Nashville Bouchercon 2024

Yeehaw! In other words, I'm back home after an exhilarating trip to Nashville for the 2024 Bouchercon mystery convention. This was a chance to catch up with old friends, meet some very pleasant people for the first time, and talk about crime writing in a memorable setting - the Gaylord Opryland Resort, said to be the biggest hotel in the US that doesn't have a casino. I've never known a hotel with such a labyrinthine layout - they even supplied an app to help visitors find their way around and some members of staff were also tasked with directing people who got lost, which was remarkably easy to do. I had a wonderful suite with a balcony (see photo below) commanding a view of one of the mega-conservatories which form the hotel. A strange location, in some ways, with marvellous facilities yet also huge queues at the coffee shops and a touch of satire (I hope) in the bizarre message displayed on this placard...

I was on two panels, entertainingly moderated by Ken Wishnia and Colin Campbell respectively. Colin's panel had an all-British line-up of myself, Craig Robertson (whom I was delighted to meet for the first time), Mark Ellis, and Caro Ramsey. There were also some very enjoyable publisher parties and the wonderful people from Poisoned Pen Press hosted an excellent event to promote their authors' books, including my just-published The House on Graveyard Lane (that is, Sepulchre Street). As ever, much credit goes to the organisers, who had to contend with a variety of unusual challenges this year, but still managed to put on a very good programme.

It was fun to hang out in the bar with the likes of Mick Herron and his partner Jo, Steve Steinbock, Craig Robertson and others, while there were enjoyable meals with a variety of friends including Les Klinger, Steve, Verena Rose, Shawn Reilly Simmons, Art Taylor, Susan Morrison, and Shelly Dickson Carr. One of those meals was in a 'British pub' in the legendary Printers' Alley, featured in the Paul McCartney song 'Sally G'.

There was time for me to look around the city (which even has its own Parthenon), although it was several miles distant from the hotel, which made things more complicated. Closer by was a vast shopping mall which had a Madame Tussaud's wax museum devoted to musical legends, not least Taylor Swift! All in all, Nashville is an extraordinary city. San Diego, site of last year's Bouchercon, definitely remains my favourite, but I did have a good time in Tennessee.