Wednesday, June 26, 2013

Back from the Historical Novel Society conference


Just noticed this is my 800th post!

I returned late Tuesday night from the 5th North American HNS conference in St. Petersburg, Florida.  The weather was sunny and beautiful (if very muggy) every day, the Vinoy Renaissance hotel was absolutely gorgeous, my room was large and quiet, the hotel staff were attentive and helpful, and the panels I attended were all professionally run and informative.  My sparkly sandals even cooperated; I made it through without bandaids.  This was my first time there as a regular attendee rather than an organizer (many people came up to me so say how relaxed I looked!) so I had time to catch up with old friends and meet up with many others I'd only communicated with online.  These conferences really are all about the people, after all -- making connections with fellow HF nerds that endure long after we're all back home.

Because I find it hard to keep up with online stuff while the conference is on, I didn't tweet or FB very much and also didn't take many photos (the one above is a scene of the ocean inlet across the street from the Vinoy).  For a great compilation of photos that also tells a story of conference happenings, let me refer you over to the Storify site put together by Audra of Unabridged Chick.

I leave tomorrow for ALA in Chicago and am working the late shift tonight, so things are kind of crazy around here, but I thought I'd post some info on the panels I attended and some other highlights of the conference:
  • Anne Perry's inspirational Friday night guest of honor speech emphasized the role of story in historical fiction and the need to make these works emotionally resonant. And she spoke for over half an hour without any notes!  Wow.  A wonderful way to start off the event.
  • Early on Saturday morning, I attended the first agent/editor panel session, which turned out to be a Q&A for aspiring writers.  This may seem an unusual choice for someone like me who doesn't write fiction, but I like hearing what things are like on the other side of the table.Advice from agent Stephanie Cabot: Each book in a series should stand alone, and in the case of a trilogy, don't end book 1 with a cliffhanger.  Agent Helen Heller mentioned "the Tudors have been overfished" although this depends on the quality of the work in question; she also advised authors writing query letters not to start with a provocative question about the plot, but simply to say what the book  is about and about themselves.  Agent Diana Fox said that trends can make a novel easier to sell, but the writing is what matters most. From agent Greg Johnson: a series can benefit both authors and readers and save authors time in creating backstory.  Small press editor Jean Huets focuses on American settings and is looking for new voices in this area.  This was the only panel where I took notes, so this is rather long!
  • Susan Spann ably moderated a panel of historical mystery writers with settings as diverse as 19th and 20th-c South America (Annamaria Alfieri), Victorian England (Anne Perry), 1st-c Jerusalem (Frederick Ramsay), and Judith Rock (17th-c France). Susan's debut, Claws of the Cat, comes out next month and features a ninja detective and a Jesuit solving mysteries in 16th-c Japan.  I loved the variety showcased here.
  • Christopher (C.W.) Gortner's lunch speech, focusing on community and how HNS had helped him along his publishing journey, set the perfect tone for the conference.
  • "To Trump or Trumpet the History Police" - Will historical purists come out to get you if you fudge the facts?  The conclusion was: sometimes they will!  The authors (Stephanie Cowell, Christy English, Margaret George, Anne Easter Smith, with CW Gortner moderating) had a lively discussion/debate about historical accuracy  vs. the importance of creating a good story.  Each has condensed a timeline to some degree or eliminated unneeded characters for the sake of the story they wanted to tell.
  • "Virtual Salon: The Historical Fiction Blog" - a great intro to the many purposes for a blog in the historical fiction world, whether they're written by authors or reviewers/readers.  There was a lot of positive buzz surrounding this panel.  Speakers were Deborah Swift, Amy Bruno, Heather Rieseck, and Heather Webb, moderated by Julianne Douglas.
  • The "Off the Beaten Path" workshop with bloggers & authors Julie Rose, Heather Domin, Audra Friend, and Andrea Connell was a treat for readers (like me) who seek out less common settings and types of characters in their historical novels. Check out their page of info with publishing & reviewing trends as well as their lengthy reading list.
  • Gillian Bagwell did a smashing job in her role as Joan, Lady Rivers emceeing the costume pageant, and Teralyn Pilgrim, as a pregnant vestal virgin, was an obvious choice for winning "most authentic historical costume."  I hope her on-stage interview with Lady Rivers was taped!  I was very tired by that point and didn't stay for most of the late-night sex scene readings, but was entertained by Margaret George's reading from her Autobiography of Henry VIII.
  • On Sunday morning I went to just two sessions, one author presentation and another with "cold reads" of unpublished manuscripts.  In the former, Susanna Kearsley gave advice on how to flesh out historical characters' backstories and discover new connections between them using genealogical research.  As a sidenote, I last saw Susanna at the last ever BookExpo Canada in 2008, when I was probably the only American in attendance.  After she signed a copy of The Winter Sea for me, I asked her if her new books would be published in the US at some point.  At the time, US publishers felt the stories were "too quiet" and weren't interested.  Now her novels, out from Sourcebooks, are bestsellers, which is great.  Goes to show that sometimes the industry has no clue.
I wish I'd gotten to more sessions; choosing was very difficult!  What I valued even more were the many conversations I'd had with other attendees in the lobby, at the receptions, and over meals. Shout-outs to the late Thursday night dinner crowd at Fresco's on the waterfront; my library school buddy Vicki (we graduated almost 20 years ago); all the HNR reviewers and HNS members I chatted with; the blogger lunch group on Sunday with Audra, Heather, and Meg; and the fabulous members and organizers of the new Great Lakes HNS Chapter. The gathering ended on a high note with a group excursion (Alison, Jessica, Marie, Meg, and myself) to a robot-themed sushi place on Sunday night and drinks out on the veranda.  Later we watched as a bus of VIP types (later revealed to be a certain Toronto baseball team) climb out of their bus and walk into the hotel.  I have no photos; even if I'd wanted them, the hotel had signs up about that...

And so another HNS conference has wrapped up.  Congrats to Vanitha Sankaran and the rest of the board of directors for a job well done.  I'm already looking forward to London in September 2014.

26 comments:

  1. Thanks for the summary, Sarah. It sounds like the conference was a fantastic one. I certainly hope I'll be able to attend one in future but, if not, at least I'm able to experience it through the feedback of bloggers.

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    1. It definitely was, and I hope so too. Heather Domin is collecting summaries of the conference at her LJ site if you want to check any others out. Heather's writeup is pretty awesome in itself.

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  2. Great wrap up, and I enjoyed reading about some of the sessions I was unable to attend. It was difficult choosing.

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    1. We were spoiled for choice, for sure. When I was writing this up, I was wishing I'd taken more notes!

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  3. The panels sounded really interesting, Sarah, and I'm glad you had a lovely time. It's nice to read that agents are looking outside the established boundaries for story ideas. Although my favorite settings are medieval and renaissance Europe, I enjoy and will read historical fiction based in any time and setting.
    And now, a library conference! Please tell us about that one too, Sarah.

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    1. The agents seemed open to a variety of HF settings (well, most of them; there were a number of other agents besides the ones at the early Saturday panel). I'm hoping to take better notes at ALA!

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  4. Anonymous11:28 AM

    Wonderful coverage of the conference and I enjoyed it all with the exception of Anne Perry.
    I refuse to put any money in her pockets and do not
    read her books.
    Would have loved to have heard Margaret George and
    Stephanie Cowell speak.
    Love your blog!

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    1. Thank you!

      Anne Perry's presence was a bit controversial; not everyone there knew her backstory, either. Margaret and Stephanie are both very gracious and eloquent speakers. In the intro to the History Police panel, it was mentioned that Margaret's working on a novel about Nero.

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  5. Anonymous11:48 AM

    Wow, this sounds great! I'm contemplating attending some year when it is in the UK, but I suppose I shouldn't sell the US short!

    Did you have time to speak with Susanna Kearsley?

    Also, Anamaria Alfieri has a new book set in 1950s S. America, but her first one was set in 17th century Peru . . .

    And have a great time at ALA! I thought of it but it's too big for me. See you at PLA!

    Sarah OL

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    1. The UK and US conferences have a slightly different vibe, but it's hard to explain exactly how. Some overlapping authors, but not a significant number.

      There were many attendees there that I didn't see outside of the formal sessions and didn't get to speak to, and Susanna Kearsley was one of them.

      You're right, of course - I reviewed Annamaria Alfieri's City of Silver here a few years ago. The later two were emphasized more in this panel. I have a copy of Blood Tango at home and am eager to get to it!

      I'm at ALA since it's in Chicago... I don't know if I would have gotten on another airplane so quickly if it was elsewhere! PLA's just, what, nine months away? I should be recovered from all my travel by then!

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  6. Anonymous12:07 PM

    OK, confirmation that 2014 WILL be in London . . .!

    Sarah OL

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    1. Yes! The dates have been announced. Sept 5-7, 2014 in London.

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  7. I had SUCH a good time -- it was awesome meeting you and getting to hang out! Can't wait for 2015 (I'm not sure I can swing next year) -- am still floating from the awesomeness!

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    1. It was great to hang out with you too, and your Storify site is amazing. Thanks for taking the time to pull together everything!

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  8. Thank you for your informative -- and succinct -- content, running down the conference.



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    1. I've tried to capture some of the main points as best I could, though my memory being what it is, I know there's quite a lot I missed. There's even more on twitter under the #hns2013 hashtag.

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  9. This was a great rundown, Sarah. Thanks!

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    1. Thanks! It was great to see you again, Erika!

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  10. Re Anne Perry: As a writer, I'm in awe of anyone daring enough to stand in front of an audience and speak with no notes.

    I'd never do it.

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    1. It took a minute to realize (1) she was speaking with just a mike and no podium and (2) she had no notes. And her speech went flawlessly. I do library tours and teach classes all the time and speak off the cuff, but giving a one-time keynote speech in front of 300 people with no notes? I'd never dare do that.

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  11. Anonymous12:15 PM

    Re publishers' comments to Susanna Kearsley in 2008 - I don't think they truly felt the zeitgeist (or what would be the zeitgeist after the financial events of 2008) in that people WOULD want "quieter", well-written titles. Thankfully publishers like Sourcebooks are around to ferret them out!

    Sarah OL

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    1. HF about well-known historical figures were the big thing then (and still are), but then sagas by authors like Kate Morton, who are writing about fictional or lesser-known characters, became hugely popular. Sourcebooks is great. I'm glad I bought a copy of Firebird before I left for HNS because I didn't see copies there, but three of her earlier books were on sale.

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  12. It was great to see you again, too, Sarah. All the sessions I went to were wonderful, and I had such a good time at the conference. Thanks for posting about the historical mystery and "off the beaten path" panels. Those were two that I wish I'd been able to go to. I'm so glad that recordings are available.

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    1. I'm eager to start reading all of the books mentioned on those panels. They were calling the mystery one "three Jesuits, a Jew, and a Mormon" in jest because, interestingly, Judith Rock, Susan Spann, and Annamaria Alfieri all had Jesuits in their novels (Frederick Ramsay and Anne Perry round out the group with the other categories). The recordings are a big plus.

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  13. Good rundown! The Conference was my 3rd in 8 months--the largest one by far. I didn't know a venue like this even existed for Historical Fiction writers before this year. I just completed the first of my 19th century historical trilogy, The Calling Stone, and was happy to connect with an editor at the Conference. The tapes were a great solution to "Which session do I attend?" So many choices! Check out my blog on the Conference on cjfosdick.com

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    1. That's a lot of conferencing. I'm planning on going to the Public Library Association conference next March, which will make three in 9 months - but library events are different from writers' conferences. I hope the editor meeting will prove fruitful!

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