A reason to kill

[John Dean]

I am currently working on the next DCI John Blizzard novel and, as such, my mind is very much occupied by the idea of motive.

A crime writer has always to think deeply about the nature of evil. My novels very often have career criminals among their cast of characters but, mostly, they feature ‘ordinary’ people driven to extraordinary acts such as murder for reasons linked to their circumstances – love, the need to protect, greed, jealousy etc (very few people are all evil).

In any type of writing, a villain is more interesting if the reader can associate with them, even in some cases consider them as likeable and trustworthy. That way, the writer can keep the character’s murderous inclinations hidden, which adds to the surprise, nay shock, when they are unmasked as the killer at the end of the story.

Helping the reader to better understand the murderer’s motive is an approach that can even, in some cases, challenge the reader if they find themselves sympathising with the killer, viewing their actions as wrong yet having been committed for the right reason. Some readers like to be challenged in such a way and it does add something to a story.

Whatever the crime writer does, however they approach the theme of motive, he or she has to make their villains realistic, not stereotypes, and give them a believable reason for committing the acts that they have committed.

If the author is able to do that, the drama and emotion will jump off the page and engage the reader