Our Visit to Malice Domestic 2019

Man, we are so wiped I am not quite sure what were going to say here. We got back from Malice Domestic 2019 last night, and today we’ve been feeling like we were dragging around an anchor. About 8 o’clock Sunday night, we held the Peschel Press business meeting with the family, and then I collapsed with a refreshing beverage.

Now that I’ve recovered, I want to give you an overview of Malice Domestic 2019, what we saw, what we did, and the memories we left behind.

First, we learned to never get up at 5:45 a.m. and drive to a convention if it means driving through DC traffic. We did it, but we regretted it for the rest of the day. Fortunately, the man in charge of the vendor room was former military and knew how to run a tight ship. When I emailed him with our plans, he gave us phone number to contact him when we arrived. We didn’t need it; he was already there to guide us through the unpacking process.

In fact the entire weekend with the convention staff and the hotel staff was a model of efficiency and courtesy. There were a few bits of miscommunication, but they were minor and easily worked through. Any organization is only as good as the volunteers who run it, and these folks kept the panel discussions running on time, and making sure the registrants were checked in and processed efficiently. It was one of the best-run conventions I’ve ever seen.

Because we were vendors, we didn’t get a chance to see many of the panels. Our world was centered around the dealer room, a roomy venue with low lighting that made it a comfortable and welcoming place to spend the next three days. One brilliant move by the convention was to hold author signings in the middle of the room, drawing visitors to our space.

Instead of giving you a blow-by-blow account of our time there, I’d rather hold a slide show of the highlights. All comfy? Got your snacks? Let’s begin:

We saw this across the street from McDonalds’. The headquarters of H.Y.D.R.A.? Syndrome’s home? We may never know.

At the Kensington Breakfast for New Authors, one author who stood out was Elizabeth Wilkerson, with her description of her “Afrofuturist thriller” Tokyo Firewall. I bought the book and was caught up from the first page.

Another author who stood out to me at the breakfast was Janice Wilson. We sat next to her and discovered we shared an affinity for Victorian history. I picked up her Goulston Street, her Jack the Ripper novel.

Although I was a vendor, Malice agreed to let me play by sitting in on a panel of Golden Age mysteries. I knew I had to brush up on my GA history, particularly when I realized I was sitting with a Murderer’s Row of experts: moderator Douglas Green (scholar, anthology editor, and former publisher of Crippen & Landru), and John Gregory Betancourt (Wildside Press publisher), Jeffrey Marks (award-winning Anthony Boucher and Craig Rice biographer), Brian Skupin (Mystery Scene co-publisher) and Steve Steinbock (EQMM reviewer). I prepped by getting Martin Edwards’ books, reading three novels by Henry Wade (my nomination for overlooked Golden Age novelist), and comforting myself with the notion that with five guys on the panel I can keep quiet if I find myself out of my depth.

It wasn’t necessary. We had a great time sharing information about the authors, defining the genre, and taking questions from the audience. It’s a good sign that when the time’s up signal was given, we still had plenty to say.

While selling books is our business, it’s not the only thing. I came into the vendor room after the Golden Age panel to see Teresa talking with this woman who collects autographs on her iPad’s protective screen. She took nine of them to the convention, and when they’re full she frames them. It reminds me that I used to take my volume of Sherlock Holmes stories — a Christmas gift from my parents — to Bouchercon to have my favorite authors sign it.

The only other panel I caught was a funny one with Chris Grabenstein, who I met at the Mechanicsburg Mystery’s Murder You Like It a few years back, talking with Jeffrey Cohen. Cohen will be toastmaster at next year’s Malice.

Next to our table was The Book House of Dillsburg, a good used bookstore that I’ve visited. Next to us was this stand of TV tie-ins from the ‘50s and ‘60s that reminded me of all those shows I used to watch as a kid. I didn’t realize how many TV shows had tie-in books: Judd for the Defense, The Rat Patrol, The Avengers (one written by Keith Laumer), Mannix, Police Woman, Man from UNCLE and Girl from UNCLE. Although I don’t remember The Partridge Family meeting Jason Voorhees.