Any decent thriller lets some blood, but I prefer not to wade
in it. Give me a startling spot of red
on a white collar, thieves who rob their targets with a keyboard. But I
can’t revel in violence or luridness for entertainment. That’s why I write technothrillers. Unlike my learned colleague, Sue
Collett, I’ll take a decisive hollow-point bullet into the temple over a
patient serial killer and his toolkit.
photo by Robert Sheie
Any. Day.
Serial killers are an enormously popular subgenre, but toying
with life for the thrill makes me cringe. And not in way that makes me want more. Ask anyone. I routinely rescue snakes and rodents and wolf spiders out of my
swimming pool. Once, I liberated a pair
of randy frogs who were unconcerned that their tryst was conducted under four
feet of water.
photo by Nigel Wilson
Someday, I expect them all to return the favor.
Over the years, I’ve been owned by several cats and have
learned that their sole motivation is self-interest. None of my purring companions would rescue a
rodent let alone me. My worth to them is
restricted to finding that elusive itch and my confounding ability to open a
can.
photo by Emilie
photos by Wotthe7734
photo by Jessica Curtain
I admit to slowing down at accidents, but I always regret it. Before a jousting show at Medieval Times, I
visited the torture room. What was I
thinking? As humans, we’ve devised some
clever ways to inflict pain on one another. I’ll take Nigerian spam any day.
The etymology of the word Medieval comes from modern Latin
for medium aevum or middle age. Personally, the experience felt more akin to amid evil. Not a place I want to hang.
photo by Bob n' Renee
Like my cats, fiction has plenty of feline antagonists who
want their victims to share in the fun before their untimely demise:
Characters in a book, perhaps, but we could easily find an
equivalent in the news. I’d rather face
an unfriendly firing squad than watch one of these at work.
photo by Chris Christian
Gah!
Even the main character of Criminal Minds, played by Mandy
Patinkin, left that show after two seasons because it was too gruesome. Me? I didn’t last an hour.
In fairness, many people enjoy serial killer dramas because evil
is regularly vanquished. But I don’t
like them. They creeped me out as a
kid. And now that I’m grown, I know that
all the adults lied, and monsters really do exist.
Helen Hanson works in the high-tech sector, which informs her geeky thrillers. According to The Seattle Post-Intelligencer, her # 1 bestselling technothriller, 3 LIES, contains “an artistry that is hard to deny.”
Currently, she’s writing a sequel to 3 LIES. You can find all her thrillers in the usual places. And you can find her at HelenHanson.com coddling a goblet of red.
2 comments :
Nice rebuttal, Helen! I agree with you, that a blood spot on a white collar can be very illusive in crime fiction. But, speaking as a reader, I eventually want to know exactly where that blood came from. I don't think, as a writer, I need to show every gruesome cut, which is why I don't write horror. But, I do love to write alternating chapters that focus on the killer. They are deliciously naughty.
To me the line between serial killers and horror is less distinct. Mind you, I did not miss my calling in any field remotely medical. As for horror, I often wonder how Tabitha King can sleep nights. Even my husband expresses concern when I linger over the knife block . . .
You're a good sport, Sue, thanks!
Post a Comment