Thursday, April 3, 2014

Crime Museum Presents Crime Authors Book Fair, April 12th

Bonnie and Clyde Death Car

From our friends at the Crime Museum...

Crime Museum in downtown Washington, DC will present its first ever Crime Authors Book Fair, on Saturday, April 12 from 1:00 until 5:00 pm (575 7th Street, NW), featuring six writers – fiction and non-fiction - adept at the genre and offering a diverse array of stories: Austin S. Camacho, Matt Iden, Dan Morse, D.A. Spruzen, Andy Straka and John B. Wren.

Guests will have the opportunity to meet the authors and learn more about their inspirations, garnering insight into one of the most popular genres in publishing. From a bestselling author with multiple titles under his wing to a publishing newcomer, this group of authors will offer an array of angles.

Why are crime stories so popular? Perhaps audiences like being frightened, or perhaps they just like puzzles – stories that lead a reader along a path of twists and turns en route to an ending that often delivers justice. Here is the April 12 lineup:

Austin S. Camacho is the author of five novels featuring Hannibal Jones, a Washington, DC-based African-American private eye, as well as four in the Stark and O’Brien adventure series including his most recent, The Ice Woman Assignment. His short stories have been in six anthologies including Dying in a Winter Wonderland – an Independent Mystery Booksellers Association Top Ten Bestseller for 2008.  He’s featured in the Edgar nominated African American Mystery Writers: A Historical and Thematic Study by Frankie Y. Bailey. He is active in several writers groups including the Mystery Writers of American and International Thriller Writers.

Matthew Iden writes crime fiction, fantasy, science fiction, and contemporary literary fiction with a psychological twist. His debut detective series features retired DC Homicide cop Marty Singer in four different tales – A Reason to Live, Blueblood, One Right Thing, and The Spike.

Dan Morse is a veteran crime reporter for The Washington Post, who has published his first book in late 2013 – a true crime story based on his coverage of the Lululemon murder in Bethesda, Maryland. His book is called The Yoga Store Murder.

Bestselling author Andy Straka’s novels are a treat for the mind as well as the soul. Featured by Publishers Weekly as one of a new crop of “rising stars” in crime fiction, his books include A Witness Above, A Killing Sky, Cold Quarry, Record of Wrongs, The Night Falconer, The Blue Hallelujah, Flightfall, and Dragonflies: Shadow of Drones. Just released in original paperback and ebook is The K Street Hunting Society, the sixth in the Shamus Award-winning Frank Pavlicek private eye series. Also being published this spring is Dragonflies: Visible Means, the second in the Dragonflies thriller series. Andy Straka novels are available in trade paperback (Cedar Creek publishing) and in all ebook formats.

D. A. Spruzen, originally from England, writes fiction and poetry. She is now a resident of Northern Virginia, where she teaches writing for Fairfax County Schools Adult and Community Education program and the McLean Community Center. A past president of the Northern Virginia Writers Club, her short stories and poems have appeared in many publications. The first two novels in her Flower Ladies Trilogy, Not One of Us and Lily Takes the Field, are available on Kindle and in paperback. The third, Messenger of Love, is in progress. Crossroads, two novellas, is also available on Amazon. Her poetry chapbook, Long in the Tooth, was published by Finishing Line Press in July 2013.

John B. Wren is a consulting engineer living in Northern Virginia, who began writing in 2009. His works thus far have been fictional novels. His first, To Probe A Beating Heart, is the life of a serial killer, Averell Danker. His second, Killing His Fear, released in 2012, is the story of a troubled young man who lives in great fear of movie based monsters and how he deals with this fear. Wren’s third novel, Darryl's Reunion, is the story of revenge taken nearly 20 years after the killing of a young boy in the early 1990s, due out in April. The author is currently working on two new novels, due for release by winter of 2014.

The Crime Authors Book Fair is a free event, and does not include admission to the museum. Books by all six authors will be available for purchase, with the authors available to sign them.

The museum is located less than a block from Metro’s Gallery Place station (Arena exit), at 575 7th Street, NW, and on the web at www.crimemuseum.org. For ticket and facility rental information, call (202) 393-1099.

About the Crime Museum:
Crime Museum’s mission is to provide guests of all ages with a memorable insight into the issues of crime, crime fighting, and the consequences of committing a crime in America, through a captivating interactive, entertaining and educational experience. The museum is located on 7th Street NW between E and F Streets in downtown Washington, D.C. at the Gallery Place/Chinatown Metro (Arena exit). For more information, visit www.crimemuseum.org or follow the museum on Facebook and Twitter.