Our trip to England in 2013 took us to the Hilton in Brighton, where we attended the World Fantasy Convention. While I enjoyed the panel discussions, readings, and meeting some favorite authors (including Peter F Hamilton), I wished for more interaction with other readers. It can be difficult at times to talk with people about the books you read, as so many people have and still do write wonderful and inspiring stories. Unless you belong to a book group, where you focus on a particular novel, you're often reduced to telling others about books they haven't read, and authors they may not have even heard of.
Book groups can disappointing for a different reason. To appeal to as many interests as possible, group leaders rarely focus on a single author, or for even a specific genre. And what happens when the group convenes to discuss a particular book? A third to a half of the people will say they haven't finished it, if they even bothered to read it. Then they, and half of those that did, will tell you why they didn't like it. Leaders can also be a pain. They do their research, and then when you share elements of the book you enjoyed, and something positive you took away from reading it, they'll inform you that you're wrong, that they have proof that the author intended to communicate something completely different with his story!
I don't know about you, but I'd love to gather together with other people who like the authors I like, who have read the stories I've read, and want to share how the stories challenged, delighted, entertained, and inspired them. A single-author group, if not a convention, seems an ideal setting for that. And if production companies have adapted the author's stories for TV and movies, so much the better. So much more to talk about! The only question, in the case of a convention, is this: Can you attract sufficient number of fans to pay the costs of such an event?
Thankfully, given Agatha Christie's popularity, this isn't a problem. In fact, people come from all across the globe to see the places she lived and wrote her stories. She grew up in Torquay, a seaside town in south Devon, married her first husband there, and started her career there. After her second marriage, she may have moved away, but she purchased an estate (Greenway) in Torquay, and returned to spend her summers there. So Torquay seems an ideal place to meet to discuss and celebrate her work, given all the associations the city holds for her family and life.
This year's International Agatha Christie Festival takes place in Torquay, and celebrates the 125th anniversary of her birth. There will be lots of events geared toward every age group and interest, and the ten day event kicks off tonight at the Grand Hotel. It's an impressive old building, that looks out over the sea, and I'm sure that tonight it will be packed with Agatha Christie fans. I'd love to fly back to England, and take part in the festivities.
Ah well. At least I have this blog, so I can share my affection for her stories with you.
Related Link
Tonight's Agatha Christie Meet-up in Torquay
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