Writing Murder
Something is happening here but you don’t know what it is. This is the thrill that lies at the heart of the murder mystery. It is the kind of intrigue that structures The Slipping Palace, a story of people who know each other well, or maybe they don’t. A mind game. A psychological mystery about … Continue reading THE MR JONES MOMENT
The Slipping Place, is a murder mystery set in and around Hobart and on Mount Wellington. It is a dark and suspenseful and a meticulously constructed clue-puzzle. The book is also rich with ideas. "You draw a line" The Slipping Place is concerned with violence in the domestic sphere and examines the way in which … Continue reading The Slipping Place
Narrative is central to our understanding of life. It reflects the structures of human thinking.
There are many reasons we might pick up a detective novel. One is obvious and very simple: We know we enjoyed the last one.
In 1948, poet W. H. Auden confessed to a passion: "The reading of detective stories is an addiction."
The delight of finding the hidden thread that pulls together an array of confusing facts, of solving a puzzle, of revealing the hidden significance of things.
One of the great thrills of detective fiction — the thrill of not knowing.
