I write psychological murder mysteries. Before that, I read psychological murder mysteries. My favorite writer is Ruth Rendell, a British novelist who also wrote under the name of Barbara Vine. I loved the way she got inside a character's head. I had been trying to figure out what makes people do what they do since I was about ten years old. I grew up in a very dysfunctional home. It's fair to say that I wasn't actually safe as a child in my own home. What began as an urge to survive turned into a lifelong habit of observing people. Just about everyone is subject to my keen observations. I find human behavior to be endlessly fascinating, including my own.
Of course, writers often create fictional characters that are heavily influenced by real life relationships. It doesn't, however, always have to be someone that we're related to or married to or even friends with, but can just as easily be a chance encounter. I often sit in a coffee shop and invent back stories in my head while "people watching". Why does that woman yell at her kids? What makes that young man sound so angry on his cell phone? Why does that old man look so seedy? Why does the girl at the next table keep sniffing? Or what about the odd looking boy who left his trash on the table when the rubbish bin was right next to the door on his way out? Little everyday behaviors that peak my interest, sometimes finding their way into my stories in one form or another.
Take a look at a previous article that I wrote called Where Do I Get My Ideas?
I tend to resist attempts made by friends to convince me that most people are decent. Occasionally, I counter their defense of humans with my often unwelcome point of view. Inevitably, my response triggers an emotional reaction from those who want desperately to believe that humans are in control of their behaviors and generally make good choices. I've concluded that many people simply aren't very observant. In my middle class neighborhood alone, we've had the treasurer of the association dues embezzle the funds, the state examine the parenting practices of another family and a house fire deliberately started. Because of my bizarre upbringing, I understand that what goes on behind closed doors is most often not what we see in public. In fact, it's behind closed doors where all stories begin and sometimes come to an unfortunate end.
Work in progress — the story of an unhappily married couple
That's what I do as a writer. I go where the stories are hatched. I get inside a character's head. I borrow from real life because reality is always stranger than fiction. I watch and listen and question, all necessary prerequisites for creating a believable character. I allow my fascination with human behavior to discover answers to my most urgent questions. What makes humans do what they do? What do humans do when they think no one is watching? What's happening behind closed doors? What goes on inside a murderers head?