Prelude to an Edgar

This year’s journey to the Edgar Allan Poe Awards began in New York City around the middle of April--a busy month for crime fiction fans--when the weather was still cold and raw. On Wednesday, April 11, novelists Meredith Anthony and Lawrence Light stopped by the Black Orchid Bookshop on East 81st Street to sign copies of their new book, Ladykiller. A store-packing crowd showed up that night, and the two authors came with champagne in hand to lighten the mood. Proprietors Bonnie Claeson and Joe Guglielmelli poured drinks up front for anyone who walked inside to purchase the novel, or just to meet its creators before they left to promote their work at SleuthFest in Miami (which, as everyone hereabouts knows, is the sixth borough of New York).

Now jump ahead to Tuesday, April 17, when the energy was ratcheted up by the appearance of Reed Farrel Coleman at The Mysterious Bookshop on Warren Street. Coleman, who can be very entertaining in front of a crowd (the members of which this evening included Lee Child, Jonathan Santlofer, and S.J. Rozan), read from and then signed copies of his newest P.I. Moe Prager novel, Soul Patch. Before reading from Chapter One, though, Coleman let those attending know that his publisher, Bleak House, put the wrong image on the hardcover edition of his book. The main action in Soul Patch takes place in Brooklyn, New York, and the Parachute Jump ride at Coney Island was supposed to front the novel. Instead, that ride was placed on the inside front jacket. (Bleak House did get it right on the paperback, at least). Coleman put a positive spin on matters, however: he urged those who bought his work in hardback to treat it like a mis-stamped coin, something that might have extra value because of the error. Yet the word from people who’ve read Soul Patch already is that the real value is on the inside--many think it’s Coleman’s best writing yet.

The following Sunday, April 22, was a perfect opportunity to have a beer and bask in the pre-Edgar glow, as Hard Case Crime took over the KGB Bar on East 4th Street for readings. Guests of honor came from the growing Hard Case stable: Jason Starr, Richard Aleas (aka HCC honcho Charles Ardai), Peter Pavia, and Max Phillips. Starr read from Slide, his upcoming sequel to last year’s Bust (both of which he co-authored with Irish celebrity Ken Bruen), while Aleas/Ardai gave listeners a sampling of Songs of Innocence, his follow-up to 2004’s Little Girl Lost. Both of these novels are knock-outs, and fans of their authors are going to be hard-boiled happy campers come publication time.

Then last night, April 24, as momentum was building toward The Big Event (that is, the Edgar banquet and awards dispersal), the Black Orchid threw its annual Edgar cocktail party. If, for some reason, you’re in Manhattan at this time of year and can’t attend the Edgar banquet, you will want to at least get to the Black Orchid party--it’s that good, year in and year out. On Tuesday, the weather was balmy and in the mid-70s, the beer was cold, and the crowd was thick and worth watching. I had the chance to converse briefly with Dave White, whose first novel, When One Man Dies, is due out in September, and who happens to share a birthday with Lee Child (October 29). Elsewhere, I spotted Carol Fitzgerald of Book Reporter.com; Harry Hunsicker, who’d come to this fête with his lovely wife; and Jason Starr affixing his John Hancock to copies of Bust, while Jonathan Santlofer inked copies of his new novel, Anatomy of Fear. Blogger-critic-industry watcher Sarah Weinman bounced from person to person, chatting the whole time (who doesn’t want to say hello to Sarah?), while Gerald So very articulately and objectively discussed the works of Robert Crais, photographer extraordinaire Mary Reagan captured the night on film, and my fellow Rap Sheet contributor Megan Abbott told me that re-reading her own recent second novel, The Song Is You, kept her entertained during a long, dull experience of jury duty. Another colleague, fellow Demolition Magazine contributor James McGowan, stopped by with his fetching girlfriend, and we debated the merits of going to Bouchercon this year in Anchorage, Alaska. Still no decision.

Which brings us up to today and the Edgar symposium, a daylong affair capped off with an agents and editors party--the last events before Edgar banquet attendees prepare to don their formal attire and line up at the Hyatt Hotel bars. If you couldn’t make the symposium--and there were some terrific panels, as well as a question-and-answer session during which Charles Ardai interviewed new Mystery Writers of America Grand Master Stephen King--the MWA will put on sale CDs and DVDs of this day’s events, so you can hear or watch your favorite authors talk about relevant topics, such as the merits of writing a series versus standalones, or what elements combine to make a great book.

The anticipation of tomorrow’s awards, pre- and post-parties, and the chance conversations that might very well lead to new projects or new associations is now pretty hard to contain. And not just for the award nominees.

Let the games begin!