My First Time at the Suffolk Mystery Authors Festival

Banner from Suffolk Mystery Authors Festival,
Suffolk Mystery Authors Festival

I had to leave home at 8:30 a.m. and didn’t get home till nearly 10:00 p.m. But it was definitely worth the time! The commute was a reconnect with Heather Weidner and Maggie King. Lots of conversation about everything from work life to pets.

The Center for Cultural Arts is attractive—white columns, brick walkway, garden sculptures. On the way in and out, I was too encumbered to take pictures. Oh, sigh. Opportunity lost.

Suffolk Mystery Authors Festival table with Virginia is For Mysteries, Heather Weidner, Vivian Lawry, MARIA HUDGINS, TERESA INGE,
Our dark, sinister location at Suffolk Mystery Authors Festival – (left to right) Maria Hudgins, Vivian Lawry, Teresa Inge, Heather Weidner

Our table location—just inside the door, first on the right—was a blessing and a curse. The blessing was that everyone entering passed our table first, all adhering to the U.S custom of keeping to the right. The curse was that we were backed by a bank of windows, and all my photos there are dark and sinister looking. Heather got better pictures.

But I did get seeable pictures of Mary Miley, Fiona Quinn, and Maggie King. Mary Miley, former president of the Central Virginia Chapter of Sisters in Crime, is the author of the Roaring Twenties mystery series. Two are published (The Impersonator, winner of the Mystery Writers of America Best First Crime Novel award, and its sequel, Silent Murders.) Two more in the series are forthcoming.

Mary Miley
Mary Miley

Maggie King is author of Murder in the Book Group. Fiona Quinn is the author of the Lynx series: Weakest Lynx, Missing Lynx, Chain Lynx, and co-author with John Dolan of Chaos is Come Again.

Fiona Quinn and Maggie King
Fiona Quinn and Maggie King

Our panel presentation on getting published was scheduled for 5:00—the last hour of the festival—and I was a bit skeptical. But the room was packed! We talked about everything from traditional to DIY, short stories to novels, pen names to web presence. The attendees were engaged, asked lots of questions, no one left, and when the 6:00 end time arrived, the security guard had to clear the room because he was closing the building. What a high!

Advice for book signings: Be Prepared. Never go to a book signing with only one pen!

photo of pens on table at Suffolk Mystery Authors Festival
Never be without a pen

Read More About the Suffolk Mystery Authors Festival

HEATHER BAKER WEIDNER

MARY MILEY

SUFFOLK MYSTERY AUTHORS FESTIVAL

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