Alafair Burke's Posts - CrimeSpace2024-03-29T07:09:43ZAlafair Burkehttps://crimespace.ning.com/profile/alafairbhttps://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/60986708?profile=RESIZE_48X48&width=48&height=48&crop=1%3A1https://crimespace.ning.com/profiles/blog/feed?user=alafairb&xn_auth=noSee my blog at ...tag:crimespace.ning.com,2008-08-18:537324:BlogPost:1563562008-08-18T13:00:00.000ZAlafair Burkehttps://crimespace.ning.com/profile/alafairb
I am now blogging on my own website and have no idea how to get those posts to appear here. Accordingly, if you have any interest in my random musings (really, they can on occasion be entertaining), please visit me <a href="http://www.alafairburke.com/blog">here</a>
I am now blogging on my own website and have no idea how to get those posts to appear here. Accordingly, if you have any interest in my random musings (really, they can on occasion be entertaining), please visit me <a href="http://www.alafairburke.com/blog">here</a>What Bill Clinton is readingtag:crimespace.ning.com,2007-09-21:537324:BlogPost:745092007-09-21T19:07:24.000ZAlafair Burkehttps://crimespace.ning.com/profile/alafairb
In case you didn't know, Bill Clinton is a voracious reader, a huge fan<br />
of crime fiction, and generous with personal praise to writers. I know that he has contacted Michael Connelly, Harlan Coben, and others to thank them for their work. He even<br />
called me once after Judgment Calls was published to say how much he<br />
enjoyed my first book (yes, I did freak out, but only on the inside - I<br />
hope). <br></br>
<br></br>
He's also a fan of JLB (aka my dad) and says here that Tin Roof Blowdown is "definitely his…
In case you didn't know, Bill Clinton is a voracious reader, a huge fan<br />
of crime fiction, and generous with personal praise to writers. I know that he has contacted Michael Connelly, Harlan Coben, and others to thank them for their work. He even<br />
called me once after Judgment Calls was published to say how much he<br />
enjoyed my first book (yes, I did freak out, but only on the inside - I<br />
hope). <br/>
<br/>
He's also a fan of JLB (aka my dad) and says here that Tin Roof Blowdown is "definitely his best book yet."<br/>
<a href="http://austinist.com/2007/09/19/remember_when_w.php" target="_blank">http://austinist.com/2007/09/19/remember_when_w.php</a> <br/>
<br/>Made me proud, so I wanted to share it. Now if only we could find some way to put these quotes on our book jackets!DEAD CONNECTION TOUR - Day 20 - August 4tag:crimespace.ning.com,2007-08-05:537324:BlogPost:605062007-08-05T16:40:45.000ZAlafair Burkehttps://crimespace.ning.com/profile/alafairb
<div id="post_message_38"><i>Well the names have all changed since you hung around, <br></br>But those dreams have remained and they're turned around.</i> <br></br><br></br><br></br>Okay, so I was only gone for about three weeks, but it was still a good Welcome Back at the official end of the DEAD CONNECTION book tour. The very last event was an intimate breakfast signing at Mystery Lover Books in Oakmont, PA on August 4. <br></br><br></br>Thanks again to everyone who showed up to say hello or wished me well through…</div>
<div id="post_message_38"><i>Well the names have all changed since you hung around, <br/>But those dreams have remained and they're turned around.</i> <br/><br/><br/>Okay, so I was only gone for about three weeks, but it was still a good Welcome Back at the official end of the DEAD CONNECTION book tour. The very last event was an intimate breakfast signing at Mystery Lover Books in Oakmont, PA on August 4. <br/><br/>Thanks again to everyone who showed up to say hello or wished me well through the web along the way. Now my carriage will turn back into a pumpkin as I return to being Professor Burke by day, lonely writer at my computer by night. Not a bad life. Thanks for helping me have it.</div>DEAD CONNECTION TOUR - Day 19 - August 3tag:crimespace.ning.com,2007-08-03:537324:BlogPost:600392007-08-03T01:30:00.000ZAlafair Burkehttps://crimespace.ning.com/profile/alafairb
A motley crew braved the heat for last night's signing at Barnes & Noble. In the house were Hofstra colleagues (from the twenty-somethings to the septuagenarians), Hofstra students (current and alums), neighbors, a cousin, a Pilates pal, a tall blonde British fellow who writes books about a man called Reacher, Duffer's play-date's person, long-time friends like Anne Lise and Maggie, and newer ones like many of you whom I've met online.<br></br><br></br>Tomorrow morning a black car is coming to pick…
A motley crew braved the heat for last night's signing at Barnes & Noble. In the house were Hofstra colleagues (from the twenty-somethings to the septuagenarians), Hofstra students (current and alums), neighbors, a cousin, a Pilates pal, a tall blonde British fellow who writes books about a man called Reacher, Duffer's play-date's person, long-time friends like Anne Lise and Maggie, and newer ones like many of you whom I've met online.<br/><br/>Tomorrow morning a black car is coming to pick me up at a time that begins with a 4 so I can go to Pittsburg for the official end of tour. I may have to break my one-Diet-Coke-a-day caffeine limit. <img class="inlineimg" title="EEK!" alt="" src="http://www.alafairburke.com/forum/images/smilies/eek.gif" border="0"/> (Can't help it - I'm still having fun playing with the emoticons)DEAD CONNECTION tour - Day 15 - July 30tag:crimespace.ning.com,2007-07-31:537324:BlogPost:593392007-07-31T06:00:12.000ZAlafair Burkehttps://crimespace.ning.com/profile/alafairb
<hr size="1" style="COLOR: #4e2a12"></hr><div id="post_message_34"><i>Ain't no party like a Portland party cuz a Portland party don't stop...</i><br></br><br></br>The good readers of Portland turned out the crowd of the tour tonight at Powell's. Unfortunately, you'll have to take my word for it because I somehow managed to erase all of the cool pictures that Sean took tonight. <img alt="" border="0" class="inlineimg" src="http://www.alafairburke.com/forum/images/smilies/frown.gif" title="Frown"></img> <br></br>Hopefully some of the folks who were there with cameras can email the pictures to me.<br></br><br></br>Duffer took his…</div>
<hr style="COLOR: #4e2a12" size="1"/>
<div id="post_message_34"><i>Ain't no party like a Portland party cuz a Portland party don't stop...</i><br/><br/>The good readers of Portland turned out the crowd of the tour tonight at Powell's. Unfortunately, you'll have to take my word for it because I somehow managed to erase all of the cool pictures that Sean took tonight. <img class="inlineimg" title="Frown" alt="" src="http://www.alafairburke.com/forum/images/smilies/frown.gif" border="0"/><br/>Hopefully some of the folks who were there with cameras can email the pictures to me.<br/><br/>Duffer took his first plane ride on Friday to spend the weekend with us here in the city of roses. He has made a bed for himself on the chaise lounge and we now fear that only 5 star hotels will do for him.<br/><p style="TEXT-ALIGN: left"><img alt="" src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/70737103?profile=original=/duffersmall.JPG?width=300"/></p>
<br/>Tomorrow we fly back to NYC as a family. Next up: The Astor Place B&N on Thursday night. I'll let you know then how many pages I write between now and then. (Can you tell I'm placing pressure I'm on myself?)</div>DEAD CONNECTION tour - Day 11 - July 26tag:crimespace.ning.com,2007-07-26:537324:BlogPost:593402007-07-26T13:30:00.000ZAlafair Burkehttps://crimespace.ning.com/profile/alafairb
Today was the first significant flight delay of the tour, from Seattle to San Francisco. Maybe the Gods really are trying to tell me I belong back in the Pacific Northwest.<br></br><br></br>I rode in a Prius for the second time on the tour, this time to Ed Kaufman's wonderful M is for Mystery. Our very own FriscoSpice from the message board was there, proving that she is indeed a stand up comedian. <br></br><br></br>Tomorrow the husband and the Duffer will meet me in Portland. It's the Duffer's first plane…
Today was the first significant flight delay of the tour, from Seattle to San Francisco. Maybe the Gods really are trying to tell me I belong back in the Pacific Northwest.<br/><br/>I rode in a Prius for the second time on the tour, this time to Ed Kaufman's wonderful M is for Mystery. Our very own FriscoSpice from the message board was there, proving that she is indeed a stand up comedian. <br/><br/>Tomorrow the husband and the Duffer will meet me in Portland. It's the Duffer's first plane ride, so if you see on a news ticker that a French Bulldog escaped from his travel bag and had to be taken down in the aisles by passengers, you'll know whose dog it is. I shall be taking a few days off for the weekend before the Portland reading on Monday. If you're in Portland, I'm supposed to be on AM Northwest on Monday.<br/><br/>Here's a picture that proves Ed Kaufman never ages, Michael has a cool t-shirt, and I need a new camera.
<p style="TEXT-ALIGN: left"><img alt="" src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/70736998?profile=original=/misformysterymichaelanded001compressed.jpg?width=300"/></p>DEAD CONNECTION tour - Day 10- July 25tag:crimespace.ning.com,2007-07-25:537324:BlogPost:577712007-07-25T13:30:00.000ZAlafair Burkehttps://crimespace.ning.com/profile/alafairb
Today I nearly had to throw down with the good folks at United Airlines in Denver. Long story. Involved me running two minutes behind the 45 minute cut off to check bags in Denver (b/c I spent 20 in the line to get to the nice lady who told me the only option was to travel tomorrow when I could show up 90 minutes in advance as required). Highlight was collapsing two bags into one bag in front of a small crowd to cheer me on, then sprinting to the gate in time to board. Human perseverance, 1.…
Today I nearly had to throw down with the good folks at United Airlines in Denver. Long story. Involved me running two minutes behind the 45 minute cut off to check bags in Denver (b/c I spent 20 in the line to get to the nice lady who told me the only option was to travel tomorrow when I could show up 90 minutes in advance as required). Highlight was collapsing two bags into one bag in front of a small crowd to cheer me on, then sprinting to the gate in time to board. Human perseverance, 1. Smart alec airline stiff, 0.<br/><br/>Very nice folks at the reading at Village Books in Bellingham. Picked up the cutest book ever on a bargain table, in which Clive Cussler, Fanny Flagg, and others give writing advice to Snoopy (yes, that Snoopy). Popped in to say hi to JB and the other nice folks at Mystery Bookstore in Seattle. Watched the fading sunlight glimmer on Lake Union and momentarily rethought the whole I'm-a-New-Yorker-now mantra. Damn the Pacific Northwest for being so beautiful.DEAD CONNECTION tour - Day 9 -July 24tag:crimespace.ning.com,2007-07-25:537324:BlogPost:573642007-07-25T02:03:59.000ZAlafair Burkehttps://crimespace.ning.com/profile/alafairb
<p>I swear, y'all. I leave town for a week and Lindsay Lohan gets popped again?! Seriously, what kind of entourage does she keep that allows her to engage in high speed SUV chases with a .12 BAC and coke in her pocket? BTW, if you haven't seen the clip of CNN's Jack Cafferty attempt to boycott the LiLo story, it's proof that the man might occasionally climb off his rocker but hasn't consumed the cable news koolaid yet.…<br></br></p>
<p>I swear, y'all. I leave town for a week and Lindsay Lohan gets popped again?! Seriously, what kind of entourage does she keep that allows her to engage in high speed SUV chases with a .12 BAC and coke in her pocket? BTW, if you haven't seen the clip of CNN's Jack Cafferty attempt to boycott the LiLo story, it's proof that the man might occasionally climb off his rocker but hasn't consumed the cable news koolaid yet.<br/><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AbDipdwiVSU">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AbDipdwiVSU</a></p>
<p>Oh, yeah, this is the book tour blog. The folks who showed up to Denver's Murder by the Book, despite the heat, were total troopers. My rambling tangent about the awesomeness that is The Shield and The Wire probably sold more DVDs of those shows than my book, but oh well....</p>
<p>I still have a massive sugar high from the inch-high frosting on the cake that looked like the Dead Connection jacket.</p>
<p>A final piece of news for the collectors out there: If you haven't purchased a copy of Dead Connection and want a first edition, first printing, you might want to call your bookstore soon. The last couple stores told me they've run out and are on to third printings. (Question: What happened to the seconds? Anyone have one? Maybe those are the rarest of all!)</p>DEAD CONNECTION tour - Day 8 - July 23tag:crimespace.ning.com,2007-07-24:537324:BlogPost:571572007-07-24T05:26:07.000ZAlafair Burkehttps://crimespace.ning.com/profile/alafairb
Today kicked off the second week of tour. The lowpoint was the start of the day, when my four year old nephew in Phoenix realized that mommy, daddy, Auntie Alafair, and he were all going to separate places after a weekend of nonstop fun. I thought his little heart was crushed by my imminent departure, but then he started counting all the toy cars he had to bid farewell before school, and I realized he'd probably survive the day all right.<br></br><br></br>The high points were seeing my 100 year old…
Today kicked off the second week of tour. The lowpoint was the start of the day, when my four year old nephew in Phoenix realized that mommy, daddy, Auntie Alafair, and he were all going to separate places after a weekend of nonstop fun. I thought his little heart was crushed by my imminent departure, but then he started counting all the toy cars he had to bid farewell before school, and I realized he'd probably survive the day all right.<br/><br/>The high points were seeing my 100 year old Grandmother (dad's mom, whose mother was my namesake) and the outstanding group of friendly faces, both new and familiar, at Houston's Murder by the Book.<br/><br/>After the reading, my newly engaged pals from the bookstore and I celebrated their upcoming marriage, first over a ridiculous number of Fried Green Tomatoes and other foods I won't see again any time soon, followed by a champagne toast.<br/><br/>Tomorrow, it's off to Denver. If you haven't gotten a first printing of Dead Connection, and you care about such things, call the bookstores on tour. The folks in Houston tell me their first printings are gone, and they're on to the third printing (don't ask me where the seconds went - I never saw them).DEAD CONNECTION tour - Day 6 - July 21tag:crimespace.ning.com,2007-07-21:537324:BlogPost:567262007-07-21T04:00:00.000ZAlafair Burkehttps://crimespace.ning.com/profile/alafairb
It should be no suprise, but it's smokin' hot in Phoenix in July! Barbara Peters and her ever-awesome colleagues at The Poisoned Pen hosted a terrific event, as usual. Thanks especially to the Burke-regulars for the big turnout despite the nasty heat. <br></br><br></br>I was good and went to the gym today, so the rest of the weekend is for rest, which I will devote to playing with my four year old nephew, James Lee Burke IV, and catching up with the adventures of Harry Potter. Don't you dare tell me…
It should be no suprise, but it's smokin' hot in Phoenix in July! Barbara Peters and her ever-awesome colleagues at The Poisoned Pen hosted a terrific event, as usual. Thanks especially to the Burke-regulars for the big turnout despite the nasty heat. <br/><br/>I was good and went to the gym today, so the rest of the weekend is for rest, which I will devote to playing with my four year old nephew, James Lee Burke IV, and catching up with the adventures of Harry Potter. Don't you dare tell me the ending!DEAD CONNECTION tour - Day 4 - July 19tag:crimespace.ning.com,2007-07-19:537324:BlogPost:567252007-07-19T22:00:00.000ZAlafair Burkehttps://crimespace.ning.com/profile/alafairb
Last night a big crowd of Wichitans gave me a warm welcome back to Watermark Books, where I used to work on holiday break wrapping presents. Among the crowd were my sister Andree, best high school friend Kim, family friend Robin, and the parents of some of my closest childhood friends. It was hard to stop once we all got started. Folks seemed particularly interested in Ellie Hatcher's backstory in Wichita.<br></br><br></br>Unfortunately I can't figure how to download my pictures on my sister's…
Last night a big crowd of Wichitans gave me a warm welcome back to Watermark Books, where I used to work on holiday break wrapping presents. Among the crowd were my sister Andree, best high school friend Kim, family friend Robin, and the parents of some of my closest childhood friends. It was hard to stop once we all got started. Folks seemed particularly interested in Ellie Hatcher's backstory in Wichita.<br/><br/>Unfortunately I can't figure how to download my pictures on my sister's computer, but more to come later. Today it's off to Phoenix.DEAD CONNECTION - Day 3- July 18tag:crimespace.ning.com,2007-07-19:537324:BlogPost:558832007-07-19T04:40:56.000ZAlafair Burkehttps://crimespace.ning.com/profile/alafairb
<p>Landed in Chicago without a hitch in time to for a call-in with NPR's Talk of the Nation. I think many of you would enjoy the brief interview about readers who skip to the end of the book first. Listen to it <a href="http://http//www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=12062565&sc=emaf" target="_blank"><font color="#22229C">here</font></a>:</p>
<p><u><font color="#0000FF" size="1">http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=12062565&sc=emaf</font></u> <br></br><br></br>We had…</p>
<p>Landed in Chicago without a hitch in time to for a call-in with NPR's Talk of the Nation. I think many of you would enjoy the brief interview about readers who skip to the end of the book first. Listen to it <a href="http://http//www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=12062565&sc=emaf" target="_blank"><font color="#22229C">here</font></a>:</p>
<p><u><font color="#0000FF" size="1">http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=12062565&sc=emaf</font></u> <br/><br/>We had a very small, intimate crowd at Centuries & Sleuths thanks to the threat of buckets of rain. (Thanks tons to those of you who made it!) I would have paused to take a photo of me ankle-deep in rain to grab late-nigh deep dish pizza, but it was too darn wet out.<br/><br/>I did fit in a brief run pre-rain and ran into one of my most talented Hofstra law students. The world is indeed a small place.<br/><br/>Hope to run into some of you soon.</p>DEAD CONNECTION tour - Day 2 - July 17tag:crimespace.ning.com,2007-07-18:537324:BlogPost:556972007-07-18T14:36:40.000ZAlafair Burkehttps://crimespace.ning.com/profile/alafairb
Tuesday night was a joint event with the talented debut writer Brent Ghelfi at Minneapolis's Once Upon a Crime. Local writer Peter Rennebohm was a mensch and helped Pat move all the books. Minneapolis regular Bob Lynch provided a warm friendly face, and I made many new friends as well. <br></br><br></br>After the event, Brent and his wife, local writer Chris Everheart, and I discovered that steakhouses in Minneapolis don't mess around. I tried not to think about the number of future Brangelina children…
Tuesday night was a joint event with the talented debut writer Brent Ghelfi at Minneapolis's Once Upon a Crime. Local writer Peter Rennebohm was a mensch and helped Pat move all the books. Minneapolis regular Bob Lynch provided a warm friendly face, and I made many new friends as well. <br/><br/>After the event, Brent and his wife, local writer Chris Everheart, and I discovered that steakhouses in Minneapolis don't mess around. I tried not to think about the number of future Brangelina children we could have been feeding instead.<a href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/70736866?profile=original=/onceuponacrimebasic.JPG">Download onceuponacrimebasic.JPG</a>DEAD CONNECTION tour - Day 1 - July 16tag:crimespace.ning.com,2007-07-16:537324:BlogPost:556952007-07-16T22:30:00.000ZAlafair Burkehttps://crimespace.ning.com/profile/alafairb
Monday was Day 1 of the book tour for DEAD CONNECTION. I was able to check off the "trains" part of my planes, trains, and automobiles trip, with my first ever ride on Amtrak. Leg room, no seatbelts, and a restaurant: I am now a train convert.<br></br><br></br>We had a great group of friendly people at Kate's in Boston. I tried to get a burger afterward at the famous Mr. Bartley's Burger Cottage, but it was too crowded. I settled for dinner at the bar of the restaurant next door, where I shared stories…
Monday was Day 1 of the book tour for DEAD CONNECTION. I was able to check off the "trains" part of my planes, trains, and automobiles trip, with my first ever ride on Amtrak. Leg room, no seatbelts, and a restaurant: I am now a train convert.<br/><br/>We had a great group of friendly people at Kate's in Boston. I tried to get a burger afterward at the famous Mr. Bartley's Burger Cottage, but it was too crowded. I settled for dinner at the bar of the restaurant next door, where I shared stories with a 75 year old man who will certainly make it some day into one of the books in fictionalized form.<br/><br/>And on this morning of Day 2, I was good and set the alarm so I can go to the gym before flying to Minneapolis. We'll see how long that lasts.Soprano's finale - SPOILER ALERTtag:crimespace.ning.com,2007-06-11:537324:BlogPost:476652007-06-11T16:07:44.000ZAlafair Burkehttps://crimespace.ning.com/profile/alafairb
<p>If you haven't watched the end of the Sopranos yet, DON'T READ THIS. If you have, please read on. (If you never plan to, who the heck are you and where have you been the past eight years?)</p>
<p>After all the speculation that Tony or AJ would be killed, or that Adrianna would rise from the dead, e<font face="Arial"><font face="Times New Roman, Times, serif">nding with a blank dark screen was a bold choice that is bound to piss off a ton of people. However, once I was finished yelling "It's…</font></font></p>
<p>If you haven't watched the end of the Sopranos yet, DON'T READ THIS. If you have, please read on. (If you never plan to, who the heck are you and where have you been the past eight years?)</p>
<p>After all the speculation that Tony or AJ would be killed, or that Adrianna would rise from the dead, e<font face="Arial"><font face="Times New Roman, Times, serif">nding with a blank dark screen was a bold choice that is bound to piss off a ton of people. However, once I was finished yelling "It's over?" at said blank screen, I finally embranced the ending as one that was precisely true both to the themes of the show and the ways in which the show was unlike other TV.<br/><br/>I loved the tension of the guy at the bar stool, headed for the men's room ala The Godfather, while the family sucked down onion rings and Meadow couldn't parallel park. The scene was consistent with the show's depiction of Tony's extraordinary life unfolding in the same mundane world as ours. Because the show never was one for soap-opera-like plot developments (Adrianna back from the grave - give me a break),</font></font> <font face="Arial"><font face="Times New Roman, Times, serif">it made perfect sense to me that the cameras turned off at a seemingly random moment while Tony continues to live his evolving life, surrounded by his family.</font></font></p>
<p><font face="Arial"><font face="Times New Roman, Times, serif">And the use of the Holsten's setting was awesome. (I wonder how many people downloaded Journey's Don't Stop Believin' from iTunes last night.) In Tony's view, the best years have always been in the past, as much as the past has haunted him. <br/></font></font></p>
<p><font face="Arial"><font face="Times New Roman, Times, serif">Anyway, that's my take. On the other hand, I read online that some people think the screen went black because Tony died, so maybe I'm whack.<br/><br/>What did you think?<br/></font></font></p>Why I'm a Fanjayatag:crimespace.ning.com,2007-04-09:537324:BlogPost:209232007-04-09T14:06:47.000ZAlafair Burkehttps://crimespace.ning.com/profile/alafairb
<p>OK, this has nothing to do whatsoever with mysteries unless of course you're one of those people baffled by the allegedly mysterious appeal of American Idol contestant Sanjaya Malakar. But since I mentioned on my CrimeSpace page that I'm an American Idol addict, more than a few people here have wanted my views. (Not suprising. Talking to other AI viewers is probably the best thing about watching AI.) Well, I admit it. I'm a fan of Sanjaya. And, no, not because I listen to Howard Stern or…</p>
<p>OK, this has nothing to do whatsoever with mysteries unless of course you're one of those people baffled by the allegedly mysterious appeal of American Idol contestant Sanjaya Malakar. But since I mentioned on my CrimeSpace page that I'm an American Idol addict, more than a few people here have wanted my views. (Not suprising. Talking to other AI viewers is probably the best thing about watching AI.) Well, I admit it. I'm a fan of Sanjaya. And, no, not because I listen to Howard Stern or want to sabotage the show, but because he makes for such spectacular television. Despite what everyone says, he really doesn't have a bad voice. He's no KiKi or Mindy Doo, but I'll take his voice over Chris's anyday. And it's not because he's a great performer. It's because he's so lovably awkward. The overgrown bangs, the stringbean physique, his love of hula. I had altogether different problems as a youngster, but he still reminds me of what it's like to be a teenager. But, unlike most people stuck in those awkward years, Sanjaya doesn't seem to mind. He takes himself for whoever he happens to be on a given day and deals with it. When he embraced his inner dragqueen to sing Ain't No Mountain High Enough, it just about brought a tear to my eye. So go ahead, Sanjaya, you keept doing your thang, even when it involves a faux hawk reminiscent of My Little Pony, and I'll keep cheering for you.</p>