Expectations - Great or Not?

I think it's part of human nature to want to know what's going to happen, or to go into just about any situation with a set of expectations based on either past experience, word of mouth, or our own (perhaps flawed) logic.

When the phone rings, do you wonder who it might be. (And do you wonder what people did before caller ID?)

Do you go to a movie without some idea of what you're going to be seeing? Do you like to read the reviews first? Same goes for books. Or restaurants.

How many times have you actually done something totally cold?

Now, if something doesn't match one's expectations, does that make it bad? No, of course not.

So, when I went to my first Left Coast Crime conference, I automatically expected it to be very much like SleuthFest, the only other mystery conference I'd attended. It wasn't. While there were many areas where they were different, I'll pick out only one here--the overall format, which was similar in both.

Sluethfest recap - Part 1

What I'm reading: Killing Rain, by Barry Eisler

On Thursday, we looked at the aftermath of the movers putting everything in boxes. Reality hit. We have to deal with the rest! Our schedule didn't require we rush out of the house, but after thinking about dealing with what stays, what we'll trash, and what we might have to add to the "let the movers take this" pile, we decided to go the avoidance route and hit the road.

The drive was uneventful, and after stopping for lunch, we checked into the SleuthFest hotel. The best thing is the king bed. Then there's the coffee maker, the tumblers made of glass, and the bedside lamps, even if one didn't have the three-way bulb.

I reviewed my notes for the panel on Sex that I'm moderating Friday. I hate boring introductions, especially those where the moderator reads the bios from the program, which everyone is capable of reading on their own. So, I asked them to share something more interesting, and this is what I got:

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1. At the age of 12, one read "Forever" by Judy Blume, and considers it a major literary influence.

2. One is a former hairdresser who once weighed 250 pounds

3. One graduated from high school before being legally old enough to drive a car

4. One was a misfit in high school who sported a brown, black and gold Mohawk.

5 St a publisher-sponsored launch of this author's book, models with painted-on bustiers strutted on a makeshift catwalk.

Can you match the above to the panelists below?

A. Leanne Banks
B. Barry Eisler
C. Amy Fetzer
D. Traci Hall
E. Rhonda Pollero

Checked email and found a message that Barry Eisler is stuck in NY and might not make it in time for the panel. I was looking forward to his XY take, but that's part of this business. Nothing is etched in stone, and flexibility is the rule.

Tonight there is an "open mike" session where people can read from their manuscripts in progress. I'm of mixed feelings about this. I'm a very visual person, so hearing someone read aloud doesn't work well. I'm too easily distracted, and likely to forget things like character names. I also have trouble following dialogue when it's read aloud. Yet I know there are others who can process the spoken word very well. Our Friday lunch speaker, David Morrell, said something during his speech that might explain it, at least for me.

"Writers are daydreamers," he said. As a matter of fact, he projected that most of the audience had gone off into a daydream at least five times during his talk.

I agree. I think that's why it's so hard for me to absorb speeches, or readings. Yet there's a huge market for audio books. Do listeners get the same effect as readers? Any thoughts?

I'll be sharing bits and pieces. I'll be scheduling blog posts in advance as we begin our trek across the country. I won't be able to check in as often – we plan to stay at hotels with wifi, but that will still give us access only morning and evening. As you read this, we'll be disconnected from our home ISP. The movers are taking everything to the truck, and tomorrow we close, then hit the road. At least that's the plan. So please say hello. After a long day driving, it'll be good to hear from friends.

Guest Tuesdays will go as scheduled. Tomorrow my guest is Carol A. Strickland with some good advice about time management.

Character Skills

The movers arrived yesterday morning, a crew of two. These guys know what they're doing. I gave them a trip through the house to show what goes and what stays. The lead man walked through it once more repeating what I'd said, and he had it nailed. He said he's been doing it long enough that he can usually tell what to pack and what stays behind in about three minutes, even without a homeowner telling him. He's a third generation mover.


I didn't realize how much "stuff" was on our walls. Never paid much attention to how many pictures they're packing. I never thought about looking at the walls as containing "stuff" that had to be included in the moving mass.

I'd started laying out clothes for SleuthFest, but hubby checked the weather forecast. It looks like it'll be a good 10 degrees colder than last week's predicted temps. So much for my first thoughts. Out with the shorts, in with the longs. The dress for the pool party probably won't work either. So I need to rethink reorganize, and repack. Not my favorite thing to do. I tend to overpack because I can't seem to zero in on exactly what I'll need for each day, each planned activity. It's a skill set I'm lacking.

One thing I consider when creating characters is what they do for a living, or what they would rather be doing for a living. What skills do they need? Where did they acquire them. Or did they? Or maybe they aren't quite good enough at what they do, which leads to conflict.

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In Africa, I asked our Game Drive guide if he enjoyed his work (yes), and why he chose it (couldn't stand the idea of working inside). Do you ever think about all the jobs out there? How many people do you run into on any given day. Bank tellers, dry cleaners, gardeners. What about the person who holds that sign that says "slow" on one side and "stop" on the other when they're working on the roads? How did they pick those jobs? Are they satisfied?


In writing, it's important to give your characters "super powers" even if they're not the sort that one things of in terms of leaping tall buildings or running faster than a speeding bullet. The ability to walk into a room and figure out how many boxes it'll take to pack everything up is a "super power." Author Rhonda Pollero says her husband has the power to be invisible to waiters.

These skills add reality to your characters, and help make them distinctive.

I'm looking forward to getting away from the chaos of moving for a few days, no matter what the weather. Tomorrow's Field Trip is a preview of Colorado – my talented photographer son has supplied some breathtaking pictures of Garden of the Gods.

Please come back – and don't forget about me just because I'm temporarily without Internet and can't "advertise" my postings.

If you're enjoying this, please share.

Narrowing the Focus

What I'm reading: The Laird Who Loved Me, by Karen Hawkins

Note: This post is more about my 'real life' than my writing life, but I'm a guest at "The Writing Bug" talking about Beginnings and Endings if you're looking for a little more meat.

After reading Marie's Tuesday post on procrastination, I'm looking at our upcoming move. I know what she meant when she talked about things being overwhelming. I've tried to force myself to compartmentalize, because when I look at "moving", it's enough to make me want to give away everything we own and start from scratch. Kind of like thinking, I have to write a 100,000 word novel and all I have is a screen that says, "Chapter One." For me, prep for the move would be easier if we knew where we were going to end up. "Colorado" is a pretty wide target, just like thinking about "The End" when I start writing. I know in a romance, it'll be the HEA, and in a mystery, the crime will be solved, but that's about it.

I was going to illustrate this post with pictures of what our house looks like now, but I decided to spare you that.

We've narrowed our move down to two general vicinities, but can't really do serious looking until our deal is closed. Each step forward gives us more confidence; our buyers have already forked over some bucks for inspections, etc., and are looking for finance options that will skirt the need for an appraisal. Those are good things. But nothing is for certain until after we close.

However, since our Realtor has scheduled the day and time, we're assuming it's all a go, and have our "to-do" list. And a peek at the calendar says it's less than two weeks away!

RIP Robert B. Parker

Although I've joined the Twitter set, I haven't really found that it's something I want to spend hours a day tracking. I've yet to figure out the nuances. I have under 200 followers, and even filtering for those who I find have useful or interesting things to say, I can't imagine reading all those tweets. What do the people with thousands of followers do?

Aside from finding some interesting blog posts and articles that were tweeted by others, I spend very little time with the application. But I checked out a tweet by Sarah of Smart Bitches and found a recipe for a Red Bean and Barley soup that sounded good enough to send me to the store for the ingredients I'd need to make it. Yummy.


And it was via Twitter that I found out, sadly, that Robert B. Parker died. I went to my first SleuthFest conference because he was the keynote speaker. He was funny, friendly, and SleuthFest became one of my 'must go' conferences from then on. Indirectly, he connected me with a fantastic group of mystery writers and because of SleuthFest, I've continued to pursue writing mysteries as well as my romantic suspense books. I highly recommend it as a small conference with some big opportunities (I met the editor who bought When Danger Calls at SleuthFest).

Plots, Characters and Genre Blending

What I'm reading: The Kissing Game, by Suzanne Brockmann

First – Thanks, thanks, thanks to Lee Lofland for sharing that piece of his life yesterday. (If you haven't read it, scroll down.)

Next month, I'll be on a panel with a group of mystery writers at the Romantic Times convention in Orlando. Our moderator has given us some flexibility with our discussion topic, and I think I'm going to talk about expectations of each genre, and how to blend them, especially since most of the other panelists are straight mystery writers.

In the broadest sense:

Romance: hero and heroine meet, fall in love and have a happily ever after (or promise thereof) at the end of the book. What happens in between is what makes the readers care.

Mystery: some kind of crime is committed, someone figures it out, and the bad guy is caught.

Obviously, those are simplistic explanations, but if a book is on the romance shelf and the hero and heroine don't fall in love and have a potentially happy ending … well, someone put the book on the wrong shelf. Move it to the "literary" section. If the detective doesn't solve the crime by the end of the book, readers will be upset.

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I'm well into chapter 3 of my new manuscript. I'm establishing the mystery first, so I can structure the story around it. It's still blurry, but I'm seeing some shapes forming in the mist. It's not going to be a straight detective story, but a cop showed up in Chapter Two, so there's going to be some kind of investigation. I have almost pinned down the Secret From the Past which is going to be the underlying connection that will tie everything together. I don't need all the details yet. I know there are plotters tearing their hair out, but I'm establishing back story for two secondary characters and The Secret will be in there.

As the author, what I have to figure out is why the secret needs to be kept a secret. It's got to be believable for the reader. So why does my character need to know this secret? What does he lose if he doesn't find it? What does he gain if he does? And why do the characters keeping the secret need to keep it hidden?

Let's face it—there's no story if Character A says, "Hi, Granny. You know that book in the attic with the silver pendant with the funny inscription hidden inside? I need it or someone will kill me. Can I have it?" And if Granny says, "Sure, dear, help yourself," then the book is over right then and there. Characters have to have choices. And they have to be tough ones. If I do A, then this happens which is bad news. But if I do B, then that happens, which is worse."

So, once I have the basic premise sketched out, I need the characters. I know my heroine. Usually the hero comes first, but for some reason, I'm connecting with her. If I look at my computer files, the last 3 books have been in folders bearing the hero's name. This one says "Megan."

In a romance, readers want both the hero and heroine's stories. I remember being at my first SleuthFest and waiting around for my agent appointment, chatting with a mystery writer. He could not understand how you could write a book with TWO main protagonists. He was of the mindset that you had a detective who solved a crime, and there was your story. His eyes glazed over as he tried to grasp the concept of separate but equal protagonists, each with an individual character arc AND a mystery plot.

Okay, 'separate but equal' isn't quite right. In any romance, even with both hero and heroine sharing the page, it's going to end up being more one character's story than the other. Not by much, but it's going to be a 'his book' or a 'her book.' The one I'm writing is definitely leaning into 'her book' territory.

That might be directly related to the fact that I'm not sure who the 'his' in this book is going to be yet. I've got two strong male characters, each with his own problems to deal with, and the heroine is connected to both. I've added a third POV character for the first time.

I did pick up one trick at SleuthFest that I think I'm going to try (especially since I have all the components). Kris Montee (half of the PJ Parrish team) did a workshop on pacing, but she started by explaining that she hated to plot. Her sister, on the other hand, plotted everything. The technique they ended up using was to write the necessary scenes and plot points on sticky notes. Different colored notes for each POV character. Then, by moving them across a white board, they could see where each piece of the puzzle had to fit.

There are some 'givens' in any romance, and likewise, in any mystery. In the former, there's going to be a meeting of hero and heroine, they'll have their first kiss, and so on. In a mystery, there's going to be the discovery of the crime, the suspects, lots of clues and red herrings.

Since I have only the barest of outlines when I start, but lots of ideas for 'stuff' that should happen, I thought I'd give this technique a shot.

Mourning the Loss of a Mentor -- and Friend

What I'm reading: Fireside, by Susan Wiggs

Despite all the wonderful speakers, panels and writer camaraderie, this year's SleuthFest had one missing piece. Author Barbara Parker. Her cancer had recurred, and she was spending her final days in a hospice, surrounded by family.

She was one of the first authors I met at my very first conference, and I was impressed by her workshop on crafting a mystery. I'd never read anything of hers, so I began with her first book in the "Suspicion" series. Even though I thought I'd created my 'perfect hero' in my first attempt at writing a novel, her Anthony had my Randy beat.

When I attended my first SleuthFest, I submitted my first chapter for her workshop, one in which she would take five authors' work, and discuss and critique them. She didn't accept it for the workshop, but she returned my pages with, "let's discuss this" written on the bottom.

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I hung around after the final session, and over lunch (I paid, of course), she proceeded to tell me that I had writing talent, but needed to learn how to structure a story. It took two more tries before she accepted my work for one of the 'hot seats.' Barbara never pulled her punches. I recall being glad she'd rejected my first attempt when she told one of the authors there was nothing wrong with his writing that a good pair of scissors couldn't fix.

But she always had time to talk to beginners, treating them as though it would only be a matter of minutes before they were published. I showed her the first pages of the mystery short story I was trying to write, and her eyes opened wide. "You have really gotten better!" she said. She asked me to send her the whole thing, and after she finished, she told me to call her. We discussed it for almost an hour (I think she would have gone on, but her cell phone battery was fading.).

Barbara Parker passed away last Saturday. The tributes pouring onto the Florida MWA chapter loop all say the same thing. She shared. She never let you feel there was an "I'm published. You're not" attitude. She will be sorely missed.

And, although I can't pretend that my qualifications come close to hers, in the spirit of sharing, I will send anyone who requests it a copy of my Dialogue Basics handout from the SleuthFest 2009 panel. All you have to do is send an email to the address on the sidebar requesting it. It'll be a PDF file .

Tomorrow, my guest will be Jennifer Johnson, who's talking about one of my favorite things. Food. Please come back.

Being Green at SleuthFest

Today's post is a bit different. I'm one of a small group of "ambassadors" for a new website, Go Green, Read e. I'll be bouncing around the blogosphere for the next 12 weeks, discussing the concept of Green.


The concept is far from new. Way back when I was in high school and college, Ecology was the 'new' thing. The buzzword then was simply "conservation." Now it's "green," but the premise is the same. There are only so many resources on the planet, and if we want there to be anything left for future generations, we have to look beyond ourselves and farther into the future than next week.

Example: Gas prices skyrocketed. Gas guzzler car sales plummeted. People stayed at home more. But what happens when the prices drop? Do people consider that maybe their Hummer isn't the best vehicle on the road from a conservation standpoint, or do they simply sigh with relief that it doesn't cost an entire paycheck to fill it up and go back to their old ways?

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I've been talking about SleuthFest this week. Conferences usually take place at hotels, and since I live in a state that depends a great deal on tourism for its economy, there are a lot of people staying in hotels year round. As a matter of fact, about half the visitors to the state stay in hotels. Most of these folks want to enjoy what Florida has to offer – beaches, nature preserves, and the great outdoors.

On the wall by the registration counter of the Hilton in Deerfield Beach, where SleuthFest was held, was a certificate stating that the hotel was a participant in Florida Green Lodging. This is a program under the Florida Department of Environmental Protection. It's designed to reduce waste and conserve natural resources, enabling everyone to enjoy what they came to Florida for—not just today, but way down the road.

When you go to a hotel, especially if it's one on the higher end of the spectrum and you're paying major bucks for your room, you expect luxuries. But how many do you really need? The Hilton makes it clear that unless you request otherwise, they're only going to change your sheets every 3 days. They also encourage you to re-use towels.

What does the hotel have to do? Some things to look for: recycling in guest rooms, the lobby, vending or eating areas; compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFL’s) throughout the hotel; low flow toilets, showerheads and faucets; linen and/or towel reuse programs; the use of “green” cleaners and Energy Star rated electronics and appliances. Each hotel has a slightly different program, but they have to meet with the approval of the DEP before they can be designated a "green" property.

Perks for the hotels who participate? Our governor requires that any state meetings be held at a Green Lodging hotel. In addition, they're listed on the DEP website, so anyone who's looking for environmentally conscious properties can find them.

And, as part of my agreement to be an 'ambassador', I'm required to close with the following:

Terry Odell is a romance author and avid eBook reader, blogging this month for All Romance eBooks' Go Green/Read e Campaign. Find out more about the Go Green/Read e Campaign at www.gogreenreade.com. To learn more about Terry, visit her website at www.terryodell.com. You can find Terry Odell's ebooks and thousands of other eBooks on-line at www.allromanceebooks.com.

SleuthFest Followup - Characters

What I'm reading: Sudden Prey, by John Sandford

Continuing my SleuthFest recap:

This year, the conference expanded from a strictly panel format to include a workshop track, where a single presenter addressed a specific topic. S.J. Rozan spoke about characters, and since for me, what's a book without characters you care about, it was my choice for that slot.

She began by pointing out that of all the creative media, writers deal with content, not impressions. She lives in New York, and was (like most of us, but perhaps more so because of it) impacted by 9-11. Whereas an artist can paint or a musician can compose a piece of music to explore their emotions, writers have to tell a story.

Writing, she went on to say, opens a portal between the conscious and subconscious minds. Characters are a part of the author; they're bits and pieces of the author's subconscious peeking through. And, she made clear that characterization is not character. It's not a description of his wavy brown hair, his muscular physique, his size twelve shoes. It's not what the character does, it's why he does it. Character is revealed in a character's actions, behavior, activity and dialogue.

For example:

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You're driving down the road. You see an accident. There's an unconscious man lying next to his car. Other cars speed on by. One stops. A man gets out and rushes to the victim, kneeling beside him. What's your impression of his character? He's offering first aid, so he's a good person, right? But what if he takes the man's wallet and then walks away?

She used another example that's been used at so many conference workshops: The DaVinci Code, one of the few books where plot was more important than character. In that book many of the characters were cartoons, but the leads were cardboard. Why? Because there was no internal conflict. A character must want something, however trivial, on every page. She asked us whether we're ever completely content, and if so, for how long?

After that, she put us to work. We were given four minutes to write a description of a room using all five senses, from a specific character's POV. (Why don't pens come with cut and paste?) After that, we had another four minutes to write the same character, same room, but this time the character was going to steal something. The last exercise was the same, but this time, the character had just said good-bye to someone he or she loved.

Much as I dread having to create at someone's command, the exercises do help to remind us that when we're writing, it's vital to make sure it's our character on the page, and that we remain in the background.

SleuthFest Followup - starting at the end.

What I'm reading: Promises in Death, by JD Robb

Back from another wonderful SleuthFest. The organizers go all out to make everyone welcome. I remember being in awe of authors who would actually talk to me, answer my questions, and not frantically search for a way to escape. This year, I realized that I'm now one of the "authors", and people ask me questions. I still have a tendency to turn around to see who they're really talking to.

I found something interesting at every session. Often, I wished for a clone so I could attend two at the same time.

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Starting at the end, our closing breakfast speakers addressed the world of publishing. Throughout the conference, as in any writer's conference I've attended, the mantra is "Don't give up. Persistence separates the authors with books on the shelves from those with books under their beds (or, more likely now, on their hard drives).

Neil Nyren of Putnam pointed out that over his career in publishing, there have always been down times, yet they've always recovered. Both keynote speakers, Brad Meltzer and John Hart, spoke of their rejections. I sat with the agent who had been on the YA panel I moderated, and we talked about rejection letters, and how they often are total opposites – for example, here are bits from two of mine:

The ms. opens with a bang and the pacing never lets up—I’m afraid I wasn’t quite as taken with the depictions of the romance between Dalton and Miri, which felt, to my mind, a tad forced.

There is some nice sexual tension here, but ultimately the pace of the novel feels too slow for romantic suspense.

He told me that he tells his authors to focus on the fact that there is something positive in each rejection, and that it's a matter of finding that ONE person who likes all of the pieces.

But why am I starting with the closing event? Because one of the topics brought up was the concept of branding. Neil Nyren pointed out that authors shouldn't try to brand themselves too early, because it takes four or five books before they've settled into their niche. He spoke of the evolution of covers for authors, how they might begin as illustrations depicting the content of the book. Eventually, there is some underlying similarity in the covers so readers know who wrote it. Lee Child's covers look very much alike. I got home and looked at the next book in my TBR pile. If ever there was an illustration of 'branding', it would be this book. We can all dream of the day!



Tomorrow, my guest is Judy Nickles, who is eagerly awaiting the release date for her first novel. She's going to share some of the ways she goes from blank page to one filled with stories. Please come by. I'll continue with SleuthFest postings on Wednesday.

Surprises and SleuthFest

What I'm reading: Tempt the Devil, by Anna Campbell

First, thanks to Maris for sharing her experiences in the world of a writer. This is a short post today--I'm way behind in SleuthFest prep.

Some surprises: I got an email saying that HIDDEN FIRE was now available in print from the publisher. No advance warning, other than they'd told me it would be out in time for the book signing at the Romantic Times conference in late April. Thus, I spent much more time than I'd planned trying to put together an excerpt booklet so I could have them ready for SleuthFest.

In other news, I got an email from Night Owl Romance saying a reviewer had read What's in a Name?, loved it, and wanted to know what else I'd written. I haven't seen the review yet, but ego-stroking is always a good thing.

I'm going to be busy with SleuthFest preparations. We leave tomorrow, so I might be putting the next installment of Homicide- Hussey up a day early.

In the meantime, here's a quick peek at the opening section of my dialogue handout. Time permitting, I'll figure out the most effective way to share it.

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Some Dialogue Basics

First, the absolute nitty-gritty. If you don't understand these first four rules, your work will probably never get beyond the form rejection letter. If any of these aren't automatic, you should take a refresher course in basic writing.

1. Use quotation marks to indicate words which are spoken by characters.
2. Always start a new paragraph when changing speakers. You cannot have two people speaking in the same paragraph.
3. Make sure the reader knows who is speaking.
4. Use correct punctuation, capitalization and spacing.

Assuming you've got those down, what next? I suggest the following two books as handy references, not only for dialogue.

The First Five Pages, A Writer's Guide to Staying Out of the Rejection Pile, by Noah Lukeman

Self Editing for Fiction Writers – How to Edit Yourself into Print, by Renni Browne and Dave King

Elaboration and examples later ... please come back.

SleuthFest Prep - and real life headaches

What I'm reading: Dead Even, by Brad Meltzer

SleuthFest preparations continue. For one, I'm reading a book by one of the featured speakers. Next, I sent my panelists the outline for their session and received the information from the moderators of the panels I'm on. They're taking different approaches, so it should be fun.

But a mild digression to those "Things One Can't Control." On Saturday, I got a letter from a collection agency telling me I was a very naughty person and owed a substantial sum of money. Trying to decipher the references, the best I could surmise was that it was for MasterCard charges. Only thing is, I don't have a MasterCard. And they got my name backward. Why do these sorts of things always show up when you can't get in touch with anyone? All you get is two days of knots-in-the-stomach frustration. At best, it's a simple error. At worst, it's some sort of identity theft. We'll see what happens. But back to SleuthFest:

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The moderator of the romance-oriented panel (cleverly titled "Kiss the Detective") wants a discussion format. She's got about 15 topics suggested. It'll be interesting to see how many we cover, and to what extent. Also, since SleuthFest is a mystery writers conference, there will undoubtedly be some talk about where the line between a mystery book and a romantic suspense book should be drawn. Readers go to specific areas of bookstores and libraries with expectations of what the books will be like.

My other panel is Writing Great Dialogue. It's definitely geared toward the how-to side of writing. The moderator for this one sent her list of questions, and has earmarked them for each panelist, although we're only the starting point. She's also suggesting we use passages from our own books as illustrations. The ones she's highlighted for me:

1. Do you eavesdrop on people around you?
(That's a no-brainer. Duh, yes, next question please)

2. What about dialect? How much is too much? How do you determine the 'correct' spelling of dialect?
This one is more interesting. I've gone through When Danger Calls, where I've got a Texan as a secondary character and picked a few passages where I make his speech distinctive. I'm a minimalist. I definitely don't want to get into any clever phonetic spellings -- that just slows the reader down. I don't get beyond the occasional dropping of the final 'g' (darlin') I rely on the reader to 'hear' it when I simply mention his 'easy drawl.'

I'd rather show dialect in speech patterns and vocabulary choices. There are also a couple other 'non-English' speakers in the book. I might throw in a word in their language if it's easily recognized. Otherwise, if it's necessary, I'll find a way to translate it on the page.

3. How is dialogue misused?
I don't think I'm going to use any passages from my books as examples of this one!

4. How do you use dialogue to move the story along?
I've got several examples for this one to show how pace can be controlled with the style of dialogue.

Also, I prepared a 6 page handout covering some of the basics. If there's any interest, I can make it available here and/or on my website.

Meanwhile, come back tomorrow for my guest, Maris Soule, who's been writing since 1979 and is going to share some of the changes she's seen.

Everything in Moderation

What I'm reading: Evil Without a Face, by Jordan Dane

What I'm working on: SleuthFest panels.

Continuing with the SleuthFest topic this week….

I'm used to doing workshops or solo presentations, so the panel format at SleuthFest creates a whole new set of preparation anxieties. In a panel, the speakers are at the mercy of a moderator and the kindness of the other panelists. I'm keeping that in mind as I deal with the two panels I'm on, plus the third that I'm moderating.



A good moderator can set the tone for the entire session. The job: introduce the panelists. My take: There's a bio of every speaker in the program. The attendees can read. The moderators who simply parrot that back lose points in my book. I've asked my panelists to provide at least one or two tidbits that are new.

In addition to discussing a writing topic, the other—albeit it unspoken—function of the workshops is to give authors a little face time to showcase their books. So, the moderator needs to give each panelist a moment or two for the dreaded BSP. The good panelists will work their books into their presentations rather than do commercials.

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Next, the moderator is expected to keep things moving according to the schedule. At SleuthFest, things run tight, with fifty-minute sessions. Moderators need to watch the clock, allow time for questions, AND make sure the speakers can exit because this conference schedules ten minute book-signings of panelists during the breaks between sessions. It's one of the few things I'm not fond of, because ten minutes isn't really long enough to participate and get to the next session on time. However, they also have an end-of-the-day signing for all speakers, which helps.

Moderators have to keep things 'fair.' This might mean having to cut off a Big Name to make sure everyone gets a chance to speak. Some moderators will ask a single question, then run down the panel for everyone's response. Others will ask specific questions of specific panelists. Some start joining into the discussion themselves.

I'm sure it's no surprise that the panelists are aware of the questions beforehand. The panel I'm moderating is on the Young Adult mystery market. (Not exactly my area of expertise). The interesting aspect of the panel, and its challenge, is that I've got 3 speakers. One is a multi-published YA author. Another has written numerous books but also has an editing business. The third is an agent. Each will have a very different slant to the topic.

Which leads to one of my little peeves about the format. The workshops have titles, and very little description in the program. So the attendees have to base their choices of which workshop to attend on the name, which is often more clever than informative. At least for the panel I'm moderating, "The Kid Sleuth" seems clear enough. However, it's my job to make sure the panelists remain true to the "writing a YA mystery" aspect of the panel and don't stray too far afield, no matter how valuable the information might be, because there's nothing more frustrating at a conference than to sit in on a session that isn't what you expected, or wanted. Odds are, you passed up another one that looked equally promising.

Tomorrow – Detective Mark Hussey is back, talking about the time he found himself on the cutting edge of setting new policy.

SleuthFest 2009

What I'm reading: Mind Prey, by John Sandford

Yesterday, J L Wilson's post on small conferences generated a lot of interest. I'd mentioned I'll be going to SleuthFest, which is geared toward mystery writers.

Way back when writing was more of an experiment, something in the "can I learn how to do that?" category, my local crit group encouraged me to go to a writing conference. I went to a 'general' conference in St Petersburg, followed by a small RWA conference in Melbourne. Very different, although being surrounded by other people who have voices constantly playing in their heads was encouraging.


When I saw that Robert B. Parker was going to be the keynote speaker at a mystery conference, I decided to attend that one as well, although it was a little farther afield. Left hubby at home and drove the 4 hours to Fort Lauderdale (which was a major trip to do solo back then). At the time, I thought I was writing a mystery. Turns out, it was more of a "romantic suspense" according to industry labels, but what did I know? I had a detective, a crime and a victim. So what if they fell in love along the way, right?

Keep Reading...

I remember applying for a slot in Barbara Parker's workshop for a critique session. I think I got the best of both worlds on that one when she didn't accept my pages among those she would critique, because she certainly pulls no punches when she discusses the writing. "Nothing wrong with this that a pair of scissors wouldn't cure," sticks with me all these years later. But she'd jotted a note on my returned pages and said she'd like to discuss the chapter with me. Over lunch (I paid, of course), she pointed out strengths and weaknesses – 'You've got the writing down, now learn about structure."

I also remember having an agent appointment with Dominic Abel. I was clueless. Totally. I knew he represented some big name favorites of mine, and had no delusions he'd be the least bit interested in my humble attempts at a story, which wasn't even a mystery. He said that didn't matter; if I could get readers to love Sarah, my heroine, that was the important thing. And he asked for a partial, which I thought was a given at a conference, but others said he only requested a few submissions. He wrote a very nice and personal rejection letter, too!

It took 3 tries before I managed to snag a spot in the "hot seat," and I hit the jackpot big time with feedback both from Barbara Parker's and PJ Parrish's workshops on Third Degree Thursdays. And by now, I also felt I had something to contribute during the discussions.

Year three, hubby came along, more because he had to give a short talk at a nearby university, and a 4 hour drive for a 30 minute brown bag lunch seminar seemed to be an inefficient use of his time. The King Tut exhibit was also in town, so with 3 reasons to make the trip, he tagged along. He's a biologist, specializing in marine mammals. Usually dead ones. So he had an absolute blast in the forensics tracks, and has been coming along ever since. I had to nudge him (ok, stronger than a nudge) to get the books he bought autographed. He "didn't want to bother the authors." Duh!He's learning.

I've met Christopher Whitcomb who gave me an ARC of his book, with an inscription I can't share. And Robert Crais and Michael Connelly showed much patience with my blathering about having grown up in Los Angeles while they signed books for me. I discovered Lee Child and Jack Reacher. This year's featured guests are John Hart and Brad Meltzer, who will probably end up on my readling list.

And last year, I was on the other side of the table for the first time. I moderated a panel, and participated in another. I signed my books. I met great people. This is one conference that stays on my list. I can't wait to get back.