Attendees at the 2011 Left Coast Conference in Santa Fe voted for the following winners. The Lefty Award for the Best Humorous Mystery Novel: The Pot Thief Who Studied Einstein—J. Michael Orenduff The Bruce Alexander Memorial Historical Mystery Award for the Best Historical Mystery Novel, Events pre-1950–The Mapping of Love and Death–Jacqueline Winspear The Hillerman … Read more
I’ve never heard of someone demanding a bookseller remove an “offensive” book from their store before. I don’t think as a bookseller, I’ve ever encountered it. But some others have, and it begs the question, where does it end? The bookseller in the article questions his ordering practices–wondering if what he decides to purchase and … Read more
Tomorrow evening the annual Lefty awards will be announced. Left Coast Crime’s annual convention is running currently, and people interested in attenting next year’s event can sign up early and get a discount. http://www.leftcoastcrime.org/2011/awards.html
I remember each and every book I ever misplaced, left behind , just plain lost. There haven’t been that many of them, because losing a book when in the middle, or even finished, is a major trauma for an avid reader. And I like to avoid that kind of pain. Back in the early 80s, … Read more
There is a underground subset of authors who take on the job of writing for someone else, with no credit to show for it. They get paid for the privilege but that’s all. There have been quite a few throughout the years–most ‘celebrities’ have no talent for creating sentences, so turn to the publisher to … Read more
Politically correct or not, I love the artwork on old paperbacks, magazine covers, and dust jackets depicting barely clad babes. I go as far as to collect them. And I find I’m not alone, by a long shot. I belong to flickr, the website for sharing photos. But besides pictures, there’s an underground section filled … Read more
Popular soft boiled mystery author, Nancy Martin, has some wise words to impart to those who are interested in the world of writing, and being published. I was especially interested in how she was afraid to learn about the craft of writing for fear it may quash her creativity. I honestly think this way about … Read more
Why collect books? Why indeed. I asked myself the same question in the bathtub, snapping the binding of the latest Sue Grafton. I love to read but why bother to keep the book (just more clutter) let alone get a signature, put mylar on the dust jacket and place it it on a book shelf? The … Read more
