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Christopher
G. Moore Blog
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Blog
Archive August 2009
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I will be attending the Bouchercon2009 World
Mystery Convention in Indianapolis 15th through 18th
October. I have also be asked to be on a panel. "MURDER AT THE EDGE OF
THE MAP" panel takes place 4:30 - 5:25 pm. on Friday, October
16.
The moderator is Leighton Gage and
the other panelists are Tamar Myers, Yrsa Siguroardottir, and Michael
Stanley.
There will be around 1,400 people
attending Bourchercon this year.
Below are the most recent
books by the authors on the “Murder at the edge of the map” panel.
 
 
 
 
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Posted: 8/31/2009 1:45:03 AM |
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| SOUTH PACIFIC FICTIONS AND OTHER LIES |
I have blogged today about Paul
Gauguin, Herman Meville, and Margaret Mead. The impressions of these three have
informed opinion about the South Pacific for decades, influencing many
generations. But did they get the details right? Did they even get the general
bits right?
At International Crime Authors I
examine these three questions:
Where do we come from? What are we?
Where are we going?
Those three questions formed the
title of Paul
Gauguin’s 1897
painting, which he finished while living on a South Pacific Island. It is
Gauguin’s vision of paradise. That vision of Eden shaped the attitudes and
beliefs of many generations. Ever since there have been painters, writers,
explorers, adventurers, there have been individuals seeking to discover an
earthly paradise. There is a deep longing to believe that given the right
circumstances, we are kind, compassionate, forsake violence, jealous, hatred and
rivalry.
For more follow this link:
http://www.internationalcrimeauthors.com/
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Posted: 8/28/2009 12:24:11 AM |
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I am often asked about how to find
an agent or publisher. What isn’t always well understood, however, is the
relationship with an agent and the editor. Once you’ve found an agent who is
willing to represent your book, the next step is the submission stage when your
agent offers it to an editor.
What happens next in this
process?
Here’s one editors take on the
process:
“If you've been around here a long
time, you know my stance on agent proactivity. Different agents have different
strategies for following up with editors, and, frankly, some of these strategies
are really, really ineffective.
Here's the thing: editors have developed
a habit of hiding their heads in the sand. I can speak on behalf of not all
editors, but most. We have so much work--so many deadlines to meet in-house, and
so many proposals and manuscripts to read--that if an agent doesn't follow up
about a manuscript there is a 9/10 chance we're not going to read it (certainly
not going to buy it).
When an agent doesn't follow up, they're
demonstrating a number of things, the foremost being that they don't EXPECT the
book to sell. "Oh nope, this is no hot property, take all the time you need" is
the message we get. And honestly, it takes 15 minutes for an editor to know
whether they want to read more or not--not 4 months, or 6 months. Sure, we need
a kick in the pants to pick the manuscript up. But if you wait 4 or 6 months to
give us that kick in the pants, we'll never, ever, ever get herded into, say,
auction on that book.”
Link: http://editorialass.blogspot.com/
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Posted: 8/22/2009 8:45:08 PM |
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 Today’s consumer
report: you can buy a new signed trade paperback edition of A Killing Smile
for $13.95 plus shipping from this website:
Or you can order a second hand copy
from amazon.com
It’s up to you, as they say in
Thailand.
But before you place that amazon
order, you might want to consider the prices for second hand copies of A Killing
Smile:
$75.00
+
$3.99shipping
Used - Very Good
$76.00
+
$3.99shipping
Used - Like New
- Seller:
skybooks4u
- Rating: 100% positive over the past 12 months (218
ratings.) 1003 lifetime ratings.
- Shipping: In Stock. Ships
from NY, United States. International shipping available. See Shipping Rates. See return policy.
- Comments: Asian import, 2004 Trade paperback
edition Heaven Lake Press, Bangkok, Thailand. Appears unread, not even opened.
Light rub, corner tip wear and a slight bump back at spine to wraps. ( «
less less less less less )
Comments:
Asian import, 2004 Trade paperback edition Heaven Lake Press, Bangkok, Thailand.
Appears unread, not even opened. Light rub... ( »
more more more more more )
$113.75
+
$3.99shipping
Used - Good
- Seller:
rimrockbooks
- Rating: 100% positive over the past 12 months (76
ratings.) 76 lifetime ratings.
- Shipping: In Stock. See
Shipping Rates. See return policy.
- Comments:
Good condition, one owner stamp inside front cover, tight binding, good pages,
some shelf wear
$146.52
+
$3.99shipping
Used - Very Good
- Seller:
any_book
- Rating: 94% positive over the past 12 months (61688
ratings.) 473675 lifetime ratings.
- Shipping: In Stock. Ships
from FL, United States. Expedited shipping available. International shipping
available. See Shipping Rates. See return policy.
- Comments:
Huge seller with millions of transactions. Satisfaction Guaranteed!
$165.27
+
$3.99shipping
New
- Seller:
any_book
- Rating: 94% positive over the past 12 months (61688
ratings.) 473675 lifetime ratings.
- Shipping: In Stock. Ships
from FL, United States. Expedited shipping available. International shipping
available. See Shipping Rates. See return policy.
- Comments:
Brand New! Huge seller with millions of transactions. Satisfaction Guaranteed!
$173.50
+
$3.99shipping
Used - Very Good
- Seller:
booksbylab
- Rating: 97% positive over the past 12 months (1537
ratings.) 1537 lifetime ratings.
- Shipping: In Stock. Ships
from NY, United States. Expedited shipping available. International shipping
available. See Shipping Rates. See return policy.
- Comments:
Great Customer Service! Fast shipping! 100% Money Back Guarantee!
Link: Amazon website
Let’s see. $173.50 or $13.95…is
that a difficult choice?
Alternative, you might wish
to order a dozen copies of A
Killing Smile, flog them the Internet and pay for an airline ticket to
Bangkok.
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Posted: 8/20/2009 6:03:23 AM |
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| Breathing Water by Timothy Hallinan |
 Timothy Hallinan has a great series set in Thailand. The hero is an
American journalist named Poke Rafferty. Breathing Water is the latest novel in
his series. It is released today.
Here’s a taste of the
story:
“For American ex-pat writer Poke
Rafferty, a late-night poker game delivers an unexpected prize: an "opportunity"
to write the biography of Khun Pan, a flamboyant, vulgar, self-made billionaire
with a criminal past and far-reaching political ambitions. The win seems like a
stroke of luck, but as with so many things in vibrant, seductive, contradictory
Bangkok—a city of innocence and evil, power and poverty—the allure of
appearances masks something much darker. Within a few hours of folding his
cards, Rafferty, his wife, Rose, beloved adopted daughter, Miaow, and best
friend, Arthit, an honest Bangkok cop, have become pawns in a political struggle
among some of Thailand's richest, most powerful, and most ruthless
people.”
Breathing Water has picked up impressive advance
reviews as well.
"Humor and horror expertly play off
one another in a rapid-fire story of political intrigue and murder. The plot is
skillfully tangled and the sense of menace refreshingly relentless. Top form
writing set in Bangkok, a great place for action and a backdrop Hallinan uses to
superb advantage." (James Church, author of A Corpse in the Koryo
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"Another masterpiece of contemporary crime fiction. Hallinan takes us
on a thrilling Tuk Tuk ride into a city seemingly always on the verge of chaos
that somehow always manages to hold together-if you like tautly plotted,
intelligent crime fiction do yourself a favor and jump on board." (Adrian
McKinty, author of Dead I Well May Be and Fifty Grand)
If you haven’t read Tim’s books
before, you are missing something special. Breathing Water is a
great introduction to his series.
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Posted: 8/17/2009 11:41:36 PM |
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The US edition of Paying Back Jack
received the review below from Publishers Weekly. Grove Press will release
Paying Back Jack in hardback on 6th October. I will be in the United
States in October to assist in the promotion of the new Calvino
novel.
 Paying Back Jack Christopher G. Moore. Grove, $19.95 (464p) ISBN
978-0-8021-1902-5
Bangkok, the city where
Vincent Calvino ekes out a living, teems with all sorts of characters, as shown
in Moore’s sprawling 10th thriller to feature the disbarred American lawyer
turned PI (after The Risk of Infidelity Index). Calvino foils an
assassination attempt on an important new client, General Yosaporn; makes a
deadly enemy of Thai businessman Apichart; watches a woman fall to her death
past his hotel window; tails the “mia noi” (minor wife) of political candidate
Somporn; and repeatedly crosses paths with two professional killers. He also
helps a female Spanish U.N. worker, for whom he falls, rescue a young girl about
to be sold for sex. In the process of tying a bunch of elaborate plot knots with
these diverse strands, Moore reveals the seething stew of wealth, corruption,
cultural clashes, poverty and lust that is modern Bangkok. While some readers
might wish for a glossary of the many Thai terms, all will appreciate the raw
passion that drives the action. (Oct.)
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Posted: 8/12/2009 11:32:52 PM |
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On International
Crime Authors Reality Check where I blog with Matt Rees, Colin Cotterrill
and Barbara Nadel, I’ve written a mini-essay about what it means to be a
stranger in Thailand.
“Many years ago, a prominent Adelaide family
invited me for dinner at the Adelaide club. It was like one of those exclusive,
private London clubs for the powerful and rich. By that time I’d already lived
in Thailand for six years and this was my first trip to Australia. Inside the
door of the club, someone in a suit ushered me to a stand on which was a large
book. I was given a pen. Inscribed on the front of the book were the words:
Strangers’ Book. I was asked to write my name and the place where I lived. I
distinctly remember that inside the book, I was pointed to the box with word
Stranger hovering like a death sentence over the place where I was supposed to
write my name. I thought better of asking my host, “Did the aborigines have a
Strangers’ Book for your ancestors to sign when they arrived?” Strangers and
hypocrisy often lurk inside the same mental neighborhood.”
For the full article:
http://www.internationalcrimeauthors.com/
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Posted: 8/6/2009 11:29:38 PM |
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| Saudi jewels back in the news |
 Nearly twenty years ago a Thai
servant in Saudi made off with a great amount of precious jewels. Within the
next year, several high-ranking Saudi officials working in Thailand were
murdered. In Zero Hour in Phnom Penh, the Saudi jewel disappearance
formed an important subplot.
The Bangkok Post has reported:
“The Criminal Court has approved a
warrant for the arrest of Abu Ali, Pol Col Tawee said. The murder took place in
front of Sriwattana Apartment on Yen Akat Road in Sathon district on Feb 1,
1990.
About 10 minutes earlier,
two other Saudi diplomats were fatally shot. They were Fahad AZAlbahli and Ahmed
AAlsaif. Investigators believe the same gang was involved in the
killings.”
In one year the statute of
limitations will run on the murder charge. The killer will become the grasp of
the law once that happens. Will the cops catch the killer before the approaching
deadline? No one knows.
The Bangkok Post ends its
report as follows: “Both the murders and the theft of Saudi royal jewellery have
soured relations between Thailand and Saudi Arabia for almost two
decades.”
A high price has been paid
for the missing jewels.
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Posted: 8/6/2009 3:54:16 AM |
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