Killer Nashville

Most writers go to conferences hoping to pique the interest of an agent or publisher.

But Day One of Killer Nashville proved to me that the true benefit of such conferences is interacting with, and learning from, other writers.

Inspiration comes in many forms. From William Kent Krueger, I learned that his idea of a series about murder mysteries occurring in grand resort hotels throughout North America is still waiting to be done. From Hartley Stevens, I learned that a creative book launch party can involve having the places that appear in your book actually come to life at the party. And from Cheryl Hollon, I learned that a good cozy mystery should always have a pun in the title and a dog (or knitting needles) on the cover.

Over the next three days, I look forward to learning so much more both about the process of writing and how to market murder mysteries — lessons I plan to incorporate in “Murder Becomes Mayfair,” coming to booksellers in May of 2017.

Oh, and I also learned that when the writers at a particular table talk all about themselves for 5 minutes and never ask you about you or your books, it is time to move on… 😉