Bouchercon 2009 report

November 9th, 2009

Bouchercon 2009, Elementary, My Dear Indy, has now come and gone, and the Midwest Chapter has much to be proud of.

Awards

First, we were well represented in both Barry and Anthony Award nominations.  For the Barry, we had

•    Sean Chercover, William Kent Krueger, and Michael Koryta; Best Novel
•    Michael Stanley (half of which is our own Stanley Trollip) and Julie Kramer; Best First Novel
•    Julie Hyzy and Max Allen Collins: Best Paperback Original.

For the Anthony, we had

•    Sean Chercover and William Kent Kruger; Best Novel
•    Julie Kramer; Best First Novel
•    Julie Hyzy and Max Allen Collins; Best Paperback Original
•    Jeffrey Marks; Best Critical Non-fiction
•    Sean Chercover; Best Short Story
•    Jon & Ruth Jordan and Gary Warren Niebuhr; Special Service Awards.

Those nominations make a great statement about the talent in this chapter.

And the winners were:

•    Julie Hyzy, our MWMWA President, took home both the Barry and the Anthony for State of the Onion.
•    Sean Chercover took home the Anthony for “A Sleep Not Unlike Death” from Hardcore Hardboiled.
•    Jeffrey Marks the Anthony for Anthony Boucher: A Biobibliography,
•    Jon & Ruth Jordan won the Anthony’s Special Service category.

Congratulations to all the nominees and the winners!

Participation and MWA HOT TICKET

Because Indianapolis is in our chapter, we had many, many members there.  I think I counted nearly 50 active and affiliate members, and we were represented on at least 28 panels.

Plus, our chapter ran the MWA HOT TICKET program, which enabled ten lucky fans to get an hour with one of eleven bestselling MWA authors.  Among the authors participating was one of our own big names, Sara Paretsky.  The program was a major success with both the authors and the fans.  We received written thank you notes from Carolyn Hart and Sue Grafton, and all of the other authors expressed verbal thanks and said what a wonderful time they’d had.  Many of those fans who won tickets said it was the highlight of their Bouchercon experience.  Special thanks to our hosting authors who helped things move smoothly.  They included Michael Black, Larry Sweazy, Libby Hellman, Jess Lourey, Julie Hyzy, Kit Ehrman, Luisa Buehler, Tony Perona, Raymond Benson, Jim Doherty, Ted Hertel, Deb Baker, Marlis Day, Albert Bell, Carl Brookins, Michael Dymmoch, Beverle Graves Myers, Joanna Slan, Jeanne Dams, Julie Kramer, Jack Fredrickson, Jamie Freveletti, and Sam Reaves.  All of these authors had the chance to display their books and do some soft-selling to fans, hopefully gaining them some name recognition and sales.  That was all part of MWMWA’s goal, not only to promote the chapter but also some of our authors as well.

In summary, Bouchercon was a huge success!

Tony Perona, Vice President

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Bouchercon 2009 HOT TICKET

July 21st, 2009

UPDATED 10/8/09  Oops!  Bad email address in the last update. 

To enter the second chance drawing for SJ Rozan and Joseph Finder, please email boucherconhotticket@earthlink.net.  (Got one too many t’s in the email address in the earlier update, although I’ve fixed it now.)  Sorry to all those who found it bounced. 

Please re-enter!!!

UPDATED 10/1/09  Second chance entries for SJ Rozan and Joseph Finder now being accepted via email!

The contest for winning one of the first five HOT TICKETS for each of the authors has closed.  All winners were notified and all those who didn’t win were notified that they have been automatically entered into the second chance drawing.   You can submit additional second chance entries at the MWA booth when you arrive at the convention.  However, there are two exceptions:  SJ Rozan and Joseph Finder.  You can enter those now.

Since the HOT TICKET events for SJ Rozan and Joseph Finder are on Thursday, October 15, the day Bouchercon begins, attendees won’t have time to submit their second chance entries at the MWA booth.  Therefore, we’re now accepting email entries for the second chance drawings for those events.  To enter, please send your name, your email address, your cell phone or home phone number (however we can get hold of you) and the author you’d like to win a HOT TICKET for (either SJ or Joseph, and yes, you can enter for both, although you can only win a ticket to one event, not both.) to boucherconhotticket@earthlink.net   The winners for the second five tickets to SJ and Joseph’s events will be randomly selected on Monday,  October 12, from all those who’ve entered.  GOOD LUCK!  

UPDATED 9/8/09: Got more questions? Read our Hot Ticket FAQ!

The Midwest Chapter of the Mystery Writers of America (MWA) presents a way to win one of ten lucky tickets that will enable you to spend approximately an hour with one of your favorite MWA authors:

  • Lee Child
  • Michael Connelly
  • Joseph Finder
  • Sue Grafton
  • Charlaine Harris
  • Carolyn Hart
  • David Morrell
  • Sara Paretsky
  • PJ Parrish
  • SJ Rozan
  • Wendelin Van Draanen

Explanation: You know what it’s like at a big convention. You’re dying to meet your favorite author, but he or she is always surrounded by crowds. Even if you catch them at a free moment, it’s just that…a moment. You can get a book signed or maybe even a photo with them, but do you really get a chance to know them? Here’s your chance.

Eleven bestselling MWA authors have committed to giving ten lucky fans an hour of their time in a small group setting during Bouchercon. Five of the tickets for each author will be given away before the convention, and the remaining five will be chosen there.

How to get a HOT TICKET: The quest for one of the first five tickets for each author begins now! Tell us, in less than 150 words, why you should get a ticket. Be creative! For example, tell us about your six degrees of separation from the author, or cite a quote from one of their books and what it means to you, or tell us the question you’ve always wanted to ask him or her. You have 150 words to convince us you’re the one who should be in that small group setting. Give us your best reason! Click here to submit an entry.

Second Chances: If you don’t win one of the first five tickets, don’t despair…there’s a second chance drawing for the remaining five tickets to each author’s event. Watch this website for more details on how to get into the second chance drawing, or visit the MWA booth at Bouchercon to enter.

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