Monday, September 24, 2007

North to Alaska!

I'm off to Bouchercon, a big mystery conference held in a different city every year. This year, it's in Anchorage, Alaska. Sure, I thought, how bad could it be...until they told me there might be snow! We Californians (at least those of use from the Bay Area) aren't used to weather with a big "W" -- we tend to whine when it rains, much less snows...

Still, there's a chance I'll get to see Aurora Borealis or even a moose, so what could be better than that?

Fellow Sister in Crime (or is it Mister in Crime?) Simon Woods is nominated for an Anthony Award, so I'll be rooting for him. After the conference, I'm taking part in the Authors in the Bush Program, which sends unsuspecting souls like me and Simon (and several others) off to different remote villages to teach writing in the schools for a few days. We have a whole curriculum having to do with a mystery surrounding the murder of a rabbit...there's a fingerprinting exercise, and we'll conduct interviews of the suspects including a wolf and a bear. Should be great fun!

My assignment is Hooper Bay, a village that suffered a terrible fire last summer. I'm anxious to see their new school building, and visit the surrounding area.

You can find more information about Hooper Bay here: http://www.commerce.state.ak.us/dca/commdb/CF_CIS.htmhttp://www.city-data.com/city/Hooper-Bay-Alaska.html
http://www.ktuu.com/Global/story.asp?S=5758635http://www.adn.com/news/alaska/rural/story/8510114p-8403180c.html

Check back for photos upon my return October 4!

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