So, dear readers, we thought it would be fun to try something a little different this week. Since several of us–Barbara Ross, Vicki Doudera, Al Lamanda, Susan Vaughan, Vaughn Hardacker, and Kate Flora, are going to be at the New England Crime Bake this weekend, the region’s own mystery conference held each November in Dedham, Massachusetts, we’re going to report in from the hotel and share the conference with you.

With luck, you’ll meet many writers, included Guest of Honor Craig Johnson, of Longmire fame, and visit the crime scene room. You can laugh at members of the committee wearing their sheriff’s badges and see a lot of cowboy, and cowgirl, boots.

We may get to take you to the chocolate party and the banquet, where you’ll see some of us trying our hand–or feet–at line dancing. And on Sunday, a bunch of writers will compose mysteries on the fly, using the conventions of their respective sub-genres.

So get ready for a weekend of vicarious fun, and a chance to see how silly writers can be when they are not at their desks hunched over their keyboards.

So here we go. Opening acts: stuffing the crime bake bags, and lunch with Craig Johnson and his wife Judy:

Lunch with Craig Johnson

Craig and Judy Johnson

Crime Bake program

Last committee lunch

Stuffing the conference bags