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Photo courtesy of John Stephen Herring.
The Murder in the Magic City mystery book conference will be Feb. 22 at the Homewood PublicLibrary.
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Murder in the Magic City information.
Mystery novels take center stage when the 18th annual Murder in the Magic City comes to the Homewood Public Library on Feb. 22.
Murder in the Magic City is a conference for mystery novel fans to gather and listen to authors talk about their books. More than 12 authors are scheduled to appear.
“Our goal is to bring authors of all types of mystery books to their fans,” said Beverly LeBoeuf, conference treasurer.
There will be two guests of honor at this year’s event. One will be Joshilyn Jackson, a New York Times bestselling author who has authored books such as “Gods in Alabama” and “Never Have I Ever.” The other will be Thomas Mullen, author of the Darktown series and many more publications.
Jackson and Mullen will have presentations, and other authors will participate in panel discussions. LeBoeuf said the topics discussed help fans learn where the authors get their book ideas.
“Topics in the past have included discussions such as how to plot a story, what type of protagonist do you write about, where do you get your ideas and many other subjects,” she said.
LeBoeuf said authors regularly sit with audience members and are happy to answer questions.
All ticket sales will go toward library expenses and next year’s conference. The Homewood Public Library will also host a silent auction that will help fund R.E.A.L. (Rehome, Educate, Adopt, Love). R.E.A.L. helps pets in North Alabama get vaccines and medical care. The library has raised at least $900 for the R.E.A.L. campaign.
Tickets will need to be purchased in advance of the conference, with a box lunch, coffee, snacks and goodie bags containing books and information about the featured authors included in the ticket purchase.
Tickets can be purchased for $45 apiece at mmcmysteryconference.com.