Story and photo by Audrey Kletscher Helbling
Who done it? Mr. Brookins? Ms. Hart? Mr. Krueger?
And the weapon? Was it a water bottle, a camera or a microphone?
Faribault police have already established the location, Buckham Memorial Library. Some 60 people were victimized there Thursday evening by a closely-knit group of criminals posing as authors. Or was it the other way around?
In all seriousness, Carl Brookins, Ellen Hart and William Kent Krueger comprise The Minnesota Crime Wave, Minnesota mystery writers who travel the state promoting their genre and the craft of writing. The above fictional “crime” never happened; the three are not law-breakers.
But they are talented, award-winning authors who dressed the parts of criminals while entertaining and informing their audience during an hour-long presentation in Faribault. Their visit was supported by the Minnesota Book Awards through a grant from the Minnesota Department of Education—State Library Services and the Minnesota Library Foundation.
As a fan of mystery books, I was excited to hear the trio. I confess, however, that I’ve read only Krueger’s Cork O’Connor series and the group’s collaborative anthologies, Silence of the Loons and Resort to Murder.
Brookins has written a sailing mystery series and a Sean Sean detective series. Hart has authored some 25 novels including the Sophie Greenway and Jane Lawless mystery series.
These are well-established writers who know of what they speak. I’ll share some of their best, in my opinion, comments with you. Whether you’re a writer like me, an avid mystery reader or just a reader, you’ll gain some interesting insights.
First, how do these three define their mysteries?
Brookins terms his mysteries relatively light books with a good deal of humor, humor he further defines as “off kilter.”
Hart’s books are a mix of humor and tackling a moral, world or other issue that interests her, she says. In Night Vision, for example, she addresses sleep problems. “I write primarily about motives, what it is to be human,” she says.
Krueger claims: “It’s not really murder I’m writing about. I write about family and places. I just use family and place to get some murders done.” His books are set primarily in northern Minnesota and, like Hart, he typically addresses an issue, such as hunting and fishing rights or racial prejudice.
What led them down the writing path?
Brookins, from a young age, was a voracious reader of books, including Shakespeare and crime fiction. The path to writing mysteries came naturally, driven by that early focus on reading.
Hart, also an early, avid reader of books like the Nancy Drew mysteries and then later, literary books, speaks to the beauty of language and suspense in mysteries. Her first interests focused on music and food—she worked as a chef at a sorority house—before she pursued writing.
Krueger, unlike his cohorts, did not read mysteries. But he knew early on, after penning a short story, “The Walking Dictionary,” in third grade, that he wanted to be a writer. (His dad was an English teacher who complained that no one used the dictionary enough.) Because he wanted so badly to get published, Krueger says he followed this advice: “Write a mystery. In that genre they’ll publish anything.” He’s been writing mysteries ever since saying it’s “rich, rewarding, complex and satisfying.”
And how do they go about writing a mystery?
All three say that research is vital to their work.
Hart says, “There are certain things you can make up, but some things you can’t.” For example, a homicide cop once told her, “I used to read Nancy Drew when I was a kid and I wanted to be Nancy Drew.” Says Hart, “You can’t make that up.”
She likes writing, she says, because “I’m always learning about something new.”
Brookins, while stressing the importance of research, says, “It’s important to be judicious in using research so the book flows and characters are doing what they do.” His comment that you don’t want to write about “how to grow corn in Iowa” drew appreciative laughter.
Krueger emphasizes the need to talk to people. While researching for The Devil’s Bed, the fictional story of an escaped mental patient plotting to assassinate the First Lady, he made an appointment with the head of the Minneapolis office of the Secret Service. He nearly blew it by asking “If I wanted to kill the First Lady, how would I do it?” The Secret Service, he discovered, does not have a sense of humor.
The trio covered other topics, like titles.
Hart always has a title before starting a book, using it as a base to write her mystery. Krueger uses two-word place names as his titles, often choosing titles that can become a play on words.
In planning their books, Krueger carefully outlines his. Brookins writes “however it works for me.”
Krueger is currently working on his tenth Cork O’Connor book, Vermillion Drift, which highlights the rich cultural history of mining on the Iron Range. His most recent O’Connor title, the newly-released Heaven’s Keep, was supposed to be his last in the series. But, says Krueger, “Cork O’Connor has done a pretty good job of paying the mortgage.”
