Dateline BEA: panels, parties and drinking

My thoughts about most of the mystery/suspense panels appear over at BEA Lunch. I would have liked to get to some of the author signings but alas, I seemed to have been chained in that tiny little room which had an alarming tendency to stay standing room only. Which may or may not explain the crankiness that seems to permeate the post.

Suffice to say that by 5 PM I was done. A good thing too, as the night was about to begin and there were parties to attend. First up: the launch of the International Thriller Writers over at the Algonquin hotel. After getting there early (was it 5:30 start time or 6? No one really knew) and stashing my laptop in a safe place I found C.J. Carpenter in the lobby and we made our way up to the 2nd floor. At first, it was just a healthy crowd. But not much later it was packed. Jammed. I couldn't even begin to list the people who were there, but suffice to say that the star power was huge. Even amidst the crush I had some good conversations, most notably with St. Martin's editor Kelley Ragland (who edits, among others, Olen Steinhauer, Stuart MacBride and Theresa Schwegel, whose excellent debut OFFICER DOWN was my train reading Friday night when it took 2 hours to get home from dinner in Queens) Barry Eisler (who has finally admitted he worked for the CIA several years ago and will no doubt be getting asked about this each and every tour stop for his next book, KILLING RAIN) and David Hale Smith, who's just about the go-to agent for major new hardboiled voices.

If the party was anything to go by, and I do believe it is, ITW is not only here to stay, but its profile will only increase. Especially with their inaugural anthology out next year (which counteracts the sentiment stated earlier in the day that "anthologies are dying")

Next up (after a much-needed dinner, important when you magically forget to eat and drink anything all day) was Jennifer Weiner's launch party, held at the Penthouse of the Parker Meridien Hotel. What a change of pace from the ITW party, where I seemed to know a gazillion people, to this one, where I knew about a handful if that. Never mind that the decor was certainly different, what with all the pink-colored beds all over the place (but damn, they were comfortable when you wanted to eat the food -- also fabulous -- and rest your aching feet.) Ron was there and we got to meet Jennifer's husband, lawyer and blogger Adam Bonin -- and blogging only came up as a subject very briefly. Later I met Jennifer's sister Molly, whose brief back-and-forth with her older sister had me in stitches. As did walking around and spotting Gregg Hurwitz (standing with Will Staeger and Leslie Silbert), giving him a double taking and asking in a very shocked voice "what the hell are you doing here?"

Because of the late hour I got to the Bleak House party (held at a club in the East Village) too late to see most everyone though the word from those still around -- de facto guest of honor Reed Coleman, C.J. Carpenter, Mary Reagan, John Connolly (who'll be signing books at Black Orchid later this afternoon), Billie Bloebaum and others -- was that it was an "amazing" event with tons of great food and lots of attendees. Well, you can't be at everything at the same time...

Only downside: having to lug my gigantic laptop bag everywhere. Lesson learned: yes Virginia, it really is a desktop replacement. Even with kickass wireless capability.

I'll post a final roundup later today (including a more detailed report of Thursday's Backspace conference) with the Weekend Update delayed to Monday. Anyone mind if I go and collapse now?

Comments

[The Evil J Winter]

Could be worse. You could have had to travel there as opposed to living there. That's the one problem with these shindigs I can never get used to. (Jim's author lesson #1: Next year, stay in Manhattan for Edgar week.)

[Guyot]

ITW is absolutely here to stay. And I predict it will, in the coming years, surpass MWA as "the" mystery/crime/thirller/whatever organization.

MWA has problems, most notably the inability to look at itself objectively. If anyone tries to question the way things are, MWA will - instead of possibly looking at the problem - circle the wagons and start firing.

Don't get me wrong, there are some amazing folks involved with MWA, but the governing entities seem more afraid to admit a potential problem might exist than to work at trying to fix anything.

The people behind ITW are not only smart, great writers, but they are people who care about doing what's best for the membership as opposed to what's best for the organization's national offices.

[Laura]

Sarah,

Thanks for the report as I totally wimped out and didn't make Jennifer's party or the Bleak House party. I went to dinner with my editor and it was 10 p.m. before we finished and it seemed too late to do anything.

Then again, this meant that getting an 8 a.m. train out of New York was relatively painless.

[Aldo]

Sarah Great report. Who has all the pics?

[Elaine Flinn]

Oh, but I am ticked that I missed the ITW launch party! I was all set to go until my son announced he was coming in from Europe,and well, family is all. So thanks Sarah for letting us know it was a smash! I agree with Paul (but then I most always do)that ITW is headed for the top of the best sellers list of organizations and I am thrilled (no pun intended) to be a part of the group.

[Laura]

I usually agree with Paul, too -- but not about MWA. If MWA hadn't been able to look at itself objectively, it wouldn't in recent years have a) changed the requirements for active membership or b) ended its partnership with iUniverse, to name just two changes that happened while I was on the board. You can agree or disagree with those changes, but they were made in response to members' concerns. But the membership is diverse and there is seldom unanimous agreement on anything. Not on the board and not in the membership at large.

The "organization's national offices" is one dark, cluttered room with one employee. Most of the board members attend meetings by speaker phone. It's not exactly a glamour gig and it's one of the hardest volunteer gigs I've ever had. It is, in fact, 10 times harder than the weekly shift I put in at an area soup kitchen.

I'm not on the MWA board anymore -- term limits, thank the lord -- but do you really think that Lisa Scottoline, Gary Phillips, Reed Farrel Coleman (to name just three new board members -- don't have the best interests of the members at heart? What are they in it for? The prestige? The non-existent pay?

I'm all for ITW. I also support SinC, PWA, IACW, etc. But as the organization with the largest membership and the broadest mandate, MWA has a pretty tough job.

[Elaine Flinn]

Ooops, Egad, Gadzooks, No! No! I didn't mean to imply that I agreed with Paul about MWA!!! I LOVE MWA (thank God for it!), I adore Margery (who works her tail off), and I am incredibly appreciative of all MWA does and what it stands for. So, let me recant - I USUALLY agree with Paul. Whew!

[M.J. Rose]

Thanks for the wonderful mention about the party, Sara. It sure seemed as a good time was had by all. I'm still star struck.

And. For the reccord, ITW reccommends it's members belong to MWA as well as ITW not instead of. We're not here to move members over.

[Margery]

Elaine - I'm blushing and thanks to you and Laura for your kind words about MWA (I need to work harder at not taking the negative comments personally). I would only add that you should keep in that mind that for all the time the board spends working on MWA business, they are NOT writing their books. That's a tremendous sacrifice they are making on behalf of the membership.

And if you don't like how things are being done, then get involved and help change it or at least write to the board with suggestions for improving the organization. I will also tell you that this current board is very hard-working and there are some incredible programs that will be announced very soon that will be helpful (and I hope well-received) by the professional writers who are members.

Margery, who spent an incredible day at BEA and also went to the ITW party and had a great time and was warmly welcomed.