Canada Calling: Come On Up

You’re far too busy right now to read this blog. Bookmark it or print it and come back to it in the New Year. We’re inviting you to come on up to Canada for murder, mayhem, and mystery.

Come on up anytime
Visit Crime Writers of Canada totally revised web site.

Touch of a button access to featured Canadian authors, upcoming mystery events, an easily searchable list of Canadian authors and Cool Canadian Crime, a newsletter about what’s hot in Canadian crime fiction. And that’s just on the home screen.

Read more, read often, read Canadian.

Come on up to Victoria, British Columbia June 3 to 5, 2011

This year Bloody Words, Canada’s mystery convention goes west.
Guest of Honour ~ Michael Slade
International Guest of Honour ~ Tess Gerritsen
Local Guest of Honour ~ William Deverell

And as realtors say, location, location, location. Victoria is a gorgeous place to be in summer. There's a fantastic downtown waterfront (where the convention is located); afternoon tea at the Empress Hotel; and natural beauty all around.

Come on up to Wolfe Island, Ontario and visit the Scene of the Crime.

Each August the island hosts a one-day crime festival.

This is not your average hotel convention. To start with, the only way to get to or from the island is by ferry. The day starts with meeting the guest authors over muffins and coffee in a local coffee shop. Readings and panel discussions take place in local churches, with lunch and supper provided by church volunteers. The homemade pies are to die for.

There’s also a short story contest and a bookseller on hand, so you’ll have plenty of new books to lug back to the ferry.

If you plan to be out Ontario way in August, book your tickets early! This is a small event and it is always sold out.

Come on up and gain new writing skills

Simon Fraiser University, located in British Columbia, will host a number of writing workshops in 2011. The catalog will be on their web site in February 2011, and you can sign up now for their mailing list so you won’t miss any announcements.

Come on up and see a play

Make Calgary, Alberta your travel destination for a lot of reasons, including Calgary’s Vertigo Theater, which devotes itself completely to producing mystery and thriller plays. Their line-up for the first half of 2011 is

Nevermore: the imaginary life & mysterious death of Edgar Allan Poe
Jonathan Christenson and Bretta Gerecke
A gothic tale told in song.
January 6 to February 6, 2010

And Then There Were None
Agatha Christie
People are disappearing all over Soldier Island. Soon no one will be left.
March 5 to April 3, 2011

Mr. Hyde
Jeffrey Hatcher
Evil lurks in the dark and dismal streets of London
April 30 to May 29, 2011

Vertigo will preview its 2011-2012 season in March 2011. Come back to this blog at the end of March for an updated list.

Best wishes for the holiday season from all of us fellow mystery-lovers north of the 49th parallel.