The Newark Book Festival

I've just returned from an enjoyable trip to the other side of England, the result of an invitation to take part in the Newark Book  Festival. I visited Newark about three years ago to give a talk in the library, and was very impressed by the town. It's full of history, with a nice ruined castle by the riverside, and my event was held in the recently established Civil War Centre - in a splendid old Tudor room.

The panel, about Golden Age crime, was chaired by Mary Haig (mother of the very talented Matt), and my fellow panellist was Tammy Cohen, alias Rachel Rhys, whom I'd never had the pleasure of meeting before. And it was great to see Elly Griffiths, who had taken part earlier in the afternoon. Our event was closing the festival, which had evidently been a big success, thanks to the efforts of Sara Bullimore and her team. There were drinks, canapes and opportunities to chat to people before our event began.

The only snag was that it began just as the World Cup cricket final entered the final over, and the Wimbledon men's single final reached its almost equally remarkable climax. So it's a wonder that anyone turned up at all. But it was a very good crowd (including a gentleman whom I last met at the Nottingham Bouchercon in 1995 - delighted he's still reading my books!)  and I managed to catch up with the highlights of that truly amazing game of cricket later on in the evening, so all was well. With the cricket, as with the tennis, it was a shame that anyone had to lose.

The session went well, and Mary and Tammy were good companions. When I woke up this morning in my very nice B&B, the weather was so promising that I decided to make the most of it. So I wandered round Newark, and then, because it isn't far away, I ventured to Lincoln, where I found an excellent display of British Library Crime Classics (and no, I'm afraid I didn't resist the temptation to volunteer to sign copies of my anthologies and Gallows Court) and had lunch in the sun at a bookshop-cum-cafe. As I did a few weeks ago when sunning myself on the Broads, I cast my mind back to the days of long hours spent commuting in to work each Monday. But it's not all play now, oh no. As if to salve my conscience, I have done a bit of legal work today, and on the drive home I dreamed up a short story idea about a B&B (not the one in Newark or any of the others I've patronised recently, I hasten to add). This evening, I get on with some writing...

The CWA Conference at Lincoln

Lima, Lymm, and then Lincoln in the space of 96 hours - it's all go at the moment! The reason for my trip to Lincoln this past week-end was to attend the annual CWA conference, always for me a highlight of the year. The conference is a social occasion, and a very good one, but there is also the chance to learn a good deal from the speakers, and this year Roger Forsdyke organised a very good line-up indeed. Roger is an ex-cop, and his contact book is impressive. This is the third time I've attended a conference he's arranged, and each has been excellent.

We began on Friday evening with a ghost walk around the city centre. Now Lincoln is a place with a notable history, and this was a fun way to kick off the week-end. After that, dinner, and a chance to catch up with people before the talks began on Friday. The CWA has always had a strong social dimension, and with membership on the up, there is a sense of a thriving and upbeat organisation.

The speakers included two current "cold case review" team members, senior detectives who explained how they set about solving the mystery of body parts found on the shore by the Wash. A fascinating investigation, which as the author of "cold case" books set in the Lakes, I found very thought-provoking. Then there was a chance to listen to a rather witty judge, with special expertise in criminal cases, and also a publisher specialising in ebooks. There was a book-signing at Waterstones, and a visit to a forensic lab at the university in the afternoon - or you could simply wander around the city streets in the sunshine, or take a bus tour.

The judge was the speaker at the gala dinner, and he was excellent. Sunday saw two more high quality talks, one from a detective superintendent who had solved a horrific murder case, and one from a senior figure in the CPS. And at the AGM, Len Tyler was duly elected Chair of the CWA, while the Vice Chair will be...me. All in all, a memorable week-end. Next year's conference will be in Norwich, and if you are a CWA member, it's strongly recommended.  

Bookshops

The CWA annual conference in Lincoln was pretty hectic, with plenty of fascinating talks and activities. I was rather startled to realise that it is 21 years since I first attended a CWA conference, at Scarborough way back in 1988. And I’ve been to most, though not all, of those that have been held since. They are always great fun.

The emphasis of the week-end is social – members’ families are welcome, but it’s not primarily an event for readers (Crimefest, Harrogate and St Hilda’s are all on my schedule for the next few months, though) and there is an educative aspect to many of the talks, which are often given by senior police officers or other experts on the technicalities of crime.

But one marketing event that was included was a book-signing session at the Lincoln branch of Waterstone’s, which I squeezed in between lunch and a tour of some of the excellent second hand bookshops in the city.

And yes, I was very restrained, confining myself to one crime novel purchase – a first edition of Scandal at High Chimneys, a historical crime novel by John Dickson Carr, the king of the impossible crime.