Unspeakable Crimes in DC – January, 2019

Posted on January 9, 2019 by Brenda Buchanan

On January 5 I had the great pleasure of participating in a panel discussion with three wonderful crime writers at East City Bookshop in Washington, D.C.

Having a laugh

Laughing, from the left, Cheryl Head, John Copenhaver, me, Sherry Harris

Called Unspeakable Crimes, LGBTQ Mystery Writing, the evening was sponsored by OutWrite and held at East City Bookshop on Pennsylvania Avenue. East City Bookshop 010519

The other participating authors were Cheryl Head, John Copenhaver and Sisters in Crime president Sherry Harris, who moderated the discussion.

Cheryl writes the fabulous Charlie Mack Motown Mystery series, featuring an African American lesbian PI from the east side of Detroit. The first book is Bury Me When I’m Dead. The second is Wake Me When It’s Over and the third, to be released in March, is Catch Me When I’m Falling.  If you read one, you’ll read them all.  Trust me.

Cheryl reading 2

John’s debut novel, Dodging and Burning, is getting a lot of well-deserved buzz. A historical crime novel set in WWII-era Virginia, it received starred reviews in Publishers Weekly and Library Journal, and was LJ’s Debut of the Month. I know I couldn’t put it down, and agree with the rave reviews. It was called “a riveting debut” by Associated Press and  “a masterwork of tone and voice” by BOLO Books.

John's debut novel is a knockout

John’s debut novel is a knockout

Sherry Harris is the author of a terrific cozy series, the Sarah Winston Garage Sale Mysteries. Her sixth book in the series, The Gun Also Rises, will be released on January 29. Sherry is an accomplished moderator who got us talking about the need for and value of LGBTQ protagonists in crime fiction and many other aspects of our writing lives.

Me, with Sherry Harris.

Me, with Sherry Harris.

A summary of the discussion was published this week by the indefatigable Kristopher Zgorski of Bolo Books. You can find it here. http://bolobooks.com/2019/01/unspeakable-crimes-a-bolo-books-event-recap/

I was delighted to see my friend Ed Aymar, whose much- anticipated thriller The Unrepentant, will be out in March.

I was delighted to see my friend Ed Aymar, whose much- anticipated thriller The Unrepentant, will be out in March.

It was great to spend the evening with such terrific, talented writers, to see old friends and meet some new ones. Many thanks to East City Bookshop https://www.eastcitybookshop.com/ for hosting and OutWrite DC http://thedccenter.org/outwrite/ for sponsoring this event.

All credit goes to my wonderful spouse, Diane Kenty, for the fine photographs.

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Fun at Libraries

Posted on November 4, 2018 by Brenda Buchanan

I participated in two wonderful events at Maine libraries in the past week.  On October 26-27, Jesup Memorial Library in Bar Harbor held its fourth annual Murder By The Book conference.

Lynne Raimondo (face in hands, at far left) did her best to herd the cats on this panel, titled "A Woman's Place is on the Page . . . And Writing It." We are, from left, Beth Ineson, Jim Ziskin, Dorothy Cannell, Julia Spencer-Fleming and me.

Lynne Raimondo (face in hands, at far left) did her best to herd the cats on this panel, titled “A Woman’s Place is on the Page . . . And Writing It.” We are, from left, Beth Ineson, Jim Ziskin, Dorothy Cannell, Julia Spencer-Fleming and me.

Crime writers from Maine and other parts of New England convened Friday night for a reception at which an original play was given a staged reading and writers read brief passages of work in progress.  The play was an absolute hoot!

In the staged reading of the murder mystery at MBTB

In the staged reading of the murder mystery at MBTB

Penned by husband and wife team Robert and Robin Lawton, it involved the murder of mystery writer Royal Pane on a private island off the coast of Maine during an exclusive weekend for mystery writers hosted by billionaire I. Reed Toomuch.

David Rosenfelt, second from left, was the guest of honor. I'm to his left, Julia Spencer-Fleming and Vaughn Hardacker are to his right.

David Rosenfelt, second from left, was the guest of honor at Murder by the Book. I’m to his left, Julia Spencer-Fleming and Vaughn Hardacker are to his right.

 

Some of us performed the parts of characters with names suspiciously similar to our own (I was Brenda Buckminster, for example). It was a lot of fun.

The Saturday workshops were terrific, and the schmoozing was, as always, top notch.

 

On November 1, I was with fellow Maine crime writers Barbara Ross and Richard Cass at the Thomas Memorial Library in Cape Elizabeth for an interactive workshop in which we built a mystery on the spot based on suggestions from the audience about who done it and how.

We asked the audience to make suggestions about the key parts of the book, and took it from there.

We asked the audience to make suggestions about the key parts of the book, and took it from there.

The energetic and engaged audience had us laughing from start to finish.  Thanks to librarian Janie Downey Maxwell for setting it up!

From left, Dick Cass, Barb Ross, librarian Janie Downey Maxwell and me.

From left, Dick Cass, Barb Ross, librarian Janie Downey Maxwell and me.

 

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September Fun

Posted on October 8, 2018 by Brenda Buchanan

September came and went in a blink, which so often happens when you are having a lot of fun.

The Vinoy Hotel, built in 1925, abandoned in the 1970s, revived in the 1990s. A terrific conference venue.

The Vinoy Hotel, built in 1925, abandoned in the 1970s, revived in the 1990s. It was a terrific conference venue.

Bouchercon, the international conference of crime writers, was in St. Petersburg, Florida the weekend after Labor Day weekend. Held at the fabulous Vinoy Renaissance Hotel, it was a blast.  Highlights? Watching Lawrence Block interview Ian Rankin, the panel of women thriller authors (Lori Roy, Shannon Kirk, Meg Gardiner, Chris Goff and Lara Dearman – wow!), the Anthony Awards ceremony, and the opportunity to meet and chat with so many writers, agents and editors throughout the weekend.

I took part in a panel discussion titled “Somewhere Over the Rainbow – LGBTQ in Crime Fiction,” with Stephanie Gayle, John H. Copenhaver, J.M. Redmann and Alison R. Solomon, moderated by publicist extraordinare Dana Kaye. It was a good discussion with terrific writers, some of whom I’d not met before and all of whom I look forward to hanging out with at future conferences.

Bouchercon panel

In the middle of the month I took myself off to Peaks Island for a week’s writing retreat as part of the Illustration Institute’s Faison Residency Program.

A favorite spot on Peaks Island, a short walk from the cottage where I holed up and wrote for a week.

A favorite spot on Peaks Island, a short walk from the cottage where I holed up and wrote for a week.

The brilliant memoirist Elizabeth Peavey was also in residence that week, in a long, low stone house across the lane from the wonderful, multi-porched turn of the twentieth century cottage where I stayed.

The Guest House, where I had a week's writing retreat

The Guest House, where I had a week’s writing retreat

Liz and I shared dinner and writing talk a couple of nights, and on Thursday the 20th did a joint presentation at the Fifth Maine Regiment Hall and Museum.

It was great to see so many friends on Peaks at the beautiful Fifth Maine. Thanks to Bill and Nancy Hall, who manage the historic treasure, for making it available for this event.

It was great to see so many friends on Peaks at the beautiful Fifth Maine. Thanks to Bill and Nancy Hall, who manage the historic treasure, for making it available for this event.

 

Memoir and mystery are different genres to be sure, but writing is writing.

From left, Elizabeth Peavey, Nancy Gibson-Nash, Scott Nash and me at Fifth Maine

From left, Elizabeth Peavey, Nancy Gibson-Nash, Scott Nash and me at Fifth Maine

It was a pleasure to meet with such an enthusiastic audience of readers and talk with Liz about our process and current projects.

With John Faison, whose work with the Illustration Institute to create the artist residency honors his late wife, Marilyn Mazza Faison.

With John Faison, whose work with the Illustration Institute to create the artist residency honors his late wife, Marilyn Mazza Faison.

 

Many thanks to Scott and Nancy Gibson-Nash of the Illustration Institute for inviting me for a second year, and to John Faison, whose generosity has taken the residency program from dream to reality.

I’m sure the artists who have participated in the Faison residency agree – there’s nothing quite like uninterrupted time in an inspirational setting to create. It’s a treasure beyond words.

In October I’ll be up on Bar Harbor at the beautiful Jesup Memorial Library for the annual Murder By The Book conference October 26-27 (for details: https://jesuplibrary.org/mbtb/) and on Tuesday October 30th I’ll be at Thomas Memorial Library in Cape Elizabeth with my colleagues Barbara Ross and Richard Cass constructing a mystery with the assistance of the audience. For more info: http://www.thomasmemoriallibrary.org/events/?event_id=7228

 

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