Malice--Annapolis--Oakmont

If the title reminds you a bit of long-distance, endurance races, like the “Paris-Roubaix” (a 200+ mile bicycle race over cobblestone roads) or the “Paris to Dakar Rally” (a motor race that covers a 9000km route over Europe and Africa), you wouldn't be far wrong. I always cram a lot into any convention travel, but this year’s Malice trip was busy, successful, and, luckily, free of events that required the pit team. Shoot, I wasn’t even one of the folks who went on to the Edgars Week in NYC right after: that’s hardcore. I'll go next year, but I’ll be sure to go into training first.

Malice Domestic was a hoot, and I’d like to thank the folks who put it together and kept it running so smoothly. The panel I was on, “Tea and Strumpets,” was about how writers of “cozy” mysteries handle sex in their books—if they do. The panelists were many of my fellow Femmes Fatales (l-r: Donna Andrews moderated us and did a smashing job. Next to her is Nancy Pickard (“Femme for a Day”), me, Elaine Viets, Charlaine Harris, Julie Wray Herman, and Toni Kelner). If we’re blurry, Nancy points out it’s because we were laughing so hard. We were on first thing in the morning, and were pleasantly surprised by the number of people who got up to hear us discuss sex—as written (or not) in our books, I must stress. We learned a LOT about each other (and maybe a little about what goes into consideration in writing a hot scene that isn’t necessarily graphic), but don’t bother with the blackmail: It’s all a matter of public record now, and the CDs are in the mail.

Sunday, a flock of us road-tripped to Annapolis B&N where we had a “double-header” event (one show at 5:00pm, one at 7:00pm—tip the waitress, we’ll be here all week). We—the Seven Deadly Dames— (including (standing, l-r) me, 2006 Agatha-winner Marcia Talley, Denise Swanson, (sitting) Donna Andrews, Kate Flora, Sharon Short, and Heather Webber had a great crowd with lots of good questions. The Amazing Marcia hosted us overnight, making it possible to leave early the next morning for the trip to Oakmont, PA and The Festival of Mystery. Donna and I drove up with Sharon and Heather, and the talk predictably turned to llamas. A four or five hour drive flew by, because we laughed the whole way.

The FoM is an amazing shindig: fifty writers in the basement of a church, stacks of books, busloads of mystery lovers. Whew! It’s about a four hour event, and things get pretty punchy toward the end, but everyone always has a marvelous time. The organizers work hard to make it very comfortable and convenient for us. I got to know writer Ellen Byerrum (right) (and her husband, an archaeologist!), and we chatted between signing books. The pizza and beer party after is always most welcome—Thanks Mary Alice, Richard, and everyone at Mystery Lovers for another great event!

One of the reasons it’s possible to do these “six-day weekend” trips is the company you keep. At any conference, you tend to go to bed late and get up early, working all day long. This is all a lot of fun, but when you generally spend all day alone in your office writing, it’s easy to go wild catching up with old friends (like Charlaine and Toni, right) and meeting new ones (like Heather and Sharon, with Donna and me--"The Bimbos of Saturn"--below, with our Saturn tour vehicle). With no daylight at the conference, irregular meals and sleep, and lots of appointments, time can play funny tricks on you, making you feel like you’re living three times the life (you've heard of "dog years?" This is "writer years"). So on Day Twenty of a six-day tour, it makes a big difference if you’re traveling with people who play well together and have a sense of humor.