The murder mystery author picks five books that offer clues to his interest in developing unputdownable detective fiction
TOM HINDLE
To say that the inspiration for my third whodunit, Murder on Lake Garda, came unexpectedly wouldn’t quite be doing it justice.
When I first happened on the seed of an idea, I was actually well into working on a completely different novel, involving a murder that takes place during a funeral in Yorkshire. So I wasn’t looking for another. Not in the slightest. And yet, while on holiday in Italy, one decided to present itself.
During a visit to the breathtaking Castello Malcesine, on the shores of Lake Garda, I happened to see a wedding taking place inside the castle walls. I can’t have stopped for more than a minute or so to watch. But I was so taken aback by the scene before me – the landscape, the architecture, the glamour of the ceremony itself – that when I returned to the UK a few days later I abandoned the funeral story and began immediately working on what would become Murder on Lake Garda.
The slightly hectic nature of this book’s origin probably gives you an idea of my routine as a writer. That is to say – much as I try, I don’t particularly have one. My first two books were written around a full-time job in a PR agency, the first as a hobby while my wife attended a weekly gym class and the second in the early hours of the morning during lockdown. Murder on Lake Garda was my first experience of writing full-time; a welcome change of pace, you might think, with all the time in the world suddenly waiting at my feet. But having already spent several months working on the funeral idea, what I actually faced was a race against the clock to get Murder on Lake Garda finished ahead of my pre-agreed deadline. Rather than Monday-to-Friday, nine-to-five, I was working every hour I could spare. So if there’s a steady pace to be found, I haven’t stumbled on it yet.
As someone who tends to place a high value on routine, embracing this kind of unpredictability is something I’ve had to work on. But the more time I spend writing, the more I come to believe that unpredictability yields the best work. One of the best – albeit simplest – pieces of writing advice I’ve received is just to trust your gut. Put the theory aside and simply ask how something makes you feel. I used to think this applied solely to the structure of a scene or the believability of a piece of dialogue. But I can see now that it applies just as much to the pursuit of writing i
