Today, I'm happy to host multi-published mystery author, speaker, and more, the amazing Marilyn (F.M.) Meredith, who offers valuable insights on conferences and conventions. - Morgan Mandel
Visit her at http://fictionforyou.com and follow her blog at http://marilynmeredith.blogspot.com/
ABOUT MYSTERY
CONFERENCES AND CONVENTIONS
by Marilyn Meredith
Probably everyone who reads this will know the difference,
but just in case, here’s my explanation. Conferences are more of the “how to”
variety, how to write a mystery, how to create convincing characters, how to
make sure you get your forensics right, how to kill someone off in a new and
innovative manner, and so on. A mystery convention is geared to fans, those
wonderful readers who love to read (and buy) mysteries and actually enjoy
listening to authors talk about how they came to write their mystery, or how
they did the research for it, or how they created their characters, and so on.
Many mystery writers attend both. At a mystery conference
there might be one of the presenters telling how they do all of the above
mentioned how-tos and of course, they will figure out how to talk about their
own book in a subtle manner so those listening will be curious and want to buy
their books.
At the convention, the mystery writer hopes to sparkle and
entertain in the hopes that those listening will be eager to buy his or her
book.
I’ve gone to lots of both types of mystery confabs. The
biggest of course is Bouchercon. This one is held all over the country and has
the biggest attendance of both fans and mystery writers. This is the place to
see some of the biggest and most popular mystery writers in the business. It
can be pretty overwhelming at times. You might make a new friend and never be
able to find them again among the throngs of people. Long Beach, CA is the location
for 2014.
Left Coast Crime is the second largest mystery con and
always held on the left coast (though once that left coast was in Britain and
another time in El Paso TX, and yet another in Hawaii. It’s smaller than
Bouchercon, though many big name authors are always in attendance and lots of
wonderful fans. This year it will be in Monterey, CA.
A fairly new one is Thrillerfest, always in New York, with
lots of big name authors and opportunities to learn about the craft of writing
thrillers.
Then there are other smaller cons and conferences like Love
is Murder which is always in Chicago
A writing conference that is rather unique is the Public
Safety Writers Association. The organization was started by a law enforcement
officer for law enforcement officers who write or want to write. Over the years
it has embraced other public safety fields and people who write fiction and
non-fiction about any of the public safety fields and have included mystery
writers.
This is the smallest of all the cons that I’ve mentioned,
but it has top-notch experts in forensics and all aspects of law enforcement as
well as publishers and editors on hand. Because it’s small, there is ample
opportunity to network. Anyone who wants to be on a panel is welcomed. To learn
more about the PSWA conference go to: http://www.publicsafetywriter.com
Other areas of the country hold smaller conferences too, way
too many to list here, but you can easily do an Internet search and find them.
Some conferences and the hotels they are held in are more
expensive than others, if you’re on a strict budget, that might influence you
too.
My advice to anyone wanting to go to any convention or
conference, register early. If at all possible, stay in the hotel where the con
is being held. Plan to get to the conference a day ahead of time so you don’t
miss anything. While at the conference, be friendly, talk to everyone. This is
the best way to meet people. If you don’t have anyone to go to dinner with, ask
someone to go with you. If they already have plans, ask the next person. Hand
out your business card to everyone. If you’re fortunate enough to be on a
panel, smile a lot, be funny, tell about your book but don’t go on and on about
it, and don’t hog the panel.
Go to the panels that interest you the most. Hang out in the
bar in the evenings—you don’t have to drink—just get acquainted with folks. And
again, talk to people. Find out why they’re at the con—are they a writer, find
out what they write, are they a reader? Tell them about your book.
And on a practical note, wear comfortable shoes and always
have a sweater with you, sometimes the conference rooms are way too cold.
What are your favorite cons and why?
Marilyn Meredith
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Marilyn’s
latest mystery is Spirit Shapes: Ghost hunters stumble upon a murdered teen in a
haunted house. Deputy Tempe Crabtree's investigation pulls her into a whirlwind
of restless spirits, good and evil, intertwined with the past and the present,
and demons and angels at war.
Please welcome Marilyn Meredith to Book Beat Babes by Leaving a comment.
