Hey all, and welcome to my blog. Today I'm going to talk about the creative process behind Guilty Deceptions. I'm talking about Guilty Deceptions because I'll be running a free promo, from June 12th to June 16th, so if you haven't read Guilty Deceptions yet, this would be a great opportunity to do so.
The Inspiration Behind The Story
Growing up in Saint John, New Brunswick you hear lots of local legends and ghost stories. One of those stories is the story of Maggie Vail. I first read about Maggie, when I was in high school, her case is a sad one, and it involved a famous local Architect named, John Monroe.
Maggie's story has always pulled at my heart strings a little, because of the violent and brutal way her and her young child met their maker. However, the more I thought about the story, the more I wandered if back during 1800s forensics if they even got the story right.
In the beginning, I tried to write a full account of what happened. But, I found it didn't quite work out the way it was supposed to.
I decided to write my own story, based on Maggie's where the Sheriff struggled to find the truth, and twisted it to an ending I was happy with. I'd change the names of important characters who were real, and added fictional characters like Sheriff Dawson and Deputy Jackson. As I result, I ended up with Guilty Deceptions as it is known today.
However, what was my creative process behind the novel?
My Writing Style
First and foremost, we can't forget my own unique style of writing. I'm a Pantser, which means I do little to no planning and write from the "Seat of my pants". While, I developed my characters in depth, and even created a bit of an arc for Sheriff Dawson (An element that is not needed in a mystery) I did no planning for Guilty Deceptions. I did however do extensive research into the case, and wanted to be as accurate as possible with the events that took place.
So, I made sure I did my research and knew all the facts, before I sat down to write the first draft of the new and improved novel.
I sat staring at an empty screen for sometime, before the words started to come. The first words I wrote where Who would have thought... and I knew that I was telling this story from Sheriff Dawson's point of view as if he were telling the reader a story that happened to him.
POV and Adding Flashbacks
With Sheriff Dawson's limited POV, I had to find a way to explain the flashbacks which were needed for the story to move forward, in a way that he was explaining it to the reader. I developed and crafted my technique in a way that made Sheriff Dawson tell the reader what the person told them. Thus the shift to third person point of view.
Red Herrings and Misinformation.
These were already in the original story. There really was a coachman, who had taken them to Willow Grove, he really did help put trunks on a steamer, and was paid with a revolver. The victim really did call herself by a different name, and she really did stay at and leave Brunswick House, because of a nosy Landlady.
The whole concept of Ben Reed was real as well. In the real life case, there really was a black man who they accused first.
However, there were elements of the story that I added for entertainment purposes. I won't reveal them here because they will give too much away about the book. Yet, I had to be really creative to come up with the ending I ended up with.
Listening to the Characters
When I sit down to write, I open my mind to the character I am writing about. They simply start to tell me the story as it happened to them, and record what they tell me had happened. I attempted to follow the true story, but Sheriff Dawson kept "Screaming" at me that it was wrong.
Instead of fighting with this character, I gave them "Control" and I found myself drifting into a whole new direction, that even surprised me in the end. What I mean is, as I was writing, every time a new plot twist came, I was just as surprised as the reader. When I got near the end, even I didn't know what was going to happen. When I wrote the ending however, I was like, "Okay, so this makes sense."
Adding Sheriff Dawson's Arc
Even though most murder mysteries had over all flat protagonists, which means there is no change in the character from Point A to Point B. They just are the same throughout the story, and they do not change by the time the end comes. I didn't want to do that with Sheriff Dawson. I wanted the events of Guilty Deceptions to change him as a person. Which it did, if you read Dark Jealousy, he questions himself a lot more, and doesn't believe in his abilities too much. Whereas, at the beginning of Guilty Deceptions, he was eager and optimistic about starting his first ever murder investigation, even though he knew from the beginning that finding the killer was going to be a challenge.
The Use of Broken English
As you can see in both Guilty Deceptions and Dark Jealousy, those characters that live in poverty don't speak proper English. My mindset for this, was that in the time period the book is set characters that lived in poverty... or the poor population would have had little to no education. Therefore, they would have said things like "Me" instead of "I" as they wouldn't have been to school, or didn't attend school as frequently as Characters such as Sheriff Dawson, and Deputy Jackson would have.
Limited Diversity
Writing from a character's point of view in the year 1869, it was extremely difficult to write more diverse, than someone writing a novel based in todays world. Yes, my book has Characters who happen to be black, French, and Irish. Yet, that's as far as it goes. Other races in Saint John, New Brunswick in 1869, seemed to not fit in with the overall theme to the story. Add in the fact that it was 1869.
Also, because of the time frame, I had to have a few "racist" characters because in 1869, there was racism. Yet, I never allowed my characters to get their racist thoughts out. I had done this by writing Sheriff Dawson ahead of his time. I placed my views on the subjects within him, and he always interrupts the racist character and corrects them before they can utter that horrible word. The other limit I had was placing Characters from the LBGTQ community, because of the fact that in 1869, such things were considered Taboo. So I had to be creative. I dropped hints throughout the book, that Patrick was "odd" and didn't want to "Settle" down with a woman. I did this because even though the subject was taboo in 1869, we know that it was still a "thing" that was kept hushed up and secret. Thus, we have Patrick, who is a homosexual that it is hinted at but never vocally acknowledged.
Minimal Swearing and Guilty Deceptions Classic Line
I kept the swearing to a minimal in Guilty Deceptions especially around the "Women" because in that day and age it was considered very rude to act that way in front of a woman, or for a woman to swear at all.
Except in the case of Ben Reed, the drunk of the book who doesn't seem to care about any of those things. Maybe it's due to his drinking or that he is uneducated.
But at one point in Guilty Deceptions, he used the line: "Get the fuck out of me house!" When I was writing Guilty Deceptions first draft, I was tempted and intending on taking this line out of the novel. That is until my first edit between the first and second drafts. As I was reading the book out loud, I screamed out, "Get the fuck out of me house!" and my brother cracked up and couldn't stop laughing. He told me the line was iconic and I should keep it in for entertainment purposes. So I did, in the original first draft though, Ben says this line several times in that flashback. I cut the usage down but left the line in.
Overall, I had fun writing Guilty Deceptions. It is in my opinion my best novel to date. That might change when I release 12:05 AM, but until then we'll see. If you haven't read Guilty Deceptions, I suggest you give it a try. With 8 ratings to date and 6 of them positive reviews, I think you might enjoy the novel, and if you do and it's not for you, then you've at least gave it a try!
Don't forget that Guilty Deceptions is free from June 12th to June 16th on Amazon only. You can purchase Guilty Deceptions Here.
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Until Next Next Time,
D.C.
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