Bouchercon is the annual gathering of the world’s mystery writers and serves as the high point of the year for many of us in the writing community.

I was especially excited when the 2020 edition of Bouchercon was slated for Sacramento, California, a place I lived and worked for many years. Not to mention the region is home to a huge collection of serial killers. But, this year came with extreme challenges, including COVID-19 and the quarantines that came with the spread of the disease. The in-person convention was canceled to keep the readers and attending authors safe and healthy.

In a stroke of genius, the 2020 Bouchercon organizers pushed on and put together an on-line virtual convention. While we missed the personal connection in the hallways, and the cocktail hours, getting to see so many friends was a great thing.

A major program piece of Bouchercon is the informative panels and discussions on all aspects of mystery, writing, and publishing. During an in-person event, there is so much to choose from, you always have to miss something good.

This year’s panels are now available on YouTube. You can watch everything you wanted to see during the event, but your schedule wouldn’t permit.

This year, I was honored to moderate a panel called, “Police Procedurals: Do They Really Say, ‘Book ‘Em Danno?'” The panel featured talented crime writers; Frankie Y. Bailey, Robin Burcell, Maryann Miller, and Terry Shepherd. I think my Zoom background of Folsom Prison freaked out a few attendees.

Here’s the Panel as we presented at Bouchercon. Hope you enjoy it and try to check out some of the other great panel offerings on the Bouchercon 2020 YouTube Channel.

Be safe out there.

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