Wessel Ebersohn » writing tips

Wessel Ebersohn’s sixty-fourth rule of thriller writing

Wessel Ebersohn — Mon, 15 Aug 2011 09:38:36 +0000

It is possible to become too deeply mired in the psychological stuff around cause and effect when dealing with serial killers. One of the last things Ted Bundy said to anyone was to tell a warder that “I enjoyed it.” It can be that simple.

Wessel Ebersohn’s sixty-third rule of thriller writing

Wessel Ebersohn — Fri, 05 Aug 2011 09:35:39 +0000

For the detectives involved in chasing a serial killer an awful part of the matter arises when a second generation of detectives takes over and, using the spade work done by the first generation, solves the case. While the original detectives are glad he has been caught, the feeling of failure is intensified.

Wessel Ebersohn’s sixty-second rule of thriller writing

Wessel Ebersohn — Mon, 25 Jul 2011 09:30:38 +0000

Some serial killers are never found, a famous case being that of the so-called Zodiac killer. Some of the police detectives involved also suffered from deep depression in this case because of what they saw to be their failure.

Wessel Ebersohn’s sixty-first rule of thriller writing

Wessel Ebersohn — Fri, 15 Jul 2011 09:27:03 +0000

Sometimes depression in a detective who has searched for years for a serial killer becomes so great he has a complete breakdown. This was the case in the Yorkshire Ripper matter, when an excellent senior officer just could not bear the thought that he was failing.

Wessel Ebersohn’s sixtieth rule of thriller writing

Wessel Ebersohn — Mon, 04 Jul 2011 09:22:08 +0000

Because tracking a serial killer is such a thankless task, the police at the centre of the hunt often become depressed. Good cops feel responsible to the community. They feel that they have a duty to clear the streets of the killer. If they are not successful, it weighs on their minds terribly.

Wessel Ebersohn’s fifty-nineth rule of thriller writing

Wessel Ebersohn — Mon, 20 Jun 2011 09:18:34 +0000

When serial killers are caught they often want to talk about their deeds. Mahlangu, the South African strangler, was no sooner in jail than he was telling his cellmate, a police plant, all about his crimes. They are proud of their achievements.

Wessel Ebersohn’s fifty-seventh rule of thriller writing

Wessel Ebersohn — Mon, 30 May 2011 09:09:08 +0000

It looks like I cannot get away from serial killers. Because there is no connection between crime and criminal, in reality they are usually caught by hard slog on the part of the police, dumb luck or by the killer becoming so arrogant that he gives himself away.

Wessel Ebersohn’s fifty-sixth rule of thriller writing

Wessel Ebersohn — Tue, 17 May 2011 09:06:49 +0000

Remember that serial killers usually leave no useable clues. They are not career criminals, so they have often not been arrested before, making their finger prints of no importance, until they are actually caught. Because they are not doing it for money or because they hate a spouse or relative enough to kill them, there is no connection between criminal and crime. Most often the police have nothing to work on.

Wessel Ebersohn’s fifty-eighth rule of thriller writing

Wessel Ebersohn — Tue, 10 May 2011 09:14:14 +0000

And yes, almost all serial killers are men, and they kill women. There are exceptions, an occasional woman, but very occasional. Occasionally a serial killer will kill men, but there is a strong sex element in serial killing, so when one kills men he is usually a homosexual. Heterosexual serial killers, the overwhelming majority, kill women.

Wessel Ebersohn’s fifty-fifth rule of thriller writing

Wessel Ebersohn — Mon, 04 Apr 2011 14:14:04 +0000

If you are going to venture into the world of the psychopath, never forget the killer couples. There have been many famous examples of them in real life. And here the relationship is always complex. Sometimes one does the goading while the other does the killing. Sometimes both kill. In a few very rare cases the two meet after each of them has already killed and then they pool their skills.

Wessel Ebersohn’s fifty-forth rule of thriller writing

Wessel Ebersohn — Fri, 25 Mar 2011 14:08:46 +0000

Psychopaths are not all from the same mould and they are not all dangerous. Business people who take unreasonable risks may be psychopaths too. They may be quite willing to risk their shareholders’ money to achieve the end they have in mind. They are sometimes brilliantly successful and sometimes, after a period of staggering success, comes an equally staggering crash.

Wessel Ebersohn’s fifty-third of thriller writing

Wessel Ebersohn — Mon, 14 Mar 2011 14:01:01 +0000

When thinking about serial killers remember that the why is different to the who. We call them psychopaths. It is a nice long name, but it tells us nothing. We are told that psychopaths will do anything to satisfy their needs. They will risk their own lives or the lives of others. What no one really knows is why they have these strange needs. And the needs of one psychopath is not necessarily the same as another’s.

Wessel Ebersohn’s fifty-second rule of thriller writing

Wessel Ebersohn — Fri, 04 Mar 2011 13:54:29 +0000

Remember that serial killers are not just about killing a lot of people. Contract killers may kill many people, but they are something quite different, as are political mass murderers. Sometimes the lines between the different types of killers can become blurred, but that is something for another one of my rules.

The real serial killer is driven by a passion that has nothing to do with money or politics. He or she (and the she is very rare) find their behaviour governed by something the rest of us never really understand.

Wessel Ebersohn’s fifty-first rule of thriller writing

Wessel Ebersohn — Mon, 13 Dec 2010 09:19:23 +0000

Then there are villains with whom the readers actually identify. They have some winning characteristic that the reader finds attractive. These are morally a problem. The villain is doing evil things, but the reader is nevertheless fascinated by them. Almost everyone felt that way when Hannibal Lecter started following his jailer at the end of The Silence of the Lambs, announcing that he was “going to have an old friend for dinner.” The jailer was a jerk. Lecter was a monster. Our sympathy was in the wrong place.

Wessel Ebersohn’s fiftieth rule of thriller writing

Wessel Ebersohn — Mon, 29 Nov 2010 09:16:01 +0000

You can have a villain that the reader understands. They may still be revolted by him, but they do understand him. Perhaps the understanding that the reader has, may have no effect on the revulsion felt, but that is fine. This would probably be a more intelligently drawn villain. There are reasons for all human behaviour, even the strangest and most destructive.

Wessel Ebersohn’s forty-eighth rule of thriller writing

Wessel Ebersohn — Mon, 15 Nov 2010 16:03:26 +0000

The list of types of villain the novelist can use is almost endless, but make sure that you draw your villain in a way that the reader can identify with. Unless you are extraordinarily brilliant, the villain’s personality better be consistent with one of the classical villain types.

Wessel Ebersohn’s forty-seventh rule of thriller writing

Wessel Ebersohn — Mon, 04 Oct 2010 09:48:47 +0000

Poisoners are not only found among women, although females do often prefer it as a means for killing off people they would rather be rid of. Ladies are gentler than men, even in the ways they seek to dispose of unwanted humans. While a man might find satisfaction in seeing the bullets enter the one he hates or even enjoy feeling the knife slip in between the ribs, women are happy just to ensure that the offending party is dead. That seems to be enough to satisfy killers of the gentler gender.

Wessel Ebersohn’s forty-sixth rule of thriller writing

Wessel Ebersohn — Thu, 23 Sep 2010 09:46:39 +0000

Political mass murder should not be confused with either serial killing or contract killing. It is usually carried out simply as part of the pursuit of power. But there do certainly seem to be cases in which the leader who ordered killings enjoyed doing it for the killing’s sake. Idi Amin, former Ugandan leader, is a case in point.

Wessel Ebersohn’s forty-fifth rule of thriller writing

Wessel Ebersohn — Mon, 13 Sep 2010 09:44:24 +0000

Never confuse serial killers and contract killers. Of course, it is possible that a serial killer could be lucky enough to be hired as a contract killer, but this would be stretching credulity. Serial killers are lonely individuals who kill for reasons the rest of us do not understand. Contract killing, on the other hand, is part of team activities that are not being conducted for only the killer’s needs.

Wessel Ebersohn’s forty-fourth rule of thriller writing

Wessel Ebersohn — Mon, 06 Sep 2010 09:42:00 +0000

The contract killer has a private life. He or she often has a family to support, like anyone else, and a spouse who may become unhappy if the killer stops bringing home the bacon. Like the rest of us, the contract killer will be uneasy if his or her services are no longer required, and will be happy if business is good. A perfectly functioning society in which violence levels are low will see the contract killer starve. Shame.