A Word About Bouchercon
I just got back from attending Bouchercon in Calgary and I’m excited to share the experience with my readers. What is Bouchercon? Is it worth attending?
Bouchercon calls itself a World Mystery Convention. The organization holds an annual convention in honor of Anthony Boucher, the distinguished mystery fiction critic, editor and author. Their stated mission is to introduce, attract, and promote readers and writers by producing outstanding, inclusive conventions to grow and sustain the mystery community. The convention is most often held in the United States, so having it nearby was a unique opportunity.
This convention had an impressive scale and popularity, attracting many major mystery writers and dedicated fans. For example, Vicky Delaney, Mark Greaney, Louis Penny and Kathy Reichs were there. Fans had a chance to hear from their favorite writers in the many panels and there were some great stories and points of view shared. A survey of attendees revealed many have come to several Bouchercons, including healthy numbers of 5x and 10x attendees. There were even some that have been twenty times.
The result was all things in the realm of mystery novels were explored there. I learned about the plague of diminished eyesight among senior readers, one of the things responsible for the surging popularity of audiobooks. I also learned about Amazon’s just-announced changes to audiobook remuneration for authors, which writers at the conference believed would kneecap their audiobook income and act as a disincentive for authors to record their work.
My favorite parts of the conference were listening to Louise Penny’s live interview, telling about her writing journey, and having a chat with S.A. Cosby during the independent Author Fair. I recommend this conference for anyone who wants to learn more about mystery books, publishing them, and the writers creating them. All in all, well done by our local Calgary organizers; well done.
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