Interview With An Author Featuring Kevin Thornton

Today I have the great pleasure of chatting to one of the Messieurs of The Mesdames of Mayhem, Kevin Thornton. LOL, apparently Kevin and I both attended The University of the Witwatersrand at the same time but neither of us recall meeting, most likely because I was in one of the libraries while Kevin was down at ‘The Boz’, The Bozzoli, where the cool kids hung out and drank beer and pontificated about life, the universe, music, literature and rugby! Of course I am assuming that’s what they chatted about because I went once and backed out nervously!

There’s not a lot in life that would make Kevin nervous, as you will see if you read this interview! He’s funny and kind, with a huge heart and a writing talent to match.

He lives in Fort McMurray so we don’t see as much of him as we’d like but I truly encourage you to check out this Q+A. Kevin’s list of recommended reads is great – I plan to start and at the top and make my way down – I’ve read some but not others.
I also loved the How to be a better writer tips!

Thank you Kevin, for joining me today! Tell us something unique/quirky about you?
For most of the year I am a quiet stay at home writing-contracting Dad and husband. The adventures nowadays are all in my head. However, if you are ever at a conference or writing gathering, and you see a large bearded guy with a very odd choice in murderous ties, well, that is probably me. Hanging with my writer and reader friends is when I get to howl at the moon.

Tell us something really interesting that's happened to you. I’m sure there’s a bunch to choose from!
I was in a dead end job in Brampton, codifying roof tiles – I’m not kidding. I was idly looking through job adverts by country, as one does, when I saw positions advertised in Afghanistan. That set off an entire second part of my life that was once again adventurous, interesting and dangerous in parts.

Who is your hero and why?
My Dad, but not for the typical reasons. He was, like me, ex-military. That shaped both of our lives even though our circumstances were totally different. I served where I lived at the time, in Africa. He was in World War II (there was a substantial age gap between us). He has become more heroic to me because my own parenting awareness has knocked him off the pedestal where I placed him. I find myself doing things as a Dad that I remember seeing in him, and it is in those comparisons that I recognize his own doubts and insecurities. He was flawed, as am I, but he never stopped trying to do his best for us, and that is an example to live by.

What kind of world ruler would you be?
Terrible, because I am a man. I believe if politics was left to women it would be run smarter, on time and on budget, and there would be less people dying in wars. The solution to most of the world’s ills is less testosterone.

What are you passionate about these days?
Writing the most interesting locked room mystery short story ever. I have been dabbling for some years now with Sherlock Holmes stories. They have the advantage of being tales where no background is needed, everyone knows Holmes, Watson, 221 b Baker Street. As a result the locked room has to be engaging because that is the primary focus.
I haven’t written it yet, but I’m getting closer.

Describe yourself in 5 words or less!
Vexing, irksome, exasperating, awkward, opinionated, disobedient.

What can we expect from you in the future?
I have given up on novels for now because I have written a pile and not been published. It’s been close. The Unhanged Arthur winner every year gets a sniff at a publication deal. I was short-listed six times.

I am finding more success with short stories. I am coming up on nearly 20. You may see then here if you wish.
amazon.com/author/kevinpthornton

Is there a writer which brain you would love to pick for advice? Who would that be and why?
All of them. Listening to writers talk about writing is the third most useful thing I can do to help my own writing get better. Oh, did you not know there is a list? Of course there is.
How to be a better writer:
1) Write. Write every day and always try to write well. Even if it’s just the shopping list, do it better (Is it funnier than yesterday’s? more efficient? better organized? strawberrys spelled correctly?)
2) Read. So many smart people say you can’t be a good writer unless you’re a reader. Believe them
3) Listen and talk. See above.
4) Try to write about things that interest you. It almost always makes for better reading.
5) Corollary of 4) If you can’t and you are, for example, contracted to write a report about the different hues of roof tiles in the Northern Canadian market, work hard and fast, and give them your best. If you want the next writing job, do this one properly.
6) Try to minimize distractions when you are writing. Headphones are good, even unplugged so as to create the illusion of peace.quiet. Not having children is better, but if you do have them pick a time when they are asleep. 3 a.m. always worked for me.
7) When all else fails, pull out a piece of paper and write.
8) Editing is important, but not as important as writing. An unedited piece of writing is possible, foolish but possible. An unwritten editing is not. You cain’t edit what you ain’t writted. So write, and never stop.

What are your top 10 favorite books/authors?
1) Robert B. Parker. Start with The Godwulf Manuscript and go through them all. He was the man who single-handedly revived the private eye novel, and the world is a better place for it.
2) Peter Robinson/Louise Penny/Linwood Barclay. There are other great Canadian writers, but these three are at the top of the game at home and internationally, and there is good reason for that.
3) Arthur Conan Doyle, His Last Bow. I prefer the later Holmes stories as I think Doyle was at his writing peak, more comfortable with the characters and more capable of telling a good tale.
4) Ed Hoch. Depending on the source, Edward Denton Hoch wrote 600-900 short stories, less than half of them collated into book form. A lot of them were classic locked room mysteries and while a few of them are contrived, many are works of staggering genius. I met him at the beginning of my career and the end of his, and he was unfailingly polite and kind to me. One day I’ll read them all, I’m about a quarter of the way there.
5) The Mesdames of Mayhem. The finest hooligans in the world of writing, and dear friends all.
6) John Sandford. Twice a year I sit by the metaphorical mailbox, waiting for the latest Lucas Davenport or Virgil Flowers. I need to read them so urgently I can’t even wait for the real book to arrive in the real mail, so I read them online immediately. He is the most readable writer ever and I would buy his recipe for chicken casserole just to enjoy his words. Sandford moves a story along so briskly that his books redefine unputdownable.
7) Sophie Hannah. I only recently found this altar of indescribably good writing, and the four I have read have not disappointed. She is original and captivating.
8) Gerald Seymour/Len Deighton/Eric Ambler/John Le Carre/ Jack Higgins/Alistair MacLean/ and about thirty others. The friends of my youth who helped to shape my tastes.
9) Ernest Hemingway. Do I need to explain why? No. Good.
10) Lawrence Block/Donald Westlake/Sara Paretsky/Ed McBain/Laurence Sanders and others. For being so important to me as a young adult.

What books do you think everyone should read if they want to be a crime writer?
In no particular order:
Gail Bowen, Sleuth – On Writing Mysteries, because it’s Gail Bowen.
Stephen King, On Writing. Everyone picks this because it is that good. Once you’re done with it, hunt down Danse Macabre and Secret Windows for more of the same.
Val McDermid, Forensics. For lessons on how to kill.
William Goldman, Adventures in the Screen Trade. Find the edition with the script for Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid in it, so when you go to Hollywood you’ll know what to do.
H.R.F Keating, Writing Crime Fiction. An English masterclass from the end of the Golden Age.
E.M. Forster, Aspects of the Novel. A series of lectures that can be taken in bite-sized bits, these are even better than his books.
Graham Greene, In Search of a Character. From his journals, on how he writes. Worth every word.
Patricia Highsmith, Plotting and Writing Suspense Fiction. Why not learn from one of the best?
David Morrell, The Successful Novelist. Why? Because First Blood, that’s why.
Ray Bradbury, Zen and the Art of Writing. Again, if you are going to learn, go to the best.
Walter Mosley, This Year You Write Your Novel. Even if you have written ten books, this is still some good advice here.
Milan Kundera, The Art of the Novel. Surprisingly easy to read, and useful. Plus it looks good on the bookshelf next to Stephen King.
Ernest Hemingway on writing, edited by Larry W. Phillips. Someone took the short views of the succinctest writer ever and collected them. Perfect for the W.C. library.
And don’t forget George V. Higgins, Dorothea Brande, Donald Westlake, Elmore Leonard and PD James, who all published collated opinions about writing, and Lawrence Block who seems to stream them daily.

Thank you, Kevin, for chatting with me today! Don’t give up on the novel! I hope to see you in A Grave Diagnosis, Carrick Publishing, and I hope to see you in person soon and we can chat about what really went down at The Boz! Best Wishes to you all in Fort McMurray, you guys have been hammered by so much.