Brian Lutterman's Blog, page 2

Crossing Over – Writing for an Opposite-Sex Character

Dustin Hoffman’s character in Tootsie remarks that impersonating a woman made him a better man.  I’ve undertaken a similar task that offers the potential for improving my maleness: I write mysteries with a female protagonist.  More than that, I have written my latest books, Downfall and the upcoming Windfall, from a first-person viewpoint, in the actual voice of the character.  There seem to be few mysteries written in this fashion (J.A. Jance’s J.P Beaumont comes to mind).  So far, the results have been good; readers have responded very positively to my character, paraplegic young attorney Pen Wilkinson.  But the question remains: Why do it this way?

I should note that I’ve been here before.  My first book, Bound to Die, was written with a female lead character but in third person.  (My second book, Poised to Kill, featured a male protagonist).  All I can say is that I didn’t set out to feature a female protagonist–that’s just how the character came to me. and despite the obvious challenge, I can’t imagine writing these stories any other way.  In general, I have little conscious awareness of Pen being female.  Occasionally I’ll ask for advice on “girl stuff”–clothes, makeup, etc.  But of course the real challenge comes in formulating and writing a woman’s thoughts, actions, and emotions.  My writing is mostly instinctive, the cumulative product, I suppose, of interaction with female friends, family, and co-workers, as well as the culture.  And I know that if I get it wrong, not only will my wife and daughter let me know, but my readers will, too.

And I’ll be a better man for it.

 

Your CEO May Be Insane. And That’s Okay.

In creating characters for my novels, many of whom occupy the business world, I try to use traits that make the people colorful and interesting.  And in doing that, I drawn upon what I see of real people in the real world.  I usually don’t have to look very hard to find corporate leaders who are interesting, which brings us to the question of what makes them so.  When I worked in the corporate world, I observed that many top executives did not seem like terribly sensible, well-balanced individuals.  Moreover, it was my highly unscientific observation that the higher up in the food chain, the more likely I was to observe unbalanced characteristics.  In fact, some of them seemed a little crazy.  It turns out I was probably right.

 

In a fascinating book called A First-Rate Madness, psychologist Nassir Ghaemi tackles the problem of mental illness and its relation to political leadership, asserting that mental illness can be a significant advantage to a political leader, particularly in times of crisis. Citing examples of leaders who have suffered from depression (Lincoln, Martin Luther King, Churchill) or hyperthymia (Franklin Roosevelt, John Kennedy), Ghaemi shows that traits such as empathy, realism, drive, and energy–all indispensable in times of crisis–can all result from mental illness.  This thesis is consistent with the truism that by definition, all progress is made by unreasonable people.

 

Ghaemi’s thesis, while unevenly documented, rings true to me, and applies to the corporate as well as political realm.  In the business world, the most colorful, mercurial personalities often belong to turnaround specialists, the executives brought in during times of crisis.  Organizations with serious problems need leaders with outsized–and not necessarily balanced–personalities who push the envelope of change and yes, push their employees.  Such personalities are seldom tolerated in companies that are humming along successfully, when there is no need to rock the boat.

 

In this passage from my second book, Poised to Kill, I observed:

“I suppose people from outside the corporate world would have trouble understanding how a man like Vince Nash—a moral midget, a social barbarian—treating his fellow human beings like so much garbage—could be chosen to lead a publicly-held corporation employing thousands of people.  But that was the American way.  As long as these cretins made money we loved them.  We gave them affectionate nicknames like “Chainsaw Al” and “Neutron Jack.”  Their books were bestsellers.  They were rock stars.

As long as they made money.”

 

This brings us to Ghaemi’s corollary: mental health can be an actual disadvantage in a crisis, where an “ordinary” temperament fails to meet the demands of extraordinary times.  I find this point harder to accept.  The idea that the most emotionally mature, balanced, sane people are liabilities in times of greatest need is not only discouraging from an ethical standpoint, but troubling when we consider the future.  In business, the idea of a “normal” environment is fast disappearing.  Perpetual crisis has arrived, virtually everywhere.  Any situation that even hints at stability is seen as in immediate need of “disruption.”  Corporations are even employing Chief Disruption Officers to make sure no one gets too comfortable.

This trend may not bode well for a nurturing work environment, but it’s a plus for thriller authors.  Likable, sane, balanced people often don’t make for a great story.  Greedy, narcissistic, obsessed people do, and they seem likely to do well in the years ahead.

The Wall Street Trap – Black Fridays by Michael Sears

As one of the few authors of mysteries set in the business world, I was eager to read the Edgar-nominated Black Fridays, which is set on Wall Street. Author Michael Sears, himself a former Wall Street trading wunderkind, doesn’t disappoint. While Black Fridays does not wow the readers with its mystery plotting, or in its overall pacing or suspense, its characterization and writing are exceptional.

Sears’s hero, Jason Stafford, is released after a two-year stint in federal prison for running an accounting scam at his securities firm. He arrives back in New York to find that his floozy, boozy ex-wife has absconded to Louisiana, with their five-year-old autistic son, and with most of the couple’s money. The one bright spot in his situation is a job offer, from a large investment firm, which asks Stafford to investigate the  practices of one of its young traders, who was recently killed in a boating accident.

Stafford begins by traveling to Louisiana, and after an intense confrontation, retrieves his son, Jason, Jr., from his ex and her abusive new husband. There begins the exhausting, often painful, and sometimes funny process of father and son getting to know each other, and for the conscientious but ill-equipped Stafford of raising a special-needs child. A further complication–albeit a pleasant one–is provided by a budding romance with a beautiful grad student named Skelly. Meanwhile Stafford, faced with internal opposition and obstruction, and pressured by the FBI, begins to unravel a massive fraudulent trading scheme.

Black Fridays does not feature intricate plotting, ingenious detection, or pulse-pounding suspense. In fact, so much attention is given to Stafford’s role as a parent than at times I wondered if the book was really considered a mystery. Sears more than compensates for the de-emphasis on mystery and suspense with the richness of his character development, which makes us care about his characters, particularly the autistic Jason, Jr. This strength is supplemented by knowing insider stories and tidbits about Wall Street, and by writing that sparkles with wit and creative descriptions, making the book a lot of fun to read.

Having said all this, I was disappointed that Black Fridays ends with Stafford making a questionable moral choice to enrich himself.  We expect the protagonist in a mystery to face tough moral dilemmas, and to have to choose among bad options.  But we also expect him or her to be a character we can root for, and thus to make the right choice, even if it is difficult.  By the end of Black Fridays,  we want to like Stafford despite his criminal past, but the character seems, inexplicably to me, to fall victim to the same easy-money Wall Street mentality that Sears describes so well, and that got Stafford into trouble in the first place.

The Thrill of Disability

Disability is anything but “thrilling,” of course, but it poses an interesting opportunity for the writing of thrillers.  There are many types and degrees of disability.  Some people are completely disabled, others less so.  Some have a disability that’s obvious, while the limitations of others are invisible.  The protagonist of my new novel, Downfall, Pen Wilkinson, is a paraplegic.  Paraplegia is a very severe disability, but not complete.  And it is very visible.

Characters in crime fiction have been endowed with all kinds of limitations, quirks, and infirmities, but actual disability has not been much used.  The current example that comes immediately to mind is Jeffery Deaver’s quadriplegic criminologist Lincoln Rhyme, a great character whose disability is so severe that he needs help from his trusted assistant, Amelia Sachs, to be his arms and legs.  Going back further, there was the TV show Ironside, which featured a paraplegic police detective.  There was also a short-lived show called Longstreet, about a blind insurance investigator.

The idea of a paraplegic protagonist for my thrillers came to me some years ago when I read a book by NPR news reporter John Hockenberry, who described how his life changed after a car accident turned him into a paraplegic.  As I read how Hockenberry learned to function as a professional who is confined to a wheelchair, I hit upon the idea of a paraplegic character who investigates corporate wrongdoing.

My character, Pen, features an interesting set of skills, limitations, adaptations, and challenges, which are constantly changing and evolving.  One set of challenges is purely physical: How do you track down and confront bad guys, much less cope with the demands of daily life, when you’re confined to a wheelchair?  Then there are the social challenges.  How do you deal with people’s reactions?  How do you respond to callousness, pity, disgust, or condescension?  But for Pen, the most interesting challenges are internal.  Hers is a story of self-discovery: Who is she, after the accident?  How tightly does she try to cling to her former life?  How much harder does she try to prove herself?  What are the opportunities for romantic relationships?

Writing about life in a wheelchair is a significant challenge for me, and a significant departure from the adage that authors should “write what they know.”  I’ve talked to paraplegics and done a lot of research in the sincere hope that I’ll get it right.  But I hope to hear from readers, who always have great insights.

Corporate Thriller: An Oxymoron?

Corporate Thriller–is the term an oxymoron?  I answer that witticism with a resounding, “No.”  Story and characters are the heart of any novel.  But where do they come from?  What environment do they grow out of?  In part, the answer depends on which mystery-thriller sub-genre the novel inhabits.  Cozy mysteries, for example, can be set in restaurants, craft shops, and country inns.  Thrillers, by contrast, tend to be set in the streets of Moscow or at CIA headquarters.  Police procedurals will take their readers to grimy precinct houses and gritty streets.

Let’s start by observing that a good thriller–or perhaps any good story–can pretty much be set anywhere.  Lee Child can spin a good Jack Reacher yarn in a city, a seaside mansion, a military base, or in the middle of Nebraska.  But even though a good thriller can be set anywhere, the big question for a suspense novelist is, “What setting will naturally produce a great story and great characters?   Surprisingly few novelists have answered this question by choosing the corporate world for their setting.  I’m not entirely sure why this is so, but I’m glad this paucity leaves a vacuum for writers like me to occupy.

Many thrillers feature businesspeople to at least some degree, but the business itself is seldom central to the story.  One exception would be the financial thrillers of Paul Erdman and Christopher Reich.  Another example is the work of Joseph Finder, starting with his bestseller Paranoia.  I’ve talked to readers who have been dubious about corporate thrillers, saying, “My corporate job is boring.  I want to escape it when I read fiction.”  Perfect, I say.  Let’s add an element of intrigue and danger to those dull desk jobs. What if, in the middle of your workday, Jack Reacher walked in and confronted you, demanding some answers?  Using my own books as further examples, If we have a corporate executive who manages software contracts for the government, the boredom vanished quickly when his daughter is kidnapped, and he’s trapped in an extortion scheme.  My character Pen Wilkinson has an incredibly boring job, settling legal claims for a bank.  Boring, that is, until she is targeted by corporate saboteurs.  Some crimes are unique to business: corporate espionage, corporate extortion, corporate theft, corporate sabotage.  But when crime of any type invades the business world, or vice versa, there’s potential for a great story.

I’ve had other people tell me, “Corporate executives are the most boring people I know.”  Really?  How about Bernie Madoff?  Or software tycoon John McAfee, who is accused of murder in Belize?  If you Google the term “fugitive financier,” you find a Wikipedia article which describes twenty-one examples.  The business world is full of outsized, colorful characters.  Weak characters usually don’t make their way to the top of major corporations.

From the perspective of a thriller author, then, the business world has it all: interesting situations, strong characters, and the pervasiveness of the number one motive for crime: Lots and lots of money.

Briefcase, Meet Gun

I’m back!  For those few less-than-discerning souls who may not have noticed my absence, I wrote my last mystery-thriller, Poised to Kill, in 2004 and after that–well, I sort of disappeared into a black hole of family responsibilities and health concerns.  But I’m excited to be back in the saddle with Conquill Press, and my new mystery-thriller, Downfall, will be released in May of this year.  The world of publishing has changed a whole lot in the past ten years–I’ll be talking about that in future posts.  Among the things that have changed in the past ten years is the emergence of blogging.  Among the things that have not changed is our fascination with corporate crime.

I write corporate thrillers–suspense novels set in the business world.  I call this blog Briefcase and Gun, reflecting the dual focus of my books: corporate settings and the focus on crime–including violent crime.  I was inspired to adopt the title by a line from a 1980’s era Don Henley song.  In the lyrics to Gimme What You Got, Henley takes on white-collar criminals by maintaining that it’s much easier to steal money with a briefcase than a gun, a point that seems beyond dispute.  In researching the phrase, I discovered that it goes back further, to Mario Puzo’s The Godfather.  A line from the novel, which, to my knowledge, did not make it into the movie, observes:  “A lawyer with his briefcase can steal more than a hundred men with guns.”  Ouch.  As a former attorney, that assertion hits a little close to home, but it rings true.  In my view, the interesting thing about briefcases and guns is not the attributes of each, but what happens when the two are combined.  The Godfather and its main character, Don Corleone, used both, and so do I.

Pure Briefcase crimes–phony accounting entries, bribery schemes, sketchy derivatives, and the like-are often not too exciting, if committed in a purely business environment.  But purely Gun crime, if committed in an environment where violence is normal or expected, isn’t very exciting, either.  When you combine the two–that’s when readers begin turn the pages a lot more quickly.  Violent crime becomes interesting when infused with the sophistication and big money of the business world.  And real suspense happens when the business world, or any genteel environment, is invaded by violent, ruthless criminals.  What happens when a stuffy law firm is operated by The Mob?  You get Grisham’s The Firm.  And what happens when a corporate executive is confronted by violent extortionists?  That would be my last book, Poised to Kill.  And in my new release, Downfall, big corporations are attacked by murderous saboteurs.

Briefcase and Gun.  It makes for a hell of a story.