The Edgar Awards, Part 2: Agents and Editors Party

On Wednesday evening, the place to be was the Agents and Editors Party at the Lighthouse International Ballroom. So there I was. Unfortunately, I was there without Irene. This was a MWA members only event, so she was back at the Hyatt reading a book (and just to show ‘em, it was not a mystery).

Quite coincidentally, I happen to be in search of an agent and an editor for first Skyler Hobbs novel, tentatively titled Skyler Hobbs and the Blueface Killer, and this seemed a good place to ply them with my business cards.

I was pleased to see several familiar faces, folks I’d met over the past few years at Portland’s annual Willamette Writers Conference. First of these was Joshua Bilmes, President of JABberwocky Literary Agency, who came highly recommended by Janet Hutchings of EQMM. I remembered Mr. B as a nice gent from our previous meeting, and guess what? He still is.

Other friendly faces belonged to Victoria Skurnick of Levine Greenburg Literary Agency (when I met her in Portland she endeared herself to me by singing “The Ballad of Davy Crockett”), and Kristin Sevick, editor at Tom Doherty Associates. While I was reminding Kristin that she once ran away from me in Portland, agent Doug Grad joined the conversation, little knowing that one of his clients, Doug Levin, is one of my critique group partners. I ended up pitching Doug (Levin)’s caper novel, Jalehouse Pale, to Kristin, and Doug (Grad) agreed to send it to her. If she buys it, Doug (Levin), you owe me a beer.

I also enjoyed meeting a number of agents for the first time, among them New York powerhouses Jane Chelius and Cherry Weiner.

 Steve Steinbock, left, and me at the Dell table on Thursday night.

(courtesy of Matt Peyton Photography)

Another person I met for the first time was my fellow Alumni of DAPA-EM, Mr. Steve Steinbock, who made his debut in the current (June) issue of EQMM as the mag’s new book reviewer. And Janet Hutchings introduced me to the new assistant she shares with Linda Landrigan of AHMM, the very busy Jackie Sherbow. With Jackie was her new assistant Emily (not to be confused with Jackie’s predecessor, Emily Giglierano, who has recently moved on to a job with - I think - Random House). Emily G was one of the folks I was disappointed to find not in attendance, the others being Stacia Decker of the Donald Maas Agency (who agented Discount Noir) and Kathleen Conn of St. Martins. Hope to meet those folks somewhere down the road.

 Lina, Hilary & Kathleen.

(courtesy of Evan Lewis Photography)

As a bonus, I stumbled across my fellow blogger and Discount Noir author Kathleen Ryan, in the company of my fellow Beat to a Pulp: Round One author, Hilary Davidson. And as an innocent bystander, I was called upon to snap a photo of them with writer Lina Zeldovich.

All in all, a very cool time. And that was only the end of Day 1.

Tomorrow: The Dell Magazines Party