So, back from Malice Domestic Mystery Convention, and very nearly caught up on email and everything else that comes with being away from home for a week. And, just for the record, my flights were all on schedule (well, there was that hour and a half delay in Dallas, but actually I had a very nice dinner in a cute little cafe and worked on my book, so that worked out) and my luggage was not lost. Not once.

Other things were lost. But not my luggage.

I have to confess that I was not terribly eager to attend Malice this year. Not because I don’t enjoy Malice — I do. It’s one of my favorite conferences. But I’m so swamped with deadlines and projects that I felt I couldn’t afford the time away. But I was wrong. It was a good trip. Good for many reasons, not least of which was spending time with my sisters-in-crime, Laura, Reggie, and Sara. Sara and I, in fact, got to spend a lot of quality time together, and let me tell you that nothing bonds women like poring over maps and sampling blue fish. I highly recommend the roadtrip experience to Good Girls everywhere. For discussing career strategies and consuming large quantities of pizza and caffeine, it beats the traditional slumber party every time.

There are other reasons to attend conferences, of course. It’s a great chance to corner chat with your editor, visit with readers (and what could possibly be nicer than hearing in person from people who loved your latest book?), and hobnob with fellow authors. Conferences are mostly spent talking — and this is not a bad thing for people who spend most of their time writing. It’s nice to let the voices outside your head have a say once in a while.

There are author dinners and agent dinners and dinners with friends — and there are banquets. Malice has one of the better mystery convention banquets. At Malice, authors have the option of hosting a table, and then readers get to sign up for the table of their choice. For the past couple of years Sara and I have double-teamed hosting a table, and I have to say this makes it a lot more fun for everyone. Not least because the people at our table — including me and Sara — get double the party favors (which include chocolate and wine). The banquet dinner (assuming you can get served with everyone else) at Malice is better than a lot of convention food — this is partly because Malice takes place in a very nice hotel with a nice kitchen and a breakfast buffet that I look forward to all year long — but I digress.

I have to say, though, this was the first time I’d ever stayed in the hotel after the convention ended, and it was eerie. Few things are more desolate than a convention hotel on a Sunday night after the convention is over. Great setting for a mystery…

One thing I’ve learned since I started going to conventions is that while it’s true you’re at the convention to work (though not in the same sense as the ladies lingering outside the hotel), there’s no reason not to treat yourself a little. I had a bubble bath and went to bed early with a good book the night I arrived. I can’t think of the last time I did either of those things. I even treated myself to a movie one night — National Treasure: Book of Secrets. Unfortunately I fell asleep during that one, so I don’t know how much of a treat it was.

Extra bonus treat for me: it POURED rain for a couple of days. If there’s one thing I love, it’s rain. And this was a wet and wonderful deluge from a California girl’s perspective.

Following Malice, Sara and I hightailed it over to the Festival of Mystery. This is an absolutely fabulous event held in an old Greek church in a quaint little town in Pennsylvania (which is right next to Ohio, just for the record). We all moan and groan about people not buying books. Holy moly! Readers line up outside the church for this book-buying extravaganza. Fifty mystery authors, a whole lot of books, and a whole lot of readers. It’s a match made in heaven. No wonder they hold it in a church.

What a delight to see so many people buying books — loving books. And Mystery Lovers Bookshop is one of those charming places that get fewer and fewer each year. All the more reason to support events and bookstores like this one.

Anyway, that’s pretty much it for my malicious adventures. I suppose I should have talked a bit about my panel: MURDER ON THE WATERFRONT, but I’ll leave it for now. One of these days I’d like to blog on the topic of mystery convention panels.

Meantime, I’ll leave it to Sara, Laura or Reggie to fill in the blanks of their own adventures. And I can’t wait to find out more about Tasha’s emergency landing — she does lead an interesting life. Even for a Good Girl.