Charles, I had hoped to meet you at Bouchercon, but never got a chance. Congratulations on the award. No one personifies the spirit of the crime fiction community better then you do. I sent a manuscript to Hard Case Crime a couple of years ago. I knew it wasn't quite in your wheelhouse, but thought it might be close enough if you were branching out in my direction. And I was about out of ideas of where to send the damn thing. You passed, but made a couple of nice comments about the book, and about my writing. Best of all, you suggested a couple of small houses that might be interested in such a story. That's the kind of "rising tide lifts all boats" attitude I saw at Bouchercon, but was lucky enough to experience first hand through you. (No, the book hasn't sold yet, but I have found an agent and we're working on it.) Congratualtions again, and thank you.
