Left Coast Crime is an annual conference organised by mystery fiction fans for mystery fiction fans, first held in San Francisco in 1991. It is concerned with western North American region mysteries, but the conference itself travels worldwide, having been held in Canada and the United Kingdom, as well as different parts of the United States. The conference enables fans to mix with authors. A prominent author of western mystery fiction is invited to be guest speaker.

Awards

Conference participants have voted on an award for the most humorous mystery novel since 1996. The Bruce Alexander Memorial Historical Mystery (for a mystery set prior to 1950) has been voted since 2004. The PANIC is an award for the best Los Angeles noir in memory of Paul Anic and the first, for 2009, will be awarded at the 2010 conference in Los Angeles.

Lefty Award Winners

• 1996: The Fat Innkeeper by Alan Russell
• 1997: No award given
• 1998: Three To Get Deadly by Janet Evanovich
  Janet Evanovich
  Janet Evanovich is an American writer. She began her career writing short contemporary romance novels under the pen name Steffie Hall, but gained fame authoring a series of contemporary mysteries featuring Stephanie Plum, a lingerie buyer from Trenton, New Jersey, who becomes a bounty hunter to...
  
  
• 1999: Four to Score by Janet Evanovich
  Janet Evanovich
  Janet Evanovich is an American writer. She began her career writing short contemporary romance novels under the pen name Steffie Hall, but gained fame authoring a series of contemporary mysteries featuring Stephanie Plum, a lingerie buyer from Trenton, New Jersey, who becomes a bounty hunter to...
  
  
• 2000: Murder With Peacocks by Donna Andrews
  Donna Andrews (author)
  Donna Andrews is an American mystery fiction writer of two award-winning amateur sleuth series. Her first book, Murder with Peacocks , introduced Meg Langslow, a blacksmith from Yorktown, Virginia. It won the St...
  
  
• 2001: No award given
• 2002: tie: Dim Sum Dead by Jerrilyn Farmer
  Jerrilyn Farmer
  Jerrilyn Farmer is an American mystery fiction writer, author of a series of lightweight, humorous 'culinary mysteries' featuring Hollywood caterer 'Madeline Bean'....
  
   and Fender Benders by Bill Fitzhugh
• 2003: tie: The Hearse Case Scenario by Tim Cockey and Pipsqueak by Brian M. Wiprud
• 2004: Mumbo Gumbo by Jerrilyn Farmer
  Jerrilyn Farmer
  Jerrilyn Farmer is an American mystery fiction writer, author of a series of lightweight, humorous 'culinary mysteries' featuring Hollywood caterer 'Madeline Bean'....
  
  
• 2005: tie: We'll Always Have Parrots by Donna Andrews
  Donna Andrews (author)
  Donna Andrews is an American mystery fiction writer of two award-winning amateur sleuth series. Her first book, Murder with Peacocks , introduced Meg Langslow, a blacksmith from Yorktown, Virginia. It won the St...
  
   and Blue Blood by Susan McBride
• 2006: Cast Adrift by Peter Guttridge
• 2007: Go to Helena Handbasket by Donna Moore
  Donna Moore
  Donna Moore is a Scottish novelist. Her first published book ...Go To Helena Handbasket won the 2007 Left Coast Crime Lefty Award for best humorous mystery of the year. Her second novel, Old Dogs followed in 2010.-External links:**...
  
  
• 2008: Murder With Reservations by Elaine Viets
  Elaine Viets
  Elaine Viets is a Midwestern American newspaperwoman and mystery writer.A native of the working-class white southside of St. Louis, Missouri, the statuesque Viets has a degree in journalism and became a long-time popular media figure in St. Louis. She was a regular columnist for the St...
  
  
• 2009: Greasing the Pinata by Tim Maleeny

The Bruce Alexander Memorial Historical Mystery

• 2009: "Nox Dormienda, A Long Night For Sleeping by Kelli Stanley
  Kelli Stanley
  Kelli Stanley is an American author of mystery-thrillers. Her first novel, Nox Dormienda was the first of a series set in Roman Britain in the 1st century CE .Nox Dormienda takes its title from a line by the Roman poet Catullus in the poem known as Catullus 5...
  
  
• 2006: "Spectres In The Smoke" by Tony Broadbent
• 2005: "The Witch in the Well" by Sharan Newman
• 2004: "For The Love Of Mike" by Rhys Bowen