ThrillerFest VI Returns to NYC July 6th through 9th, 2011

Anticipation mounts as those who dare to scare plot their return to the Big Apple for ThrillerFest VI, July 6th through 9th, 2011.

"ThrillerFest VI is breaking records again this year!" says ThrillerFest Chair Kathleen Antrim. "It's the only event of its kind on the planet. A summer camp for thriller fans and writers. We're especially excited to have international best seller Ken Follett teaching the craft of writing. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity." Follett, last year's Thrillermaster, will be one of the many writers leading a class in novel writing at CraftFest.

Also on tap: AgentFest, at which aspiring authors will have three minutes to pitch an agent – and they can pitch to as many agents as they want within two hours. Every year new writers are discovered.

There's felonious fun in store for fans, too. More than 200 of the world's best thriller writers will be in attendance with the express purpose of mixing, mingling and meeting their readers. There will be talks, readings and cocktail parties where tales of suspense will intoxicate more than the libations.

This year's Thrillermaster is R.L. Stine, a name that is sure make those young at heart shiver in anticipation. The mastermind behind the wildly popular "Fear Street" and "Goosebumps" series, Stine has written 330 books for children and four adult thrillers and has sold almost 400 million books around the world.

Other special guests include Robert Crais, author of the bestselling Elvis Cole mystery series and winner of the 2006 Ross Macdonald Literary Award; Diana Gabaldon, whose unique novels blend 20th-century science-fiction with 18th-century historical romantic adventure; and John Lescroart, who took 20 years to become an overnight sensation, but today has novels translated into 16 languages in 75 countries.

ThrillerFest comes to a close with the Awards Banquet, where authors and fans alike will feel pulse-racing anticipation as they wait to find out who will win the International Thriller Writers awards for best novel, best debut novel and best short story. Two crime novelists will also be honored. Karin Slaughter will receive the Silver Bullet Award for her outstanding and meritorious achievement in the pursuit of literacy and the love of reading; whiel the True Thrill Award will go to Joe McGinnis for the verve, guts, and ambition that have inspired three generations of non-fiction suspense and true crime authors.

ThrillerFest VI will be held at the Grand Hyatt Hotel in New York City. Visit the ThrillerFest website to register and for information about hotel reservations.