by G. Robert Frazier

One of the coolest things about the Killer Nashville writers’ conference happening this weekend is the mock crime scene that participants will have an opportunity to solve. Not that crime is cool, of course, but playing amateur sleuth definitely is. And since mystery writers love to make up deadly scenarios with which to challenge their readers, it’s only fair that the tables are turned on them.

Dan Royse, who has many years of experience processing real crime scenes in law enforcement investigations and has overseen the mock murder scene since it began during Killer Nashville’s second year, is again laying out the puzzle pieces for this year’s conference. Like last year’s mystery, the crime is an original creation and not based on actual, true life events as they have been in the past.

Royse explains part of that has to do with Killer Nashville’s move last year to the prestigious Omni Hotel in downtown Nashville.

“We used hotel boiler rooms, parking garages, mechanical rooms, stairwells, etc. – essentially areas that we were able to clean up afterwards with a mop,” explained Royse, who is assistant director of the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation. “When the venue was changed to the Omni, I had to adapt to the available space, which was a meeting room with very specific rules about keeping the space clean. Since the location always dictates what you are able to do with a mock scene, I had to come up with something that was cleaner, and more about the investigation than the actual crime scene.

“So, it will be original rather than ripped from the headlines, but still interesting,” he promised.

Royse will introduce Killer Nashville attendees to the particulars of the crime beginning at 9:35 Friday morning in Broadway Ballroom E & F at the Omni. The crime scene will open at 10 a.m. in Cumberland 4, where attendees will then have an opportunity to examine, sketch, and search for physical evidence. A series of mock witness interviews will also be available.

Attendees-turned-amateur-sleuths will be able to draw their own conclusions and form a hypothesis of what happened, who they think is responsible for the crime, and what evidence will prove it. Solutions must be turned in by 12:45 p.m. Saturday, when the crime scene will close. One lucky attendee with the right answer will be declared the Dupin Detective Award winner at Saturday night’s dinner and awards banquet.

As a former newspaper journalist who used to pound the police beat daily and as an avid reader of mysteries, I am particularly excited about the mock crime scene. Hey, if Jessica Fletcher, the beloved fictional writer of the hit TV show Murder She Wrote, can outwit the crooks, so can I. Maybe.

While the Killer Nashville International Writers’ Conference caters to readers, writers, and law enforcement professionals, it is open to anyone who wants to attend. If you’re in the Nashville area this weekend, you can still get in on the action. Tickets to attend the day-long panels and parties can still be obtained at the door. For more information on prices and a schedule of events, visit http://www.killernashville.com.