What do I Know?

It’s common for beginning writers to receive advice to write what you know. Of course, that begs the question: What do I know? At first glance, that can be an intimidating question to tackle. But, when you combine it with the things that you are passionate about, you may discover that you have a good starting place.

For me, that includes forensic psychiatry. I’ve always had an interest in what makes people think and act the way we do. In university, I was drawn to courses in abnormal psychology, sociology and criminology. So, it should have come as no surprise that when I graduated with a degree in Social Work, I eventually found myself working in the field of psychiatry.

The Killer Trail started out as a thriller with a standard ‘man against man’ conflict after a runner finds a cell phone left behind by a killer. However, as the story developed, it soon became obvious to me that one of the dimensions I wanted to add to the protagonist Chris Ryder was to have him working as a social worker at a forensic psychiatric hospital. As a result, a fair amount of action plays out at the fictional Institute of Forensic Psychiatry (IFP).

I say fictional for good reason because while it is one thing to write what you know, it is quite another to ensure you separate fantasy from reality. That is one of the reasons you will find the following disclosure in fictional books: This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental. 

My primary objective was to write a fictional story that entertained me, and one that I hoped would entertain others. And while the entertainment goal remains first and foremost in my mind, as the Fighting Darkness series evolves, I do hope to shed some light on the myths and stigma surrounding mental illness and the forensic system in particular. All too often the homicidal killer in novels and movies is cast as a deranged ‘mad man’ who escapes from or belongs in, an ‘insane asylum.’ One of the problems with this is that it creates a negative stereotype for people who live with a mental illness, the greatest majority of whom pose no risk of harm to others.

As I was writing my book, I wanted to ensure that I did not reinforce this stigma. So, while the antagonist Ray Owens in The Killer Trail is a psychopath in the true sense of the term, he is an anomaly and by no means represents the majority of patients at IFP. To the contrary, when Ray is admitted for a court ordered assessment, his predatory behaviour wreaks havoc on other patients at the hospital. There is one scene in particular in which a patient, Paul Butler laments to his social worker, Chris Ryder how Ray Owens gives him and his peers a bad name.

It turns out, writing what you know and feel passionate about, can also be fun.

 

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