Foot on the pedal, engine revving...

The green flag has already waved to start July off right, and the month is only going to get faster.

On the last weekend in June, I flew to San Francisco for the American Library Association's annual conference.  I had two signing hours, hosted by the terrific people from Sisters in Crime and by my outstanding publisher, HarperCollins.  In between, I had time to wander the two gigantic conference halls, which were packed full of booths and presentations from other houses and organizations.  I returned home that evening with a bag loaded with books and other swag.  But the very best part was giving away dozens of copies of my own novel to librarians and library professionals from all over North America (and a handful who had traveled even farther.)  There's nothing quite as much fun as giving a true book lover a free copy.  Huge thanks to William Morrow for sponsoring the giveaways, and for making the arrangements to have their authors present.

Right now I'm in Florida, visiting family and gearing up to fly north to NYC and ThrillerFest X during the last half of the week.  ThrillerFest feels like the home track for me.  It was the first big conference I attended, back in 2013, and that same year I met my agent at the PitchFest afternoon.  Because my book PAST CRIMES was published in March, this will be my debut year at ThrillerFest, and I'll get to join about 30 other authors who have had their first novel released since the last gathering at the Debut Authors Breakfast.   It's tremendously exciting.  

And as usual, the week will also be loaded with classes, guest speakers, business lunches, the awards banquet on Saturday, and by my conservative estimation, twelve dozen cocktail parties.  ThrillerFest is some of the most fun I have all year, but it's also sixteen hours a day of being on.   I'll write some posts from the conference to let you know how the race is going.

What have I left out?  Oh yes: Book Two.  I'm working every day on finishing the rewrites, with about two weeks to go.  I'll be plugging away at those in New York too.  There will also be a visit to Boston, which I'll tell you about later.  

So if my first post in August looks like gobbledegook, you can blame it on lack of sleep.  And those cocktail parties.

Catching Up, and On the Run

Dear Patient Friends, 

It's been stupidly long since I've written something for my own blog -- like a cliffhanger in the first act that's forgotten until the close of the book.  Here's what's been happening the past three months: 

I turned in Van Shaw Book 2* to the publishers smack on schedule, at the end of February.  It was a very full day:  I fired off the completed manuscript, packed up what few things were left in my little temporary office, drove home, threw clothes in a suitcase, and flew to Seattle to launch PAST CRIMES.  The next week or so was a whirlwind of appearances at booksellers large and small.  All of them were very generous to a nervous rookie clutching his first novel.   

During flights up and down the coast, I pieced together my last few guest blog posts as well.   All told, I wrote about sixteen articles, for some of the best mystery and thriller blogs in the US and UK.  While I wouldn't have skipped any of them, boy oh boy, I wish I had known in advance just how much time launching a book required (while finishing the next one!).  I would have done a LOT more manuscript work last summer.  A good lesson for this year.  I'm already drafting Book 3 while awaiting rewrite notes for Book 2.   Van is as busy than I am, and finding a whole lot more trouble.   

I'll post a master list of those guest blog articles here soon -- if not for posterity, then to help me remember what I wrote in my caffeine-and-jet-lag daze.   

Okay, I'll aim to make my visits here much more frequent, as I tackle rewrites and gear up for the American Library Association's annual convention in San Francisco this weekend, and ThrillerFest in New York City in July.  Thanks for your understanding!  I've hugely enjoyed receiving emails and meeting many of you during the past couple of months, and I hope our paths cross at a bookstore or convention soon.   

Cheers, 
Glen 

*In case you're wondering: I'm not being coy about the title.  Book 2 doesn't have a name just yet, but I am kicking around ideas with smarter folk than I.  Watch here for announcements! 

Winter Hibernation

This blog's been awfully quiet of late.  TOO quiet...

But at least there's a good reason for that.  In addition to the usual hubbub of the holidays, I've been banging away at the second Van Shaw adventure, which is due to publishers at the end of February.  Today I moved into the office space I'll be using for the next seven weeks.  No internet.  No window.  No escape.  (except maybe to Republic of Pie, just around the corner.  A piece of strawberry-rhubarb provides great incentive to finish a chapter...)

I'll post updates here occasionally, including my upcoming appearance dates for the release of PAST CRIMES in March!  

Gregg Hurwitz, and prepping for Bouchercon

I’m smack in the middle of final preparations for Bouchercon this coming weekend. Bouchercon is the foremost convention for mystery fans in the United States. HarperCollins (my publisher) is hosting the opening ceremonies and holding a signing for their authors, and I’ll also be appearing on a panel on Thursday afternoon: It’s a Dark and Twisty Book, with Clair Lamb, Christopher Farnsworth, Alex Marwood, Ivy Pochoda, and Gregg Hurwitz.  This is my first time at Boucher, so I'm both hugely excited and pacing myself.  

Which is as good a segue as any for a quick Larcenous entry about keeping momentum in our writing.  Fellow panelist Gregg Hurwitz is an expert at propelling his novels along without sacrificing speed and energy.  

If you're going to Bouchercon, come by the panel or find me wandering around (I'll be the scruffy guy downing the quad espressos) and say hello!  I’d love to meet you!

Agent Exemplaire: Lisa Erbach Vance

In this month's issue of The Big Thrill (the online magazine from International Thriller Writers), author Anthony Franze shines the industry spotlight on literary agent Lisa Erbach Vance.  Lisa and I met at ITW's 2013 ThrillerFest conference, held each July in midtown Manhattan.  We were both attending the conference's "PitchFest" afternoon, which is essentially speed dating with agents.   I was there to get some practice pitching my nearly-completed book, and it was my astoundingly good fortune that Lisa had also chosen to cast her net that year.  She's been a dream of an agent, and I'm honored to call myself one of her clients.  

If you're curious about the daily life of a (very expert, and very busy) literary agent, and how to attract the interest of same, click here for the full profile:

http://www.thebigthrill.org/2014/09/industry-spotlight-literary-agent-lisa-erbach-vance/

First Time at Bouchercon, the K2 of Conventions

I'm gearing up for my very first Bouchercon, and wrote this post for their blog.  In need of guidance, I seek out the convention sherpas who have climbed this hill before.

http://bcon2014.blogspot.com/2014/10/first-shot-at-moving-target.html

Lee Child, and writing effective action scenes

In the modern thriller, we often find action dominating scenes and sometimes whole chapters.  Action may have a different rhythm on the page, to help the reader follow and appreciate each moment.

Lee Child's series featuring the hero Jack Reacher is hugely popular, and one of the reasons is that his action scenes crackle.  We'll look at a short example from BAD LUCK AND TROUBLE for tips on how to make each moment pack a punch.

| Author Lee Child: Jack Reacher Novels

From Lee Child's BAD LUCK AND TROUBLE, read in LIG Ep8:

Reacher put Dixon’s Ford in gear.  Checked north, checked south.  Hit the gas and turned the wheel and slammed into the lot.  Ignored the worn circular path and aimed straight for the center of the space.

Straight for the bag man, accelerating, front wheels spraying gravel.

The bag man froze.

Ten feet before hitting him head-on Reacher did three things.  He twitched the wheel.  He stamped on the brake.  And he opened his door.  The car slewed right and the front wheels washed onto the loose stones and the door swung out through a moving arc and caught the guy like a full on punch.  It smacked him solidly from his waist up to his face.  He went over backward and the car stopped dead and Reacher leaned down and grabbed the vinyl duffel left-handed from the floor.  Pitched it into the passenger seat and hit the gas and slammed his door shut and pulled a tight U-turn inside the slow Mercedes.  Roared back out of the lot and bounced over the curb onto Highland.  In the mirror he saw dust in the air and confusion and the bag man flat on his back and two guys running.  Ten yards later he was behind the bulk of the wax museum.  Then he was through the light, back onto Hollywood Boulevard.

Twelve seconds, beginning to end.