Don't Forget To...

So you've registered for Left Coast Crime 2016, The Great Cactus Caper. (Right? You have, right? If you're still on the fence, let Toastmaster Catriona McPherson convince you you need to be here.)

But are you planning to make the most out of your trip? Have you signed up for all the available opportunities?? Here's what you shouldn't miss...

Author Workshop: Writing and selling fiction is a business, but most authors don’t approach it that way. Building your brand is key to success. This class will not only help authors understand how branding and relationship building can help make you successful, but it will also explain how to go about it and give you the tools to do so.

Join us Thursday morning for a three-hour, hands-on workshop that will build your marketing and social media skills! Get more information and sign up from our website.

Author-Reader Connections: An incredible opportunity for readers to get to know authors better and talk about writing, reading, and anything else of interest.
Sample Connection: Lunch with Rochelle Staab
During 2016 Left Coast Crime: The Great Cactus Caper, Rochelle Staab will host up to three fans for good food and a lively discussion on writing, research, and favorite mystery books. Rochelle will buy lunch for the attendees, excluding alcohol.

• Authors: to sign up to provide a connection, email your proposal to connections@lcc2016.com
  
• Readers: Check the LCC website frequently (new Connections will be added as we get them) and pick an offering to sign up for!

See the City: Our partner, Affinity Group Tours, has arranged a variety of optional excursions for you to enhance your visit to Left Coast Crime 2016. You must be registered for the conference to join any of the tours; non-registered spouses and family are eligible. Don't miss out on seeing the Desert Botanical Garden, the Lost Dutchman Gold Mine, or Haunted Phoenix! Get more information and sign up on Affinity's site.

We'll see you soon in Phoenix!

LCC Tip: See More of Phoenix

Some LCC attendees stay close to the hotel while they’re in a given host city for a convention. Or stay at the bar (you know who you are).

Others like to get out, see the city—or the state. Breathe in some non–air conditioned air. Stretch your legs, see some wildlife, learn some history. Or maybe have a drink somewhere else….

So for those of you who want to see more of Phoenix than what’s going on inside the hotel walls, we’ve partnered with a local tour company that’s offering a variety of optional excursions to enhance your visit to Left Coast Crime 2016.

Tours include:

• Experience Haunted Jerome (Mon., Feb. 22, to Wed., Feb. 24)
• The Heard Museum (Wed., Feb. 24, 3:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m.)
• Walking Tour of Haunted Phoenix
  (Wed., Feb. 24, 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.)
• Dinner at Rustler’s Rooste
  (Wed., Feb. 24, 6:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m.)
• Desert Botanical Garden (Thurs., Feb. 25, 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.)
• Legend of the Lost Dutchman Gold Mine
  (Sun., Feb. 28, 2:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.)

For detailed information and to sign up for any tours, visit Affinity’s Left Coast Crime Tour page.

Note: You must be registered for the conference to join any of the tours; non-registered spouses and family are eligible. Unless noted, tours will depart from the Hyatt Regency.

What to See in Phoenix

The Phoenix visitors bureau (VisitPhoenix.com) says the city's "perpetual sunshine might tempt you to spend all your free time lounging next to a swimming pool." Those of us who attend Left Coast Crime know we're more likely to be indoors all day and night talking mystery! But whether you slip away for an afternoon's hike, an evening meal, or a quick shopping trip—or better yet, if you come a day early to LCC or stay a couple days late—we hope you'll explore this fascinating city.

Note: Packaged tours will soon be arranged for LCC attendees to some of the attractions below. More info soon!

History/Culture:
Major museums and sites in Phoenix focus on Native American culture. And uniquely American architecture. And music. So ... a little bit of everything.

Heard Museum: dedicated to the sensitive and accurate portrayal of Native arts and cultures, the museum boasts a significant permanent collection, as well as rotating exhibits focused on different aspects of Native American life.

Taliesin West: the winter home of Frank Lloyd Wright, America's most famous architect and a National Historic Landmark, offering a totally immersive tour experience.

Musical Instrument Museum: the first in the world dedicated to the celebration of global instruments, including examples from 200 countries and territories. 

Outdoor exploration:
You can find nearly any fair-weather outdoor activity available in Phoenix, including golfing, balloon rides, canyoneering, ATV tours, horseback excursions, and hiking. Some of the most popular are below, but whatever you choose, be sure you take plenty of water with you to combat the extra-dry climate!

Desert Botanical Garden: home to the world's finest and most diverse collection of succulent plants, a site for discovering the wonders of the Sonoran Desert (photo from the DBG website).

Camelback Mountain: the city's most famous landmark, which resembles a camel in repose, it challenges hikers with a rugged but rewarding trek to its 2,700 foot hump.

South Mountain Park and Preserve: the largest municipal park in the United States, covering 16,000 acres, making it nearly 20 times bigger than New York's Central Park. Filled with native flora, ancient petroglyphs, and 50-plus miles of trails—including a paved road to the summit.

Phoenix Zoo: featuring more than 1,400 animals, including Bornean orangutans, Asian elephants, Sumatran tigers, Komodo dragons, Andean bears, and more in 125 acres of natural habitats. 

Shopping:
What you want from Phoenix is the flavor of the Southwest, from Southwest designs, to Native American crafts, to the cowboy aesthetic. With maybe a little quirkiness and mystery thrown in....

Old Town Scottsdale: galleries dedicated to Native American and cowboy arts share a pedestrian-friendly streetscape with shops that sell Southwestern jewelry and crafts—along with some of Greater Phoenix's finest restaurants and trendiest nightlife.

Lawless Denim, where you can get custom jeans made to your style, color, thread, button, and pocket-liner specifications.

Curious Nature, a "natural history emporium" where you can learn a lot (mostly about taxidermy) and purchase one-of-a-kind treasures. In case you want to show off an articulated bat skeleton or a freeze-dried toad to your friends in the LCC bar.

The Poisoned Pen Bookstore: an independent bookstore specializing in fiction, especially mystery, thrillers, historical and literary fiction, and literature of the Southwest.

Planning Your Phoenix Trip

When you decide to join us in Phoenix for Left Coast Crime 2016 (because we know you will do that!), we hope you’ll also be able to take an extra afternoon or day—or two—to explore Phoenix and its surrounding areas.

However long you can stay, here are a few tips for your planning purposes:

• Flying: means Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport (PHX), which is served by 17 commercial airlines and handles more than 80 domestic and 20 international flights a day, most of them nonstop.
• Accommodations at the Hyatt: The Hyatt Regency Phoenix does not have rooms available for the Tuesday night (February 23) prior to LCC, due to a city-wide convention. The hotel does have plenty of rooms Wednesday through Sunday nights. PLEASE be aware of that when making reservations—if you search for rooms Tuesday through Saturday, don’t panic when you receive a “rooms not available” response. Simply change your request to start with Wednesday.
• Tuesday accommodations: Rooms will be available at other hotels, so we recommend checking near the airport or other areas away from downtown Phoenix.
• Things to do as part of LCC: Stay tuned for tours specially tuned to LCC guests, including a wild-west themed dinner, a historic downtown walking tour of Phoenix, and more.
• Things to do in Phoenix: There’s plenty for you to do within or close to the city limits, such as …
• Arts and Culture: the Heard Museum for American Indian arts and cultures; Phoenix Art Museum, showcasing modern and contemporary works; Desert Botanical Garden, the world’s largest collection of desert plants; Taliesin West, Frank Lloyd Wright’s 480-acre desert masterpiece; and the Musical Instrument Museum, featuring more than 10,000 instruments and artifacts from around the world.
• Recreation and Relaxation: hiking and biking in more than 180,000 acres of parks and preserves, golf and spa, “air activities” such as hot-air balloon and helicopter rides, and Jeep and Hummer tours.
• Downtown Phoenix: the CityScape for entertainment, dining, and shopping; the Arizona Science Center with 350 hands-on exhibits and a planetarium; the Civic Space Park, an urban park; Chase Field, home to the Arizona Diamondbacks; and US Airways Arena, home to the Phoenix Suns, Phoenix Mercury, and Arizona Rattlers.
• Things to do in Arizona: Day trips can take you to a variety of scenic areas, including the Grand Canyon, Sedona and Oak Creek Canyon, Prescott, Flagstaff,

We’ll focus more in later blogs on some of your day-trip, in-town, and LCC-tour options. But starting thinking about what you might need to see when you join us next February!

Photo courtesy of VisitPhoenix.com.