Panel on Horror and Halloween at One More Page Books. It was so fun to hang out with writer friends and talk shop. A nice Cajun dinner with Josh Patcher made the evening even better. Art Taylor moderated the panel. From L to R: Art Taylor, Gin Malliet, Me, Adam Meyer, Alan Orloff, Donna Andrews, and Josh Patcher.

So this time I had my toes painted with a sheriff's star on the big toe. :) I think toe art is becoming a conference trend . . .

One of my favorite parts of the conference was hanging out with friends I'd met at other conferences. I met RuthAnn McCormick at ACA earlier this year, and I met Paullette Gaudet at last year's WPA. It was great to catch up and to get to know them better. 

I attended a crime scene photography session and there were several rooms set up in a building with fake crime scenes. This poor dummy overdosed. 

And here was the culprit that caused the overdose . . . well that and a 5th of whiskey. 

Learning how to capture footprints. 

Lab work. We tested samples to see if they were human blood. They were. 

One of the demonstrations at WPA was a high speed police chase. The suspect had held up a store and was in the process of escaping. We were able to see the chase and how police work together to force the fleeing suspect to stop their car. They then showed how to properly subdue the suspect. She put up quite a fight (including pulling a gun on them) before they were able to subdue and cuff her.

There is a bit of a story here. In a session that I attended that dealt with running fingerprints in a crime lab, I asked whether my prints would be in AFIS. See, I had to be fingerprinted for my daughter's school, so that I would be able to go on class trips. I suggested that I might need to know in case I had to run over to a convenience store on a class trip day and hold up the store for a bag of Doritos to make sure my daughter would have some for her trip (Girl's gotta have a snack after all). Would AFIS rat me out? (The answer, by the way, is no). 

My example tickled everyone, and the rest of the session everyone somehow inserted Doritos into any question or scenario. Later that evening, my new writer friend, Chuck Rosenberg, caught up with me and handed me a bag of Doritos so that I wouldn't have to hold up that convenience store. Awww. (I didn't have the heart to tell him I ate the Doritos so would indeed be in search of Doritos for the next class trip). 

My promotional shot for Dames at Dusk (like Noir at the Bar, but ladies only). It was a blast. My piece was well received and I enjoyed listening to the other readers. A great bunch of women. Thanks go out to E.A. Aymar for spearheading this wonderful event! 

The Logo for the ACA.

My Toes are ready for action!

Hanging out at the bar with Jon Jefferson, one half of New York Times bestselling duo Jefferson Bass. We were having a debate about organs trafficking and human rights . . . never let it be said writers aren't a fun lot.

The amazing faculty of ACA: John Farthing, AJ Scudiere, Maxwell Alexander Drake, Christine Haggerty, Wade DeGottardi, Eli Jackson, Jon Jefferson.

Last night of the conference. Enjoying drinks with faculty and attendees (You can just barely see my dreads!). I really liked all the faculty and the attendees. Such a great group of people. I especially enjoyed how we all came from such radically different political viewpoints, but we were all there to learn and respected each others' differences. A great group of people.

I had to leave early, but here is a lovely photo of the group.

The drawing for my story, "Twilight Ladies" in the March/April edition of Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine. The artist, Jason C. Eckhardt, did a fabulous job representing the story. I couldn't be happier!

Running into Neil Gaiman at one of my favorite Indian restaurants in Silver Spring, MD. And, yes, I had a fan girl moment.

The book launch for Chesepeake Crimes: Homicidal Holidays. Such a great bunch of authors and a warm and welcoming crowd.

With Rhonda Lane, Sasscer Hill, and Michael Connelly at the Writer's Police Academy. Such a great time!

Standing next to the fabulous WPA quilt that went up for silent auction. Loved it! Not sure if you can see it, but the yellow border looks like crime scene tape.

A demonstration of how first responders handle an accident. In this case a drunk driver who plowed into a crowd at a yard sale. The EMTs rushed to the scene and we were able to watch as they assessed injuries and prepared the wounded for transport to the hospital. The actors did a great job and we even got to see them use a jaws of life to get someone (a dummy) from under the car.

While at WPA I was lucky enough to participate in a workshop on "Investigation of Felony Murder". All of the amazing ladies standing in the back row with me were part of my group. Andy Russell (front row in the green shirt) walked us all through the case and provided context and encouragement as we learned how to pursue a case. An incredible experience!