Looking for that last minute holiday gift? One that the mystery lover on your list will use and not want to return? How about the person on your list who is writing a novel and needs a jumpstart on their writing?

Or how about a gift for you?

Think about the 2011 Sleuthfest.

Think about Fort Lauderdale in March.

Then make your plans to come.

Unlike other conferences, Sleuthfest is a writing conference, geared to aspiring writers and published authors. And fans are welcomed, too.

Sleuthfest, sponsored by the Florida chapter of the Mystery Writers of America, begins March 3, 2011, with the Third Degree Workshop and continues March 4-6. Editors, agents, authors and forensic experts will be on hand to discuss writing.

If your holiday gift list includes mystery fans and would-be authors, Sleuthfest registration makes a good present.

Early registration is $235 until Jan. 15, 2011, and $255 after that date for MWA members; for nonmembers, the early rate is $255 and then, after Jan. 15, 2011,

it rises to $275. The rate includes some meals. One-day attendance also is available. Information and registration is at www.sleuthfest.com.

As in years past, Sleuthfest will feature two guests of honor. Meg Gardiner, author of “The Liar's Lullaby” and “The Dirty Secrets Club,” will be the Friday guest. Gardiner won the 2009 Edgar award for Best Paperback Original for her novel “China Lake.” Long published in England, Gardiner first came to the attention of American readers when Stephen King praised her work in an Entertainment Weekly column.

Multi-award winner Dennis Lehane, author of “Mystic River,” “Gone Baby Gone” and “Shutter Island,” will be the guest of honor Saturday. Lehane built his career with Boston private detectives Patrick Kenzie and Angie Gennaro, who returned in his recent novel “Moonlight Mile.”

In addition, mystery authors S.J. Rozan, James W. Hall, Ace Atkins, Michael Koryta, Dana Cameron, Deborah Crombie, Lisa Unger, Julie Compton, Marcia Talley, and more will attend.

Having your name used as a character in a favorite author's novel is a thrill for any reader. A character's name also is often one of the most popular auction items at mystery fiction conferences.

 

Some people want to be a character, others bid on a name for a friend, relative or even a pet's name.

 

Don Bruns' latest novel, Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff (Oceanview Publishing) is set against the backdrop of a traveling carnival where the rides come off the tracks and people are killed.  His protagonists, stumbling and bumbling James Lessor and Skip Moore, are hired to investigate the situation.

 

While writing the novel, Bruns one day drove pass a farmer’s field, which had an assortment of donkeys, goats, pigs and animals. So Bruns thought he would add

a  petting zoo to the carnival. 

 

That gave Bruns' longtime publicist Maryglenn McComb an idea. Why not add Garcia, her 10 1/2-year-old, blind, 125-pound, Old English Sheepdog, to the petting zoo?

 

Actually, McComb said she didn't ask Bruns, she begged.

 

And what started as a simple idea made a plot change Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff  as Bruns learned that the old dog could learn new tricks.

 

In Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff , Garcia becomes more than a bit player. In fact, according Bruns and McComb, Garcia literally steals the show and becomes a major force in the story. 

 

Not only that, but McComb arranged for Garcia to photo-shopped into Bruns’ author photo. 

 

Garcia's shaggy dog story continues. Garcia has taken to Twitter to share news about his book and his views on life as Garcia. Well, I imagine that McComb probably helps him. Follow him on Twitter @AmazingGarcia.

 

Bruns, who has auctioned off character names to raise money for charities in the past, says this dogged tale shows how a novel can take a different route than the author expects. “Fiction writers need to remember that you never know where a story will lead—and you never know where the ideas will come from. Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff  is a result of an idea, driving by a farm, and an off-the-wall suggestion from my publicist,” said Bruns.

 

As a devoted and longtime dog owner, I totally understand McComb's desire to get her dog in the novel. Starting with my first dog, Lou, when I was a year and a half, I have never been without a dog. I think I do my work when either Dash or Gizmo are at my feet, as they are now. But I don't dare show my shih tzus Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff . They'll just want their own novel.  

 

When Miami Vice aired during the 1980s, it was more than a crime drama. It was a showcase for South Florida, which, at the time, was changing from a mecca for retirees to a vibrant area attractive to European models, fashionistas and, unforuntately, criminals.

Who doesn't remember that opening of Miami Vice with the brilliant water, the beautiful people, the tree growing in the middle of a condo?

Hawaii Five-0 does the same for Hawaii. The opening scenes of this new show, which airs at 9 p.m. CST, 10 p.m. EST Mondays on CBS, shows a breathtakingly beautiful area that has everyone wanting to book their next flight.

Hawaii Five-0 is doing fairly well, according to the Nielsen ratings. At this point, it is the only new show to land in the Nielsen's top 20. And it has been renewed for a second season.

The series stars Scott Caan as Danny "Danno" Williams, left, and Alex O'Loughlin as Steve McGarrett, right.

So does the TV series accurately depict Hawaii? Does it capture the islands' unique atmosphere?

To find out, Mystery Scene asked mystery authors who write about the area or who live there. I wish I could take credit for the idea, but it came from South Florida author Neil Plakcy. Here's just a few comments. Others will come later.

Neil Plakcy, author of the Mahu series, set in Hawaii. Lives in Hollywood, Fla.: I really like the new Hawaii Five-0, with a couple of reservations. First, the pluses.

Hawaii looks vibrant and exciting, and I love the homage they've paid to the original series, from retaining the character names to the the "book 'im Danno" to the theme music. It's interesting that they've switched the relationship from Steve and Danny from mentor/mentee to "bromance," in keeping with current trends.

I'd like to see more Hawaiian music (a personal love of mine) and I'm irritated by the choice of Daniel Dae Kim to play Chin Ho, because he looks so Korean rather than Chinese, and because he seems to have such a narrow acting range. I was impressed by the local knowledge represented by the prejudice against haoles that came up in a couple of situations.

The first plot was a bit hackneyed, though I thought the immigrant smuggling subplot (which I used myself in Mahu Vice) was a good note. Sadly, though, the later plots have been getting more and more unrealistic, at least in my opinion.

I wish the governor had said "out of my islands" instead of "off my island," though, to indicate that Hawaii is more than just Oahu. I hope the task force will visit the other islands.

Annette Kamalei Mahon, author of Holiday Dreams, part of a Hawaiian romance series. She is third generation Hawaiian of Portuguese/Australian extraction, now lives in Arizona: The opening credits, which seemed to be a montage of old and new, was very nice. Love that they kept the distinctive theme. I wasn't sure about the Steve/Danny interaction at first, but by the end I liked it a lot. Good push and pull there. Personally, I thought the "Danno" origination thing was lame. (I read that the actor hates having to end each show with "Book 'em Danno" but he's stuck with it.)

Having the governor be a haole woman was a nice touch, but maybe just for islanders. My husband didn't know that the current governor is a haole woman from Maui. Interesting that they used the island resentment of haoles as a sub-theme. Being Portuguese myself, I've never considered myself "haole" though my husband does. He's asked around and most people exclude the Portuguese from that designation, though not everyone.

The plot of the first episode seemed a bit thin, and I'm not big on terrorist stories. I'd prefer tales about common criminals. The human smuggling was good, as

that is a big problem and not just in Hawai`i.

Having grown up in the islands, with two sisters who inherited the coloring from the Aussie side of the family, I know that haole prejudice is a real thing. I never encountered any because everyone thinks I'm Hawaiian with my Mediterrean skin color and frizzy hair. My husband has also noticed this prejudice during our visits; he is 6'4" and pale skinned with blue eyes. He thinks his reception among the locals is similar to his experience in Japan (on a business trip). I was just surprised that it was used as a plot devise because it is not a tourist friendly kind of thing.

Debby Atkinson, author of Pleasing the Dead, has lived in Honolulu for more than 30 years: [The series has] some good stuff, but my overall impression is that there's work to be done. We do have a haole woman governor right now, and both my husband and I reacted to her statement about "my island." Gov. Linda Lingle is pretty savvy about race and inclusiveness and I'm sure she would say "out of OUR islands."

Plural islands, too.

We thought the pidgin was lame to the point of being cringe-inducing. People speak pidgin all the time here, but the writers seemed to be trying to work in pidgin-sounding words no matter what the words meant or the characters said. For example, one character called another a manini. That word is an adjective and means small. Perhaps the writers meant malihini (newcomer), but even that was a stretch under the circumstances.

Another thing that bothered us was the aggression portrayed by the characters. I love thrillers, but fictional people still need to act true to form (and their region), don't they? Our whole family surfs, and though there are some breaks on the north shore that are competitive, usually surfing is pretty mellow -- especially the kind of waves where the Grace Park character was shown. Granted, dropping in on someone is bad manners, but it sometimes happens because it's often difficult to see what's behind you when you're out there and a big wave is roaring toward you. I've never seen anyone slug someone for it. Hope I never do!

Annette makes a good point about Iolani Palace. Yes, it has been extensively restored, and it's a museum. I must have turned on the TV late (typically). I missed that detail and Annette is right -- I can't see any law enforcement offices being placed at Iolani Palace, it just isn't realistic.

As to the haole thing, I've felt some prejudice, but either I'm numb and have my head in the sand or I've been around so long I snort at the ignorance and turn away. I thought 5-0 not only overdid it, it wasn't realistic. It's more subtle when it happens.

I hope the writers listen to locals' suggestions. The show can be a better and more realistic portrayal of Hawaii without losing its thrilling edge. Bad people are

scary and dangerous wherever they are.

Mystery Scene will continue this look at Hawaii Five-0 by authors in another blog.

I am a major fan of audio books. No, they do not replace the joy of holding an actual novel, but audio books have gotten me through many a long, traffic-ridden drive.

While I have no actual statistics for this, I wouldn't be surprised if audio books prevented road rage. Who wants a fight when you're at a crucial part of book?

So it makes perfect sense to me that as authors find new platforms to get their work to readers that a novel would be written specially for audio.

Readers can now enjoy the only-in-audio novel Narrows Gate by Jim Fusilli. It is performed by Emmy Award-winning actor Joe Pantoliano (The Sopranos) and narrator Joe Barrett (A Prayer for Owen Meany). It's available at Audible.com.

Fusilli has published a number of excellent mysteries, inclucing Closing Time, Tribeca Blues and Hard Hard City in the Terry Orr series. Fusilli also is a Wall Street Journal music critic and contributing writer to 2008 Audiobook of the Year, The Chopin Manuscript.

With Narrows Gate, Fusilli shows a new leap in his writing. Audible.com describes Narrows Gate as "a powerful epic in the spirit of The Godfather and On the Waterfront, Narrows Gate follows the fates of three men as their lives intersect with the dangerous and seductive power of the Mob in a vividly imagined, fictional version of 1940s Hoboken."

I'd say that description is right. In the couple of samples I listened to, Narrows Gatehas the makes of a well-plotted novel with strong, believable characters. It also helps, too, that Pantoliano, who is a Hoboken native, captures each character's distinct voice. Set in the first half of the 20th century, Narrows Gateis set in Manhattan, Hollywood, Las Vegas, Havana, Miami, and Hoboken, NJ, where Fusilli was born and raised.

Straight to audio is a trend I think we will see more of. And Fusilli's Narrows Gate is just the beginning.