Mystery Writing Heroes

I've been fortune enough to meet several of my mystery/suspense/thriller writing heroes --

I heard that. So you don't think us old fogies should have or do have heroes, huh? Well, young whipper snapper let me tell you a thing or three: Just because we have lived long enough to be considered experts or leaders or even folks who have outlived everyone else, we still have people we admire and dream of being when we grow up.

Since I love reading mysteries, of course many of my writing heroes are mystery authors. Many of my favorites I'll never be able to meet, either because they're gone or because they live too far away and may never cross my path.

However, through my attending book festivals and conferences and going to local book signings, I've met several whose books are in my book shelves -- now some with autographs.

I attended the Red Dirt Book Festival in 2003, the first one held. The featured speaker was Tony Hillerman. I not only attended all of his sessions, I was able to visit with him outside of the structured events. What a delightful man. His mysteries fascinated me because he wove the suspense into his knowledge of the Navajo culture. He autographed two of his books, but the autograph in his autobiography was personal and touching. I'll miss Tony Hillerman; Joe Leaphorn and Jim Chee can be found again in the books that Tony left behind.

Meet William Bernhardt

According to William Bernhardt's biography, he has always loved books. He said he wanted to be a writer since he was seven-years old. He received his first rejection letter when he was eleven, and he admits to receiving more over the next nearly twenty years.

He now has at least twenty-nine books to his credit. The most recent title is Nemesis.

William Bernhardt's writing has won many awards, among them: the Oklahoma Book Award for Best Fiction, twice (an award in which I'm most interested, maybe someday I'll receive one); the Southern Writers Guild's Gold Medal Award; and the H. Louise Cobb Distinguished Author Award.

Not only is Mr. Bernhardt a renown author, he's also the founder and owner of HAWK Publishing Group, which is located in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

Bill earned a law degree from the University of Oklahoma after being an English major in college. After law school, he returned for a Masters Degree in English literature. He's also a gourmet cook and, as an accomplished pianist and songwriter, has written the music, lyrics, and script for a musical.

Let's imagine we're sitting at a table at the local Starbucks with Bill Burnhardt. I dig out my list of questions and start the interview:

"Where and how do you find ideas for plots for your books?" I ask, sipping plain hot tea, even though I had to bring my own tea bag and ask for a cup of hot water.

Bill gives a boyish grin. "For me, it's not a question of how do I get ideas; it's how can you not? Ideas are everywhere, when you're out in the world, reading, staying abreast of current events, meeting new people. I write every day, so my mind is constantly in the 'search' mode for good ideas, good characters."

What details help make your characters 'live'?

The details that other people can relate to readily. When I created Ben Kincaid, I wanted a protagonist who was not “perfect,” not Perry Mason, some guy who always wins and always knows the right answers. I can’t relate to that. I can relate to someone who is often unsure of himself, plagued with self-doubt, sometimes succeeding, sometimes failing, but determined to do the right thing. I think most of my readers like Ben because he is a good person but he is not perfect and that’s something they can understand.

If a writer doesn’t have a thorough knowledge of a career he/she wants for a character, how would you suggest the author get into the “skin” of that job?

I would suggest that they spend a lot of time talking to someone in that career and also have them review the manuscript after it’s written. I have done that many times, with police officers, for instance, in my crime novels, or historians, for my forthcoming historical novel.

Your writing career has included several best sellers and awards, but how did you start writing?

I’ve been writing since I was very young. I always wanted to be a writer. I have rejection letters that go back to when I was eleven. And I didn’t publish anything till I was thirty, so that’s an almost twenty year stretch. But I kept at it and eventually came up with something someone wanted. I always tell my writing students, if you keep writing and don’t give up, eventually you’ll publish. It’s true.

Do you finish one book before you start another? How long does it take to finish a book?

Yes.

Depends on what you mean by “finish a book.” Usually these days I can do the actual writing in a few months, but I don’t start writing until I’ve got an idea and I’ve done the research and I’ve put together an outline—and that may take a year or more. The book will digress from the outline a thousand different ways, but the book still goes more smoothly because I have a plan and structure in place. You cannot overvalue the importance of an understanding of story structure—and that’s one of the elements of writing that is least frequently taught.

Since you’re both an author and a publisher, do you find it difficult to wear both hats?

No. I love everything to do with books and I love giving other authors the wonderful opportunity I’ve had to see my work in print.

Which award meant the most to you and why?

The H. Louise Cobb Distinguished Author Award, because it was perhaps the first to recognize that there was something going on in my books beyond mere entertainment, that, to quote the award, my writing was “an outstanding body of work that has profoundly influenced the way in which we understand ourselves and American society at large.”

How can authors find the submission guidelines for your publishing company?

Visit the website: www.hawkpub.com.

I wasn't able to attend your workshop or seminar this past year. Are you holding another one in 2009, and what benefit do authors or developing authors receive from attending workshops or conferences?

The June 6-7 HAWK Writing Workshop is, as the name implies, a workshop, and we focus on getting people writing and improving what they have written. I look for speakers and faculty who are genuinely interested in mentoring and being of use to the next generation of writers. This year, we're being joined by Steve Berry, a multiple New York Times-bestselling author and a leader in the field of historical thrillers, who will talk about his experiences and share the secrets that put him at the top of the list. We're having Susan Piver, also a New York-Times bestselling nonfiction writer and a licensed meditation instructor, who will discuss that and other ways of sparking creativity. We will also have a dozen other authors, agents, and editors. You can learn more about it and register at: www.hawkpub.com/writingworkshop2009.htm.

The following week, I'm hosting two smaller intensive five-day seminars (ten participants, max) for serious writers seeking individualized attention to their work. One seminar is for fiction, the other for nonfiction. I developed this program over the summer at the Maui Writing Retreat and other workshops and it seems to work well--I've already seen two students sell books to major New York publishers! You can learn more about it and register at the same website: www.hawkpub.com/writingworkshop2009.htm

What other comments would you like to make to beginning and to experienced writers?

Never stop writing. This is your dream, and it is an important one. Don’t give up.

Thank you, Bill. I hope readers find this interview as interesting as I have, and they will want to find and read your books if they haven't already.



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Part 1 - Mystery Writing Tips

As a lover of mysteries since I was a child, I started on Nancy Drew books and kept on reading. Now my favorite mystery authors are William Bernhardt, Anne Perry, and Carolyn Hart, as well as one great writer who recently left us, Tony Hillerman.

As I read mysteries over the years, I studied them because I wanted to be able to write them. Finally, I succeeded after many tries and much study. I'd like to share some of what I've learned.

Between a good beginning and a powerful end, a well-written mystery has to keep the reader's attention through the use of foreshadowing, tension, drama, and action. The reader has to want to turn the page or go to the next chapter to find out what happens next. Only the writer can accomplish that with good writing, dialogue, believable characters and action.

Here are a few tips that will help a writer create a good mystery:

Write a good story: Huh? What does that mean? That means that no matter what tips or tricks or whatevers may be in a mystery, if the story isn't well-written, with correct grammar,spelling, sentence structure, the story won't fly. Kathy Pohl (The Writer June 2007) states it's important to learn the craft, the basics, of writing. Without knowing the basics of writing, once can't write a good story.

All the wonderful ideas found in the mind can't become written stories if the creator can't write the words so that they can be enjoyed and understood by others.

Create strong, believable characters: In a mystery, the writer knows one thing about one character before writing: The killer, if there is a murder, will kill someone. Other than that one fact about the antagonist, nothing else is know about any of the characters. The writer must develop each one thoroughly so that he or she is real, rounded, and believable to the reader.

Flat, one dimintional characters cause stero-types and boring reading. Multi-dimentional characters cause readers to care about them. Even an evil killer can have traits or background that will allow the reader to see him as a person.

Don't rely on a technique: Using a technique such as outlining or storyboarding should be an aid, not a master. Outlining never worked for me, because I work out the story/plot so thoroughly in my head, that's it's real before I start writing. Bestselling crime author Tony Hillerman said that outlining didn't work for him. He tried with the first three novels he wrote and failed and felt guilt-ridden and inadequate. When he decided not to try to outline, he found success.

If outlining works for you, great, but don't become a slave to a technique.

Have a strong plot: Any story must have a plot, a storyline. A conflict is necessary, a climax, a resolution, an ending. In a mystery, there must be a crime or some other type of mystery to be solved. A good book has a major plot and at least a couple of sub-plots. For example, a couple who meet as a result of the mystery and who are attracted to each other create a sub-plot inside the main plot of solving the mystery.

Those points are just some of the ones needed to create a strong mystery. I hope people who read my mysteries, including Midnight Hours, will find those components in my writing.

Note: I met Tony Hillerman and had a few interesting visits with him about five years ago. I enjoyed his writing, and I really liked the man. I'll miss him, as his readers will, too. I'll be posting about him sometime soon, and how he wrote a prized autograph in my copy of one of his books.