Had dinner the other night with my writing group and an author we admire greatly – Judy Greber, who writes mysteries (and a terrific short book on how to write mysteries) as Gillian Roberts, and other works of fiction under her own name. The conversation rolled around to the mystery at the heart of all mysteries – why would someone kill another human being? For us law-abiding, gentle folk, getting under the skin and behind the eyeballs of a person who is about to kill or who has just killed can be a daunting part of the writing process.
Do murderers signal their intent? Sure, if they’re carrying weapons openly and shouting, “You’re dead, dude!” at the victim. But what about that nice man who offers to help you carry your groceries, or the teenager who has a crush on your daughter, or the compassionate-seeming nurse at the local hospital? Who knew? Usually, the neighbors say, “But he [she] was such a lovely, quiet person…”
How do professional profilers come up with their descriptions of killers when all they have is the evidence left behind at the tragic scene? How do we fiction writers bring enough verisimilitude into our novels to keep readers engaged?
One of our group, who is writing wonderful, fresh paranormals, offered one answer: THE GIFT OF FEAR, by Gavin De Becker, is a new, non-fiction book on what survivors of violent, murderous attacks can teach us about violence, how to recognize the signals of a would-be killer (and, presumably, what to do about it).
Judy offered a second: THE MURDER ROOM: THE HEIRS OF SHERLOCK HOLMES GATHER TO SOLVE THEE WORLD’S MOST PERPLEXING COLD CASES, another new book, this one by Michael Capuzzo, is just as it says – using detecting skills to reconstruct the situation and action of a crime scene and to deduce from that who did the deed.
Both books are on my must-have list because I – like you, I am sure – must venture into the realm of my darkest imagination to embrace the mind and heart of a killer. It’s not territory I enjoy inhabiting, even for a short time. But it does have one upside: I’m so happy when I can emerge into the sunlight again.
Hi, Susan, nice post, and I’m glad The Gift of Fear made an appearance. It was published in 1995, though, not new at all. The information is still valid and very, very helpful.
Great to see you all, as usual.
Ruth
Ruth, Thanks for picking up my error, and for pointing me toward the book! Such a strange title, until you explained that the author is trying to help people prepare for and thwart danger.