Blogs beyond borders
The titles of the panels I'll moderate at Bouchercon next week, combined with their geographically diverse makeup, leave me with the obvious choice of talking about setting, about a sense of place and how authors create it.
Fortunately, five of the ten writers on the two panels already do that regularly in group blogs with fellow crime authors. Michael Sears and Stanley Trollip, who write together as Michael Stanley, contribute to the Murder Is Everywhere blog, as do Yrsa Sigurðardóttir and Cara Black. Christopher G. Moore is part of International Crime Authors Reality Check.
The first thing to know is that these are not authors' promotional Web sites. You'll find no book excerpts here, no blurbs, no fancy pop-ups and graphics. Instead, the authors write seriously, and sometimes whimsically, about the countries where they live, write, and set their books.
Thus Yrsa shares thoughts on the pronunciation of her name and the difficulty of rendering that pronunciation in a post that expands to take in Icelandic phonetics, conventions of naming, and mythology.
Or Cara Black, whose most recent novel, Murder in the Palais Royal, takes us briefly underground, spends a bit more quality subterranean time in a post that probes Paris' medieval past as well as her own literary history.
Sears writes about South Africa's pride in the success of soccer's World Cup. Moore explains that "In Thailand, highchairs illustrate the great urban and rural cultural divide."
So check out their posts for informative and informal lessons and stories on France, Iceland, South Africa and Thailand. And if you like the blogs, check out the books.
Fortunately, five of the ten writers on the two panels already do that regularly in group blogs with fellow crime authors. Michael Sears and Stanley Trollip, who write together as Michael Stanley, contribute to the Murder Is Everywhere blog, as do Yrsa Sigurðardóttir and Cara Black. Christopher G. Moore is part of International Crime Authors Reality Check.
The first thing to know is that these are not authors' promotional Web sites. You'll find no book excerpts here, no blurbs, no fancy pop-ups and graphics. Instead, the authors write seriously, and sometimes whimsically, about the countries where they live, write, and set their books.
Thus Yrsa shares thoughts on the pronunciation of her name and the difficulty of rendering that pronunciation in a post that expands to take in Icelandic phonetics, conventions of naming, and mythology.
Or Cara Black, whose most recent novel, Murder in the Palais Royal, takes us briefly underground, spends a bit more quality subterranean time in a post that probes Paris' medieval past as well as her own literary history.
Sears writes about South Africa's pride in the success of soccer's World Cup. Moore explains that "In Thailand, highchairs illustrate the great urban and rural cultural divide."
So check out their posts for informative and informal lessons and stories on France, Iceland, South Africa and Thailand. And if you like the blogs, check out the books.
================
(Michael Sears, Stanley Trolli, Christopher G. Moore and Yrsa Sigurðardóttir will be members of my "Stamp of Death" panel at Bouchercon 2010 in San Francisco, Thursday, Oct. 14, at 3 p.m. Cara Black will be on my "Flags of Terror" panel Friday, Oct. 15, at 10 a.m.)
© Peter Rozovsky 2010
© Peter Rozovsky 2010
Labels: Bouchercon 2010, Cara Black, Christopher G. Moore, conventions, International Crime Authors Reality Check, Michael Stanley, Murder Is Everywhere, Yrsa Sigurðardóttir
posted by Peter Rozovsky at 2:33 AM
12 Comments:
Wish I could be there, especially this year in San Francisco. A couple of my friends are in charge this year and I just KNOW it's going to be the best Bouchercon ever. EVERYONE is going to be there. But moi.
I've only ever been to one Bouchercon (the one in Las Vegas) but I have very fond memories.
Have an extra beer for me, Peter!
Sorry, Bouchercons are dry affairs. No one drinks there.
HA!!!
Hmm, I guess you really have been to a Bouchercon, then.
Who are your friends who are in charge? I know Judy Bobalik and the Jordans, and I had a nice chat about noir with Eddie Muller at Bouchercon 2008 in Baltimore.
Rae Helmsworth and Janine Wilson. Janine is handling reservations, etc. and Rae put the thing together, so I suspect it's going to be a great time for all. I mean, San Francisco - how could it miss?
I know Eddie though I'm sure he doesn't remember, we met in Las Vegas after I'd championed his first two fiction books, THE DISTANCE and SHADOW BOXER when I was reviewing for January, years ago. Eddie is an extraordinary source for film noir info as I'm sure you know - a regular Mr. Noir.
I hope you get a chance to meet up with Rae and Janine this year. If Robert Crais is there, make sure and say hello to him as well. He's a fun guy and a terrific writer. Oh, and don't forget to look for Lee Child and say hello. Tell him Yvette sent you. Ha!
I met Eddie briefly at NoirCon 2008 in Philadelphia but only really talked to him in Baltimore. It was good to able to compliment him on his commentaries on some of the Film Noir Classics series. He wears many noir hats, and he's an amiable chap, as well
I don't know Lee Child, but I may well eat and drink at his expense, as is a habit for so many at Bouchercon.
An fyi on the first blog post I could find that's even slightly relevant:
Scandinavian Crime Fiction website reports that Soho Crime will publish more translated books featuring Irene Huss, written by Helene Thurston. This is good news, about a great character.
Thanks. That is good and surprising news. The Scandinavian Crime Fiction site was reporting on a item that had appeared on Glenn Harper's International Noir site. Like Glenn, I had heard and was under the impression that Soho did not plan to publish any more of the Helene Tursten novels beyond the three translations on its current list.
But a Soho representative does, indeed, tell Glenn that more Tursten is on the way, though plans are not yet final.
Having looked at some of the Bouchercon panels, there is no way I could choose panels to attend. So many look fantastic, including many interviews.
Another fyi--in checking out the Rap Sheet, read an excellent interview in two parts by Ali Karim, with Börge Hellström and Anders Roslund, authors of "Three Seconds."
They are interesting, discussing several topics. Roslund addresses the age-old issue of "genre fiction" and "literary fication." Of course, he comes down on the right side, and says it so well.
I saw that interview but thought I'd hold off reading it until I'd read the authors' book. But it sounds as if I ought to go ahead and read it right away. Thanks.
I don't think I'll read the book (too hard-boiled), but I liked the interview so much and I came away from it appreciating the authors and their takes on many issues.
Hmm, now I'll have to read the interview. Thanks.
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