmares of an unknown girl were haunting reminders of the one she had forgotten. Her grandfather leaves her a letter that seems to confirm her worst fears and doubts; that she is not who she thinks.

Amanda is sure that the truth is locked in her own mind and goes to the library to look up her parents in an effort to remember and reconnect with them. Her search leads her to the same articles that she had been shown by her grandparents, with one exception. Amanda finds that a familiar article had a picture attached; one that she had never seen before. The following is a brief excerpt of this.

"...Her heart began to race as she read the caption underneath, which simply stated: Gregory and Charlotte Morgan with their daughter Helen Morgan. (she goes by her middle name Amanda) Although the picture was black and white and a little grainy on the computer screen Amanda could not see any resemblance between this girl and herself. Her grandparents had said that her features were changed by the accident, but this dramatically seemed impossible. Besides the difference in facial features; which could have been altered, this young girl had unmistakably dark hair..."

Later in the story, feeling she has hit another insurmountable wall, Amanda finds herself in front of another library, this time in Henderson, Nevada. With the librarians help she gets closer to the truth, but inadvertently exposes herself to the one person who has the most to loose if she continues.

I would imagine that Amanda's process of research is similar to those interested in genealogy. I would love to know how many people don't know anything about their roots past their parents or grandparents. It has sparked an interest in my own family's history. I plan on heading to the library for my own research. Maybe that will find its way into a future book, hopefully I won't uncover anything like Amanda :)

Thanks again to everyone who stopped by. If you would like more information about me, the book, or the tour you can go to my website: http://sites.google.com/site/kristincallenderbooks/

Thank you for your interest,

Kristin Callender

The Truth Lies in the Dark by Kristin Callender is available on http://www.amazon.com/Truth-Lies-Dark-Kristin-Callender/dp/1604520140 and on www.bluewaterpress.com

If you'd like to win an signed copy of The Truth Lies in the Dark, please send an email to contest@gmail.com with "THE TRUTH" as the subject. This contest is only going to run for one week so act quickly!

You must include your snail mail address in your email. Mailing addresses may NOT include a Post Office box or your entry will be eliminated.
All entries must be received by April 7, 2009. One name will be drawn from all qualified entries and notified via email. The book will be sent directly from the author. This contest is open to all adults over 18 years of age who reside only in the United States only. One entry per email address, please. Your email address will not be shared or sold to anyone. All entries, including names, e-mail addresses, and mailing addresses, will be purged after winners are notified.

Free book from CJ West

CJ West is offering BookBitch readers a free PDF version of Sin & Vengeance to celebrate the completion of the screenplay by Marla Cukor.

You can download it here:

http://www.22wb.com/freesinbook.htm

password: cjwest

Enjoy!

Guest Blogger: JUDITH RYAN HENDRICKS

The Laws of Harmony is bit of a departure for me in several ways, although, having said that, the themes I wanted to explore in the book are some of the same themes that have always interested me…the way the past shapes the present and drives the future…the ways in which children grow up differently in the same family…the family dynamics of loss and grief…and most particularly, how the ties that bind mother and daughter—however we might struggle against them—are not easily undone.

One difference lies in the tone of the book, which I think is just a shade darker than my first three books, although there is plenty of what Publishers Weekly called “gentle humor.” I can’t really write a story without humor, anymore than I can write a story without food and music.

The other difference is that The Laws of Harmony has more plot than my earlier work, which some readers will like more than others. But on the whole, I still feel that the story is driven by the main character’s conflicting needs to escape the past and to come to terms with it. The book is really about her discovering that those two things are one and the same.

On my website, www.judihendricks.com, you can watch a video trailer for the book, as well as a video I taped at the HarperCollins studios in New York last fall that details the true incident that sparked the idea for the story.

Sleuthfest & Scandinavia

Current trends in the mystery field was a hot topic of discussion throughout the entire Sleuthfest weekend. Oline Cogdill mentioned Scandinavian mysteries becoming more and more popular. Today, I read this in Publishers Lunch:

"Patterson's Latest Collaborator
James Patterson is reaching across the ocean for his latest writing partner, working on a new thriller set primarily in Stockholm with Scandinavian crime writer Liza Marklund, best known for her Annika Bengtzon series. The book will be published in Sweden in 2010 with Marklund's regular publisher Piratförlaget (of which she is a part owner), but that is the only territory sold so far. It's a bilingual collaboration as well. Marklund will write in Swedish, which will then be translated for Patterson, who will work in English as usual.

Robert Barnett at Williams & Connolly is representing rights for the US and the UK and has "a great deal of interest" from Patterson's existing publishers in both territories. Linda Michaels, who was the "driving force in brokering the collaboration," represents rights for the rest of the world for Barnett, except for Sweden where The Salomonsson Agency represented Marklund.

Barnett sees it as "another example of Jim being innovative" as well as "an opportunity to introduce him to a whole new area of fans [internationally[ who might not be aware of him" while doing the same for Marklund.

Marklund says in a brief statement, "Writing this book is so much fun. The story is violent, emotional, and fast paced. It’s very exciting to work with such an intelligent and creative writer. James Patterson is not only exceptionally smart and funny, he is also incredibly humble."

Sleuthfest Day Two: The Plot Thickens

It seemed the crowds were bigger today, or maybe I was just attending more popular panels. First up was Oline Cogdill moderating a panel of new authors. This was definitely geared towards the writers in the room and the discussion ranged from naming your characters (be careful not to use the same first initial for all your characters!) the importance of setting and the always popular, write what you know. That panel was followed by the standing-room-only "Editors' Roundtable" with Putnam VP/Editor Neil Nyren, St. Martins Press/Minotaur editor Toni Plummer and Benjamin LeRoy, the editor/owner of the excellent small press, Bleak House Books.

First was the slightly depressing news that book sales are definitely down 10-20%. Editors are a bit more cautious about what they are buying and are looking at books 2-3 times before acquiring. The good news is that isn't really all that different than any other time. Publishers are in business to sell books, so they have to buy books. So what are they buying?

Nyren is the king of the thriller with a stable of authors that includes some of the biggest names in the business: Clive Cussler, Robert B. Parker, John Sandford, Tom Clancy, to name a few. On the other hand, LeRoy explained that Bleak House has a different approach to purchasing; if turning your book into a movie "would require a large special effects budget" than it probably isn't the right book for Bleak House. Plummer is buying all kinds of mysteries from cozies to gritty noir, but passing on the international spy thrillers.

Things to avoid? Nyren begged for no more alcoholic ex-contenders, ex-cops, or dogs. What does he want? "Something extra." A fresh voice. Something that "makes me sit up straighter in my chair, makes the hair on the back of my neck stand up"; "something that I haven't read a million times before" or if he has, then it has to be "so damn good I want it anyway." Bleak House is buying from authors who have terrific series that have been dropped from the big publishing houses. They have different goals with their numbers. Bleak House was also the only publisher on this panel that still accepts manuscripts from authors rather than agents.

The discussion meandered into James Patterson territory. For many years, it was considered "cannibalization" if an author wanted to put out more than one book a year, the thinking was they would be stealing their own sales. Patterson blew that theory out of the water and did it anyway. Now many of the top bestselling authors are producing 2, 3 or even 4 books a year.

Finally, the secret to selling books was revealed: word of mouth. Reviews, media attention and personal appearances all help spread word of mouth. The other secret to sales is a "subterranean cost" called "co-op". That's where the publisher pays to put your book on the front table at Borders or on the ladder displays at the front of your local Barnes & Noble, or even having Amazon send out emails offering your book for 30% off.

Sleuthfest: John Hart, Guest of Honor

This year Sleuthfest had two guests of honor, John Hart and Brad Meltzer. John gave a terrific talk at the Friday luncheon. He was engaging, entertaining and I think all the writers in attendance - most of the room - really took away some important lessons. Believe in yourself. Listen to your editor but also trust your gut. And if your father-in-law offers to feed your family for a year while you write your novel, find out if he is including you in that offer!

I've been lucky enough to review all of John's books for Library Journal. His first book, The King of Lies, was nominated for several awards. His second novel, Down River, won the Edgar award for best novel. His latest novel, The Last Child, doesn't come out until May but my review went out yesterday. It's a starred review, and it's his best book yet. It's a bit darker than his previous books, but it's the protagonist, a 13 year old boy, that really got to me and will stay with me, in much the same way Scout did in To Kill A Mockingbird.

I am a fast reader, and normally I read a book, especially a thriller, straight through in a night or two. With The Last Child, I was reading a bit, then stopping to savor it, putting it down to save some for the next day. It was a very unusual reading experience for me. By the third day, I couldn't take it anymore and just ripped through the rest. When I was done, I walked around my house hugging the book, I didn't want to put it down. So then I read it again. And I loved it even more. John signed it for me and that book will have a place of honor on my bookshelf - that means on a bookshelf somewhere instead of in one of the piles of books or boxes of books that are all over my house. I know I am totally romanticizing the whole reading experience but when you fall in love with a book, that's what happens. So now you all know.

After lunch, there were more panels. I went to a panel on how to get press with Oline Cogdil, the mystery reviewer for the Sun Sentinel newspaper, Sharon Potts who has her first novel coming out in a few months, and Cheryl Solimini, whose first novel, Across the River, was published last year. It was a good mix of people with very different perspectives, and there was a lot of interesting ideas and good advice. The bottom line is that authors need to promote themselves, publishers don't have the resources (read: money) to do much for new authors. Some suggestions included writing an article about something you've researched for the book that may be of interest to a specific group or location, for specialty magazines or local newspapers. Make sure your press release is well written - if it isn't, people will wonder how well written your book could possibly be. Finally, a website is crucial.

There was a last minute cancellation when one of the presenters had to appear in court, but Joann Sinchuk, manager of the Murder on the Beach bookstore filled in with a presentation designed to answer the question, "Now that you're published, what next?" Neil Nyren, Putnam VP/editor was in the audience and participated a great deal, offering a lot of good advice (Book trailers? Don't do them.) Joann let all the budding authors know a couple of really important terms: "sell-through", when most of the books that have been printed have sold is very important. Nyren pointed out that no one really expects 100% sell-through, but 80% within 6 months is a good guarantee of another book contract.

Joann also pointed out that an author has an obligation to try and sell their books. Some authors think they can turn in a manusript and be done with it, but that is just the beginning. She suggested attending conferences, arranging book signings, especially at libraries where you are more likely to get newspaper coverage, and that all important website. Also of note: every author has a publicist, but not every author has a publicity budget. The other term she mentioned was "sell sheet;" every book has one that is given to the sales staff. The sell sheet includes things like a plot summary, author bio including comments like "tireless promoter" (hint, hint) and quotes & reviews. The books that don't sell are remaindered, and authors don't get royalties on remaindered books.

The next panel was the politically incorrect "Book Broads", hosted by Randy Rawls. Christine Kling, Joann Sinchuk, Kris Montee (PJ Parrish), SJ Rozan and Elaine Viets sat around drinking wine and shooting the breeze about the book biz. This panel had the best stories. First was how PJ Parrish got their name. Kris writes with her sister, Kelly, but their publisher didn't want two names on the book. The sisters were on vacation in Paris, and were quite drunk when they got the inspiration to call themselves, "Paris". They called their agent and in slurred speech said "we know our name - Paris" which translated in drunken English to "Parrish" and the award winning writing duo were on their way.

Then Elaine Viets explained the "small penis theory of revenge." Elaine was "spectacularly fired" from her newspaper job and started writing novels. She would have a character suspiciously like the jerk who fired her, and she would give that character a small penis. That way she figured no one would want to sue her, go to court and tell the judge, "I'm the jerk in the book with a small penis." So she's had her way in her novels with everyone who ever wronged her.

I ended my day enjoying a drink with John Hart, Neil Nyren, and a couple of aspiring writers in the hotel bar, looking forward to day two of Sleuthfest.

Sleuthfest Guest Blogger: NEIL PLAKCY

I will have lots more to say about my adventure at Sleuthfest, but this is from Neil Plakcy:

This year the big focus at Sleuthfest was on writing, and the people I spoke with indicated that paid off. Several writers I spoke with said that they got their money’s worth from the first day—“Third Degree Thursday.”

That afternoon I led a group of writers through some exercises to clarify their “elevator pitches” – those one or two sentence summaries of your book that you need to be able to make while riding in an elevator. Or while trying to convince an agent or editor to take a look at your manuscript.

That led to a lot of discussion of character motivation. What makes your amateur sleuth press on in her investigation against resistance from the police, or the danger posed by the villain? Her childhood love of Nancy Drew isn’t enough. What drives your killer to take a human life? You have to know those things to write a good book, and you have to be able to articulate them to make a strong pitch.

Vicki Hendricks, Miriam Auerbach, PJ Parrish, and Christine Kling gave hands-on help with manuscripts, from starts, to humor, to “Why am I stuck?” Even on Friday and Saturday, when panel discussions dominated, we kept up the pressure on writing well, with Vincent O’Neil, Joan Johnston, SJ Rozan, and Martha Powers getting down to nuts and bolts.

Jim Born’s presentation on guns was a standout; he showed us three different types of holsters, let us get a grip on a plastic gun that was an excellent replica of the real thing, and tossed out a few do’s and don’ts. Don’t have your hero use a shoulder holster, for example; it’s too easy for the bad guy to get the gun away. If your hero uses an in-pants holster, he might suffer from a skin rash, or have to distract the villain before drawing on him.

Sun-Sentinel mystery reviewer Oline Cogdill provided a few insights into book publicity from the newspaper perspective, encouraging writers to schedule library events, because papers often want to publicize libraries. She also pointed out that deadlines are getting longer and longer; the book page at the Sun-Sentinel is worked out a month before publication, and reviews are often tied to local appearances, so advance planning is imperative.

At the editors’ panel, we heard that book sales are down 10-20% across the board at Putnam, and that an editor can’t “kind of like a book”—he or she has to really like it to get it published. They are looking at books three times before making publication decisions. But Neil Nyren pointed out that has always been true—it’s not just due to the current economic environment.

The forecast isn’t completely gloomy, though. Publishers have to keep buying books to stay in business, and unlike many of the large New York houses, boutique imprint Bleak House is growing. As the big houses reorganize, many mid-list authors may have to move to small independent presses to stay in print.

There is still a great appetite for hardback books; however there are lots of authors whose natural market is the paperback. It’s often better to introduce authors in paperback because of the lower price point. Some publishers are considering doing hard/soft releases simultaneously, rather than waiting a year after the hardcover to bring a book out in trade or mass market paperback.

No one felt that e-books will replace paper, but all agreed that it will be an important additional source of income, like audio books. At Putnam, e-book revenue is way up this year, but it’s still a very small part of the total. Editors are using e-book readers to review new manuscripts, and sales people are using them instead of carrying around armloads of books.

All the editors and agents agreed that their biggest turnoffs in query letters are phrases like “guaranteed best-seller” “My mother/friends/critique group love the book” and “Oprah is sure to want me on her show.” Skip the gimmicks too; no green ink on pink paper, for example.

Finally, and most important, all the editors agreed that the most valuable tool for selling books is still word of mouth—media, reviews, friend recommendations, coupled with co-op promotion—publishers paying to have books displayed prominently in bookstores, on front tables or step ladders, or through email blasts. So if you read a book you love, tell everyone about it!