WordFest

mainly sunny, humid, temps 26

Lovely day. thunderstorms in forecast for this afternoon, but seems impossible right now. Except for the gathering humidity.

Edited yesterday for most of the day - wrote a scene that occurred to me in New York. Oddly, and perhaps frighteningly, it appears to be a somewhat pivotal scene. I actually removed one scene that was just complicated, and replaced it with this far simpler one - that really allowed the two characrters to get into stuff.

Had to stop to jump into the shower then Michael and I headed into Knowlton for the 5-7 opening cocktail for WordFest. Met Jim there, then the three of us had dinner on the terrasse of the Cafe Inn - and listened to our young neighbour, Amos, sing. Such a beautiful backdrop, of the mill pond, the church spire, and the mountains.

Lovely.

Woke early to do a 7:15 live radio interview on CBC Radio with my friend Dave Bronstetter - promoting WordFest - and discussing the question of setting. And the wisdom, or folly, of setting a mystery in Canada. There's a huge, and in my mind misguided, school of thought among agents and editors (and therefore some writers) that setting a book in Canada is akin to putting it in a garbage can and setting it on fire.

I don't agree. In fact, I suspect many of you are drawn to my books because they're set in Quebec, not despite it.

Though, of course, it's impossible to say if they'd have been even more successful if they were set just across the border in Vermont. Or in the Cotswolds. I suspect they wouldn't be - mostly because while I like both areas, I love quebec.

Indeed, this will be part of the discussion at the workshop on settings for crime fiction that Jim Napier and I are giving tomorrow here in Knowlton. I suspect we'll be discussing it this afternoon, too, during our conversation on stage at the Theatre Lac Brome.

Oh, went to the first WordFest public event this morning - the marvelous Louise Abbot, a local writer/film maker and historian. She gave a terrific talk on how to bring local history alive. Very exciting for those of us who are interested in history.

By the way - the French word for 'workshop' is atelier. Isn't that great? Sounds so much better than workshop.

So, Jim and I have decided we're actually giving an atelier on crime fiction writing.

After our conversation today I have a 3:45 radio interview on CJAD with Anne Lagace Dowson - then meeting a Canadian filmmaker interested in the series, for an ice tea and talk - then have to scoot home, pick up Michael for a meeting in Sutton tonight. Poor Jim, our houseguest, is on his own. I wrote him an email earlier in the week nominating us as the worst hosts in history - or at least the worst hosts he's met in a while.

Be well - talk to you tomorrow, I hope!

I'll try to blog tomorrow.