Local author hosts grassroots ‘Noir’ in OV

Author Patrick Whitehurst saw a need for a Noir at the Bar in Tucson so he did what any other enterprising writer would do. He started one himself.

Tucson Noir at the Bar is set for 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, March 15, at Firetruck Brewing Company in Oro Valley. It’s being held in conjunction with Left Coast Crime, a mystery writer convention held March 16 to March 19 at El Conquistador Tucson: A Hilton Resort.

“Tucson Noir at the Bar is a specific event being held around Left Coast Crime, but it’s not part of it,” Whitehurst said.

“I decided that Left Coast Crime could use a Noir at the Bar event to go along with it. I chose the location in coordination with Tucson Sisters in Crime, in a spot the authors could easily get to it.”

The free Noir at the Bar is like others held throughout the country. It puts literature in a bar-like setting and offers readers a chance to hear authors read live from their work, while enjoying a meal and/or drink.

“It’s pretty grassroots,” he said. “An author will stand up in front of the audience with a microphone and read from their work. Some authors are very dynamic speakers and act out scenes. Other authors just read. There are big names and little names, and those just starting out. You can go out, have a couple drinks, have dinner and watch some of your favorite authors read from their work.”

Tucson Noir at the Bar features 11 authors in the crime, thriller and mystery genres. The list includes Laurie R. King, Matt Coyle, Curtis Ippolito, Meredith Hambrock, A.J. Devlin, Claire Booth, Patrick Whitehurst, Richard Meredith, S.M. Freedman, D.M. Rowell and Ed Lin.

“Some of these crime conventions do their own Noir at the Bar,” Whitehurst said. “But I didn’t see that Left Coast Crime was doing one. That’s when I had the idea one night that, well, if no one’s going to do it, maybe I should.”

Whitehurst is the author of “Murder and Mayhem in Tucson” and contributor to the “Images of America” collection. He is planning to sell his books and sign autographs at Left Coast Crime on Saturday. He has attended a few Noir at the Bars around the country but this one is the first he’s fully coordinated.

Whitehurst coordinated Noir at the Bar with the Tucson chapter of Sisters in Crime, an international organization dedicated to mystery lovers. Its mission is to promote the work of members and educate the public about mystery and true crime writing.

According to the author, they were instrumental in creating the event around the festival.

“They’re very involved in the Tucson Left Coast Crime Convention,” Whitehurst said. “They helped me find a date that would work… they shared some information on it and gave me some other ideas on just putting the event together. It’s going to be a great night.”

Noir at the Bar in Tucson

WHEN: 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, March 15

WHERE: Firetruck Brewing Company, 9630 N. Oracle Road, Suite 110, Oro Valley

COST: Free admission

INFO: patrickwhitehurst.com

This article appears in Mar 9-15, 2023.