Malice Domestic, Invisible Sleuths, and Me
I got my panel assignment this morning for Malice Domestic, May's mystery conference in Bethesda, Maryland, . (One year we had a gentleman stop some female participants and congratulate them for banding together to fight spousal abuse, but that ain't it, kid!)
My panel is on invisible female sleuths, those characters who can investigate crime largely because no one pays them any attention. I was chosen for the panel because of Loser, my homeless protagonist, and she fits the bill perfectly. I got the idea for her from living in Richmond for a few months and seeing the street people every day, visible to me as a newcomer but largely unseen by the residents. I began thinking about what those street people must notice, what they might be thinking. I know some of them are hampered by chemical or psychological problems, but what if there was one who observed, was able to form conclusions, could make a plan and follow it through? From those thoughts, Loser emerged.
The first Loser Mystery has done well, and I even got a note from a former student who was waiting to pay at a faraway B&N when a woman came up and asked for Peg Herring's new book. Now the second one is almost ready. I'm doing final proofing this week and it should be out in early April. Once again Loser uses her anonymity to eavesdrop and observe, and she's ignored until...well, until she isn't, which leads to lots of action and danger and all the things one expects in a mystery.
Loser has become very real to me, and as I finish Book #4 of Simon & Elizabeth's adventures, I'm already thinking of what the next Loser Mystery will entail. In the meantime, I'll be interested to meet my fellow panelists for Malice Domestic and see what they've done with their invisible sleuths.
My panel is on invisible female sleuths, those characters who can investigate crime largely because no one pays them any attention. I was chosen for the panel because of Loser, my homeless protagonist, and she fits the bill perfectly. I got the idea for her from living in Richmond for a few months and seeing the street people every day, visible to me as a newcomer but largely unseen by the residents. I began thinking about what those street people must notice, what they might be thinking. I know some of them are hampered by chemical or psychological problems, but what if there was one who observed, was able to form conclusions, could make a plan and follow it through? From those thoughts, Loser emerged.
The first Loser Mystery has done well, and I even got a note from a former student who was waiting to pay at a faraway B&N when a woman came up and asked for Peg Herring's new book. Now the second one is almost ready. I'm doing final proofing this week and it should be out in early April. Once again Loser uses her anonymity to eavesdrop and observe, and she's ignored until...well, until she isn't, which leads to lots of action and danger and all the things one expects in a mystery.
Loser has become very real to me, and as I finish Book #4 of Simon & Elizabeth's adventures, I'm already thinking of what the next Loser Mystery will entail. In the meantime, I'll be interested to meet my fellow panelists for Malice Domestic and see what they've done with their invisible sleuths.
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