Thrillerfest

I'm back from THRILLERFEST. The first conference of INTERNATIONAL THRILLER WRITERS was held at the spectacular Arizona Biltmore in Phoenix. It was exciting mingling with some of the big names in the thriller field including Sandra Brown, Brad Meltzer, John Lescroart, and Steve Berry. I was on a panel called Beyond Da Vinci with John Case, Robert Liparulo, Katherine Neville, and James Rollins. (see below). I understand why most of them were chosen. I felt like I was there for werewolf relief. But I hope I held my own.

M. J. Rose was on hand to give advice on promotion and publicity. R. L Stine, of Goosebumps fame, was the Friday luncheon speaker. And John Lescroart spoke at lunch on Sunday. One thing I learned is that the top writers in the field have the same insecurities as I do. The most interesting panels were presented by professionals in the Special Ops field. We had demonstrations on knife fighting, street fighting, weapons handling, and a discussion on the anatomy of medical thrillers.

Next year, the conference will be in New York, where I'm sure we'll get a lot more editors and agents.

The beautiful Arizona Biltmore, which was designed by Frank Lloyd Wright

I stayed on for a few days after the conference to write in this gorgeous setting. Here I am on the patio, soaking up the atmosphere and working on a proposal.


My panel: Robert Liparulo, Katherine Neville, me, and John Case. James Rollins is at the podium, so you can't see him.


Here's one of the booksignings--which were held after each session.