I not only read about remorseless killers
I write about them too...
I enjoy writing and I love reading, especially crime thrillers. Everything from psychological suspense to standard whodunnits, I enjoy them all. As the author of four thriller novels I thought I would share my quest for understanding the machinations of psychopathic characters on this site.
The criminal psyche is fascinating, but I have spent years studying psychopathic personalities and, as a result, I've concluded that they are all around us, often masquerading as normal folk.
Very few are murderers, and you only have to take a close look at some CEOs and businessmen to realize the truth. Especially those who have been caught running billion dollar Ponzi scams, perhaps fraudulently bundling rubbish mortgage loans and selling them as triple A securities, or knowingly selling substandard breast implants...
All my novels feature psychopathic personalities, and were born out of my fascination for these individuals. My Author website along with The Remorseless Trilogy and The Hack Trilogy websites, are where you will find more info, back stories, thoughts on writing etc - but be warned, there are spoilers there so you might prefer to click on the images above which will enable you to read the opening chapters on Amazon.
On this site - contributions welcome
Having my novels published as eBooks prompted me to set up a website dedicated to novels and movies featuring psychopaths plus a whole host of other factual info and interesting stuff related to how these characters affect us in real life - so here it is.
It strikes me that there is plenty of information out there about fictional detectives - there are even bus tours around Edinburgh to visit locations described in Rebus novels, plus he has his own fan club! Yet I have found little information about the far more interesting characters: the genuinely criminal as well as the very successful socialized psychopaths - whether real or fictional.
This is my attempt to help redress the balance.
Hopefully you like what you've found here and maybe can help me expand the content.
If you are a published author of crime fiction featuring psychopaths then please contact me about inclusion in these pages. New authors with independently published works are particularly welcome.
Alternatively you may be able to recommend some relevant reading matter or provide a review of a book or movie - comments and feedback are welcome. If you would like to share your own real life experiences with psychopaths with the readers of these pages, then that would be great too.
About lying...
Frankly, I'm far less interesting than the characters I invent, although I was asked by my original print publisher if I had been to prison as some scenes in Remorseless suggested to him that I had. I told him categorically that I hadn't, and reassured him that I had not killed anyone either but that has not stopped me from writing scenes involving some pretty gruesome murders.
I got the distinct impression he may not have believed me. After all, I am a consummate liar...
All fiction is, by definition, lies, so being an expert at making stuff up should be considered an advantage for a novelist!
About me
In primary school I was regularly told off for daydreaming, but that too is a helpful trait for a writer.
It's a great occupation creating fiction - you not only get to let your imagination run riot but you can genuinely tell people you are working when you are just letting your brain drift, and better still you can pretend you're doing personal research for a shady character if you're ever caught doing stuff you shouldn't be.
An over-active and possibly slightly deranged imagination are advantageous too, but it also helps that I've worked in a wide range of roles, from 'gardening' the clinker filter beds at a sewage treatment plant and laboring on construction sites, to managing hundreds of sales staff across the UK and running a London based recruitment company.
More recently I built a beautiful wooden yacht and operated a charter business in SE Asia - but sadly she sank in 2012... The silver lining is that I now have more time to write, with a third novel and a screenplay adaptation of Remorseless well in hand, plus I have some spare capacity to manage content for this site.
Over the years, I have met all sorts of people, giving me plenty of varied and fascinating characters to draw on for inspiration.
I'm a Brit - hence the non-Amercian spelling of some words - but I think crime fiction translates into all languages and stories of both fictional and factual psychopaths abound in all cultures.
Inspiration and writing
I've traveled widely too - even studied at Harvard on an executive education course; I lived in Spain for a few years before moving to Thailand in 2004. The sordid side of the tourist industry here provided the inspiration and main theme for the story in The Hack, though I think the country as a whole has an undeserved reputation in that regard.
I sometimes get asked why I write. Creating fictional characters and setting them running through scenes conjured from your own imagination is exciting - especially when they choose to do stuff you don't expect or even want them to do.
These characters seem to come to life as I write - so much so that I was genuinely upset when I had to kill off one of my 'imaginary friends'!
Writing - exciting? Imaginary friends???
I know - it sounds pathetic, but then again Tom Cruise makes millions pretending he's someone he's not...
Find out more me and my writing on my author website.
The criminal psyche is fascinating, but I have spent years studying psychopathic personalities and, as a result, I've concluded that they are all around us, often masquerading as normal folk.
Very few are murderers, and you only have to take a close look at some CEOs and businessmen to realize the truth. Especially those who have been caught running billion dollar Ponzi scams, perhaps fraudulently bundling rubbish mortgage loans and selling them as triple A securities, or knowingly selling substandard breast implants...
All my novels feature psychopathic personalities, and were born out of my fascination for these individuals. My Author website along with The Remorseless Trilogy and The Hack Trilogy websites, are where you will find more info, back stories, thoughts on writing etc - but be warned, there are spoilers there so you might prefer to click on the images above which will enable you to read the opening chapters on Amazon.
On this site - contributions welcome
Having my novels published as eBooks prompted me to set up a website dedicated to novels and movies featuring psychopaths plus a whole host of other factual info and interesting stuff related to how these characters affect us in real life - so here it is.
It strikes me that there is plenty of information out there about fictional detectives - there are even bus tours around Edinburgh to visit locations described in Rebus novels, plus he has his own fan club! Yet I have found little information about the far more interesting characters: the genuinely criminal as well as the very successful socialized psychopaths - whether real or fictional.
This is my attempt to help redress the balance.
Hopefully you like what you've found here and maybe can help me expand the content.
If you are a published author of crime fiction featuring psychopaths then please contact me about inclusion in these pages. New authors with independently published works are particularly welcome.
Alternatively you may be able to recommend some relevant reading matter or provide a review of a book or movie - comments and feedback are welcome. If you would like to share your own real life experiences with psychopaths with the readers of these pages, then that would be great too.
About lying...
Frankly, I'm far less interesting than the characters I invent, although I was asked by my original print publisher if I had been to prison as some scenes in Remorseless suggested to him that I had. I told him categorically that I hadn't, and reassured him that I had not killed anyone either but that has not stopped me from writing scenes involving some pretty gruesome murders.
I got the distinct impression he may not have believed me. After all, I am a consummate liar...
All fiction is, by definition, lies, so being an expert at making stuff up should be considered an advantage for a novelist!
About me
In primary school I was regularly told off for daydreaming, but that too is a helpful trait for a writer.
It's a great occupation creating fiction - you not only get to let your imagination run riot but you can genuinely tell people you are working when you are just letting your brain drift, and better still you can pretend you're doing personal research for a shady character if you're ever caught doing stuff you shouldn't be.
An over-active and possibly slightly deranged imagination are advantageous too, but it also helps that I've worked in a wide range of roles, from 'gardening' the clinker filter beds at a sewage treatment plant and laboring on construction sites, to managing hundreds of sales staff across the UK and running a London based recruitment company.
More recently I built a beautiful wooden yacht and operated a charter business in SE Asia - but sadly she sank in 2012... The silver lining is that I now have more time to write, with a third novel and a screenplay adaptation of Remorseless well in hand, plus I have some spare capacity to manage content for this site.
Over the years, I have met all sorts of people, giving me plenty of varied and fascinating characters to draw on for inspiration.
I'm a Brit - hence the non-Amercian spelling of some words - but I think crime fiction translates into all languages and stories of both fictional and factual psychopaths abound in all cultures.
Inspiration and writing
I've traveled widely too - even studied at Harvard on an executive education course; I lived in Spain for a few years before moving to Thailand in 2004. The sordid side of the tourist industry here provided the inspiration and main theme for the story in The Hack, though I think the country as a whole has an undeserved reputation in that regard.
I sometimes get asked why I write. Creating fictional characters and setting them running through scenes conjured from your own imagination is exciting - especially when they choose to do stuff you don't expect or even want them to do.
These characters seem to come to life as I write - so much so that I was genuinely upset when I had to kill off one of my 'imaginary friends'!
Writing - exciting? Imaginary friends???
I know - it sounds pathetic, but then again Tom Cruise makes millions pretending he's someone he's not...
Find out more me and my writing on my author website.
Check out my other sites for more about writing, novel back story
and extras regarding the
Remorseless Trilogy and The Hack Trilogy
and extras regarding the
Remorseless Trilogy and The Hack Trilogy
You might also like to register here for my occasional Readers Group Newsletter to receive notification of offers, free stuff and prize draws.
Contact Will
If you have any comments, feedback, recommendations for readers or if you are a published author (self-published/independent are particularly welcome) then please use the contact form on this site.
I look forward to hearing from you!
Members of my Readers Group receive occasional Newsletters offering crime related freebies and prize draws. Find out more here.
Will Patching, Author
I look forward to hearing from you!
Members of my Readers Group receive occasional Newsletters offering crime related freebies and prize draws. Find out more here.
Will Patching, Author