Tuesday, October 20, 2009

Bouchercon Highs ... and one low



Who knew that the famous LOVE sculpture by Robert Indiana is on the magnificent grounds of the Indiana Museum of Art? That was my second surprise about Indiana, the first being that it's in the eastern time zone!

I'm adding my highlights to all the cyber-reports on the great BOUCHERCON 2009 in Indianapolis.

In no particular order:

• Friends and colleagues! I always find it amazing how many close relationships can form even with communication restricted to cyber networking and a few conferences a year. I caught up with one of our Killer Hobbies foundresses, Deb Baker, for example. Looking forward to her new beekeeping series next year.

• The crafts room! Joanna's great idea was a huge hit. I had a full house for my miniature flower-making hour. My favorite part was when the attendees went off track from my instructions and come up with creations I never thought of.


• The weather! I loved being in a real season again – cool, crisp, fall, with a smattering of rain!


• Dollhouses!
Thanks to a former student who drove down from Crawfordsville to spend the day with me, I took a ride to Carmel, Indiana, to visit the Museum of Miniature Houses. The museum pictured is a MINIATURE museum, not the life size building!



I had a warm welcome and a special tour from Suzanne and Marilyn, along with stories and ideas for books to come. How can anyone resist this dollhouse room that has a secret panel behind a hidden door?



• The publishing industry! It's important to keep up with news in our business. At Bouchercon we heard from agents, editors, and booksellers. I was impressed that on one end we were able to watch a documentary on independent booksellers ("Paperback Dreams"), and on the other, we heard a speaker from amazon/Kindle.

LOWLIGHT

I heard that some booksellers pulled out of the conference, boycotting the amazon presentation. I can't imagine why. It seems to me that openness to all opinions and trends is necessary to keep our business vital.

Thoughts?

10 comments:

Julie said...

Camille, c'mon! You enjoyed that weather? I had to be out of town, (nothing like bad timing) but the weather was just as crummy at my mother's house as it was here in Indy. This time of year we should be having crisp, sunny days with pretty leaves. Glad you got to the miniatures museum, though. Btw, we weren't in the Eastern time zone until we succumbed to Daylight Saving Time (also known as "It's really dark in the morning," time)about a year ago. Disappointing about the booksellers. I patronize independents, chains and Amazon, and value them for their unique inventory. Staying home and pouting doesn't accomplish much for the independents, does it?

Anonymous said...

...and to keep life vital, too. Excellent Blog, so informative and interesting and Iloved the pics...carry on, in your usual, inimitable way. xoxoxox

Camille Minichino said...

Excellent pouting point, Julie. Like you, I buy books wherever they're sold.

But really, I loved the weather. Ask anyone who ventured out with me for the 4 days!

Joanna Campbell Slan said...

Wow, Camille, I didn't know that about the booksellers. Gee.

I loved seeing Indianapolis from our vantage point. I walked around in the downtown, and it was just lovely. I totally agree that this was a super conference!

Terri Thayer said...

Sounds like a marvelous trip. I have an affinity for that LOVE statue. I made a quilt block for an exchange once, mimicking it. It would make a great quilt...

Pouting about missing the craft room. I hope the NY publishers got a look at that and see how well crafting and reading go together.

chris v said...

Great pix, Camille. I agree. Amazon is like Walmart, can't fight 'em so best to work with 'em and see what the future holds. I loved the mini museum of course. Did you have more pix to share I'd hope?

Camille Minichino said...

Chris, I'll send more museum pix to you. I didn't think the rest of the world would appreciate more than a couple!

Betty Hechtman said...

You were definitely a trooper when we walked back from the Eteljorg musuem in the cold drizzle. It was kind of ridiculous to take a bus for three blocks.

I did't know about the booksellers either. I have a kindle, but still buy paper books. I have bought the same book on the kindle and in paper. The kindle is nice for travel, but I still like regular books better.

Secret panel in a doll house - how cool.

I enjoyed getting to know you better.

Ann Parker said...

... Apropos of Kindle and such ... There's a funny/interesting set of YouTube videos "The Book vs. The Kindle" done by Green Apple Books. They're entertaining, in any case. Here's one of my faves, titled "Round 8: Staff Favorites"
http://tinyurl.com/yfwvhj5

Camille Minichino said...

Great videos, Ann. I like the one where the book drops and is unscathed but a dropped Kindle brings the fire department (Round 9).

BUT, it is the publishers choice whether or not to have a title on Kindle. For example, with "Blindness" mentioned in the video, if you check amazon you'll see a note to ask the publisher to make it available.