Desert Sleuths Chapter
of Sisters in Crime
An Organization for Writers, Readers, and Fans of Crime Fiction and Mystery
Welcome!
Desert Sleuths is a proud member of Sisters in Crime, an international organization that promotes the ongoing advancement, recognition, and professional development of women crime writers. Sisters in Crime helps women achieve equality in the industry by raising professionalism, serving as the voice for excellence, and achieving diversity in crime writing.
Desert Sleuths is located in the Phoenix Metropolitan area and serves members throughout the State of Arizona and beyond! Our members include bestselling, award-winning authors, emerging writers, fans of mysteries and crime stories, and other writers of other genres. We are an inclusive organization. Whatever your gender, level of experience, or genre, you are welcome to join us!
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Current Events
Due to their popularity, Desert Sleuths is continuing hybrid (virtual and in-person) programs throughout 2023. We encourage local members to join us in person at the Tempe Public Library and those farther away to continue using Zoom.
Member Meeting: 6:00 p.m.; Presentation: 6:30 – 7:30 p.m.
The current month program is highlighted below. See our entire month-by-month programming under the 2023 Events page.
November 2023
COAUTHORING: Are Two Heads Better Than One?
Wednesday, November 15, 2023, 6:00 – 7:30 p.m.
Writing collaborations have become more common across all genres, but we’ve had some especially noteworthy partners in crime recently in the genre of mystery and suspense: State of Terror by Hillary Clinton and Louise Penny; The Cinderella Murder by Mary Higgins Clark and Alafair Burke; many, many books by James Patterson and Maxine Paetro and others; books by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child; Charles Todd and Caroline Todd’s Inspector Rutledge Mysteries—the list goes on.
Award-winning authors Bruce Robert Coffin and LynDee Walker have both published independently of each other but recently they teamed up to write THE GENERAL’S GOLD and THE CARDINAL’S CURSE, the first two books in the Turner and Mosley Files, coming in 2024. In this presentation, they’ll give you the inside scoop on how they found each other, how they work together, and the advice they’d give if you want to try a collaboration.
Bios:
Bruce Robert Coffin is an award-winning novelist and short story writer. A retired detective sergeant, Bruce is the author of the Detective Byron Mysteries, co-author with LynDee Walker of the Turner and Mosley Files, and author of the forthcoming Detective Justice Mysteries.
Winner of Killer Nashville’s Silver Falchion awards for Best Procedural and Best Investigator, and the Maine Literary Award for Best Crime Fiction Novel, Bruce was also a finalist for the Agatha Award for Best Contemporary Novel. His Anthony Award-nominated short fiction has been published in a dozen anthologies including Best American Mystery Stories, 2016.
- https://sevenriverbooks.com/authors/bruce-robert-coffin/
- https://www.brucerobertcoffin.com/
- https://www.harpercollins.com/blogs/authors/bruce-robert-coffin
LynDee Walker writes about strong women who can’t seem to stay out of trouble. Her books have been finalists for the Agatha and Thriller awards, as well as on a major national bestsellers list smack in between two of her writing heroes. An award-winning journalist, she has covered everything from ribbon cuttings and high school football to capital murder trials and high-level police corruption. She is the author of 18 novel series and several novellas and short stories, so she is usually writing when not juggling laundry and children’s sports schedules.
https://facebook.com/lyndeewalkerbooks/
Members, please come to the chapter member meeting at 6:00 p.m.
Preregistration required. Presenters are virtual unless they are already in the area. Select in-person or virtual. In-person attendance is at the Tempe Public Library. The Virtual Presentation is on Zoom. You will receive an email message with the information for attending or to complete your Zoom registration.
Please register below before the event!
It’s all over except the replay!
WriteNow! 2023, September 22-23, 2023
Named Best Writers Conference in Arizona (2020, The Writer magazine)
Arizona’s premiere mystery/crime writers conference for authors, readers, and enthusiasts welcomes writers from all genres. WriteNow! 2023 will again be virtual, with an in-person anthology release and author signing.
With a focus on Craft ♦ Publish ♦ Market, there’s something for writers at all stages. Friday’s Pre-conference program includes one-on-ones with agents, manuscript assessments by an editor, and a marketing workshop. Saturday’s Main Conference has interviews, presentations, and a craft workshop.
Details are on our conference page.
2023 Events
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All 2022 Events
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Covid-19 Guidelines from SinC National and AZ DHS
SinC National has published their meeting guidelines for this stage of the Covid-19 pandemic:
2021 In-Person Meetings Guidelines
The AZ DHS has as well:
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