As someone who prefers to remain on the outside, the way people behave has always fascinated me. Especially what motivates people to do terrible things like murder.
This curiosity inspired me to write the Downland Murder Mystery series, which runs to ten novels.
Motive, not violence
To understand murder, and what drives people to such an extreme, you must look into the killer’s character. Below the everyday façade, you’ll find secrets, loyalties, resentments, love and fear, plus a whole gamut of characteristics and experiences that can drive someone to the edge.
This is why I’m interested in the motives for murder, and the consequences, not the violence.
The authors who inspired me
Entertained and inspired by the novels of Agatha Christie, Elly Griffiths and Sue Grafton, writing murder mysteries became a natural progression for me. Not that it was straightforward or a smooth journey. But it was an exciting way to examine murder in a safe and reassuring way.
I wanted readers to curl up in their favourite armchairs and escape into a world where justice prevailed, even if it was imperfect. Readers would have the reassurance that good would triumph over evil.
And if I did my job well, readers could play armchair detective to piece together the clues and identify the killer before my detective.
This is crime fiction for readers who prefer motive to mayhem.
Murder in a beautiful landscape
What is the appeal of the countryside?
Having the South Downs on my doorstep proved irresistible. The gentle sweep of those hills and valleys was the perfect contrast between beauty and brutality.
Villages with long memories
Nestled among the hills and rolling landscapes lie the villages and hamlets that can date back to before the Norman invasion in 1066. These close-knit communities are places where people know each other. Secrets become amplified. Suspicions dig deeper.
Imagine sitting in the village tearoom, chatting and drinking with your friends or neighbours, while a few hundred yards away, among the gentle hills, someone commits murder.
This stark contrast fascinated me.
I’d worked in the area for many years as an environmental health officer, tasked with maintaining safety, health and hygiene standards. To make sure all was safe and well, it was my job to look behind the scenes, to examine the people, practices and processes in a pub or restaurant, for instance.
And while I drove across the South Downs between inspections, I often wondered where I could hide a body.
(There were chefs and arrogant owners I could happily have murdered.)
An investigator who isn’t a detective
These thoughts drew me towards an investigator who was an ordinary person, not a police officer.
Someone like you and me, drawn into extraordinary situations, solving murder without DNA, forensic teams and the resources of a police force.
These investigations were about understanding the people involved, seeking the clues and details others missed or overlooked, delving into communities and relationships, while relying on your wits, determination and knowledge to identify the motives and killer.
And who better to take on the challenge than an environmental health officer, immersed in the communities in his district, used to dealing with complex and detailed investigations, and competent in the understanding and enforcement of the law?
Of course, an environmental health officer doesn’t automatically investigate murders.
My work can involve death, such as a fatal work accident, or someone who died from food poisoning.
Solving murders without procedure
What if investigating such a death revealed details that didn’t fit? What if my environmental health officer became a reluctant detective?
Slowly and thoughtfully, the ideas took shape.
The mystery after the murder
This was the territory of the traditional murder mystery, but with a contemporary twist. It wasn’t about the murder, the violence or the shock value.
This was about what happened next. The aftermath, the effect on those close to the victim, on the local community, and the ordinary person turned detective, who teases out the clues and the secrets in his own unique way.
Because for me, the real mystery isn’t the murder. It’s why it happened, and how the community lives with the consequences.
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In my next blog, I’ll show you why an environmental health officer makes an ideal amateur sleuth.
In the meantime, if you enjoy character-driven crime and would like to follow my reflections more closely, I keep in touch with readers once a month through my newsletter, Murder, Rob Wrote. It’s a quiet space for thoughts on writing, reading, and the world behind the stories.
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