I had two panels on the last day of Left Coast Crime…one was hosting a mystery trivia contest in which my friend Robin Burcell was stumped by a two-part question in which the correct answers were "Robin Burcell" and the name of the lead character of her first book. Maybe she was just sunburned, tired, or hung over…or the question was badly worded. To be fair, I was so relaxed after a week in Hawaii that I probably would have missed a question in which I was the correct answer, too. But it was very funny nonetheless.
The other panel, which included Jan Burke, Rhys Bowen, Honolulu librarian Cynthia Chow, and LCC organizer Bill Gottfried, was about…actually, I have no clue what it was about. People asked us questions and we answered them with wit, cleverness, and amazing insights into human nature, politics, religion, sex, and philosophy. All in all, I had a great time in Hawaii and was truly honored to be LCC's toastmaster (I even got a very, glass sculpture as an award…as did Barry Eisler and Rhys Bowen…which I will share with you when it arrives by post in a few days).
(Pictured, me looking goofy in my Monk hat and LCC 2009 t-shirt… and my embarrassed daughter deciding to be seen with me anyway)
well, to be fair, it *was* a trick question, and I did need a bit of clarification…
The question was who was the lead character in my first book. The correct answer would be Kendra Browning, a cop in Florida, from a little known “time-travel romance” (which was also a mystery) written in 1995. But I’m quite sure the author wanted to know the lead character in my first mystery series, which debuted in 1999 (which was Kate Gillespie). So you can see why I hesitated on the answer. (And yes, I did come home with a sunburn, so there was that.)
I was only teasing you…
I came home sunburned, too…especially my feet.
Lee
Anyone who writes “dead as a doornail” in any language should be ignored or pilloried.
But to be fair, those could be a weak translator resorting to English cliches and destroying a work of orginality and zest.