Telling Secrets

 

By Thomas Kies

I wouldn’t come back again to talk about Bouchercon except I just paid off my credit card for the expenses I incurred while at the conference.  It was amazing how fast things added up while I was in San Diego.  Or how expensive things were.  $17 for a glass of wine…yikes.

But that’s not what this column is about.

It’s about the subject matter discussed at a number of panels that weekend. Secrets.

Isn’t that what’s at the core of a mystery?  Whodunit? Why? How? 

We’re always writing about secrets. Humans are much like puppies. We’re curious animals.  We want to know the answer to secrets.  That’s what makes us read to the last page of a novel.  We want to know what happens.

We have an internal drive to uncover secrets because of that curiosity. Secrets can be exciting, exotic, and mysterious and the very process of uncovering secrets can be thrilling. 

When it comes to crime novels, uncovering secrets is motivated by a sense of justice or a desire to expose wrongdoing.  Our fascination with secrets is a fundamental part of human nature.

Sometimes, however, we want to uncover secrets for their salaciousness. In my Geneva Chase mysteries, I’ve written about sex clubs, swinging, and BDSM dungeons.  When I’ve been at book events, inevitably someone in the audience will ask, “How do you know about these things?”

I’d love to just smile at them coyly, wink, and remain silent.  Let them think what they might.  Keep it a secret.

But instead, I tell them the truth.  I used to work for newspapers and magazines and through my job, I’ve seen many things and been in some very “interesting” places. 

Speaking of the news…that business is all about uncovering secrets.  Take a look at the news if you want to see some secrets exposed and some secrets that have been hinted at but not yet told. 

Here’s a headline from a recent edition of the Washington Post.  Va. Dem. House candidate performed sex online with husband for tips.  C’mon, there’s a novel here.  We both know it.

I’m not sure this could be classified as a secret because the woman and her husband livestreamed the sex acts.  Will it have any effect on her campaign?  Well, they say any publicity is good publicity. 

Here’s a headline from a recent edition of the New York Post: SD Gov. Kristi Noem having ‘absurdly blatant and public’ affair with ‘handsy’ Trump aide Corey Lewandowski, sources say.  What makes this more fun is that Kristi Noem is married and has repeated preached the gospel of “family values” and scoffed at anything other than “traditional marriages”. Is there a novel in this one?  I’m not so sure.  Corey Lewandowski had extramarital affairs before that have made the news.   But until recently, this one with the governor had been kept a secret.   Shhhhhh.

And lastly, here’s a non-sexual headline from Fox News: NASA detects molecule on another planet that can only be produced by life. The planet, K2-18b, is about 120 light years from Earth and it’ there that the Webb Telescope detected evidence of dimethyl sulfide.

Wow…the big secret.  Is there life on other planets?

Or, the bigger secret…is there life after death?

The one I’m most concerned about…who took the last piece of chocolate out of the candy dish in the kitchen?

And my writing tip of the day is when revealing secrets, do it slowly, lovingly.  Tease the reader. 

Now where the hell did that last piece of chocolate go?

At Bouchercon

I went to Bouchercon, too. I started to write a post last Friday but never had a chance to get back to it. Here's how I started:

"Sorry to keep this short. I'm in San Diego attending Bouchercon 23. I'll have more to say about that in my next post. This morning, I need to pick up my Bouchercon packet and hit my first panel. 

I slept in after getting up early yesterday to take Fergus, my dog, to daycare. He's going to board with the owner while I'm away. He is such a happy guy, he never minds being boarded. I was a little worried that Penelope, my rescue cat, might be unhappy about being scooped up and sent off to board with Lori, her wonderful cat-sitter. But this will be her second stay, and she seems to remember that it was really cool having a room to herself. Lori sent me a lovely photo of her yesterday afternoon.

As for me, I treated myself to a first-class plane ticket because I was dreading the idea of traveling across  the country in cramped seats. Since I didn't travel during the pandemic, I considered it breaking even. I have to say it was worth it. First on board, a window seat with plenty of leg and and arm room. A drink before take-off -- I had seltzer at that time of day. But I did enjoy the meal en route from Charlotte to San Diego. 

First-class is definitely more expensive than the budget-friendly tickets I usually try to book. But I was reading an essay about "self-care" and it caught my attention because the author  posed the question, "What would you tell your best friend to do?" It's an interesting approach because I've been thinking about what I consider spending money for -- being comfortable on a long flight may seem self-indulgent and it is. But, on the other hand, I make up for that by not spending lots of money on an expensive wardrobe. In fact, given the state of the world, I would like to spend more of my budget on  having travel experiences. Even better if I can combine with research for books in progress."

So, picking up where I left off with this post: 

As I walked into the hotel, I saw Jane Cleland. Years ago, Jane and I were with several other authors on a book tour of North Carolina. Molly Weston, former editor of the Sisters in Crime journal was our host. Nora DeLoach (the author of the wonderful "Mama Detective" series -- one of the first cozy mystery series by an author of color) drove one of the cars. Sadly Nora died not long after our book tour.  

After seeing Jane, I ran into one friend or acquaintance after another. That -- as you all know -- is one of the best parts of attending Bouchercon and other mystery conferences. But I also enjoyed the panel I was assigned to. It was about having a strong voice and a compelling point of view. Our moderator, Dorothy Welles, was well-prepared and the other panelists were an impressive group,

Here's our group photo (courtesy of Dr. Ian Smith):

I stayed over until Tuesday evening to avoid traveling during a holiday weekend. That gave me a bit of time for trolley tours and a water tour. I loved that boat tour (in a vehicle that went from land to water). We saw sea lions stretched out and relaxing with their cubs. I was really surprised when the tour guide explained that they (and the dolphins we saw being fed) are in a naval training program. The sea lions are taught to dive to retrieve objects in the water. They will do deep dives to earn food treats. 

If you haven't attended Bouchercon, do try Nashville in 2024. It should be fun. And, of course, it's also an opportunity to do some business. I had a chance to touch base with my agent and discuss my books in progress.