Amongst the Killing



Have you ever read a book and thought that it needed a sound track? That's how I felt about this book. The book is written from the two very different, very distinct personalities of the killer and the cop that is supposed to catch him. Yes, I said "supposed to". Because everything the media tells us is that the good cop catches the bad guy, after several near misses, then goes home and kisses his wife and child. Right?

Well, that's why I love indie authors so damn much. They're independent. They don't follow the same paths. And Joe Compton blazes a new trail with this story.

Jack Casey is a newly minted serial killer. He decides he is tired of living by societies rules and does what he wants instead.

Charles Street is a man that wants to be a good homicide detective more than anything else so he can really make a difference to society.

You would think this would be a simple game of cat and mouse with the detective chasing the mouse all over town before running him to ground. Except in this case the mouse has rabies, isn't afraid of the cat, and only follows his own internal rules that even he doesn't fully understand. Neither man acts the way you, or the other man, thinks they will. Both men are struggling to stay true to themselves while still working towards their objectives. But they both have to figure out what their real objectives are. And we get to go along, chapter after chapter, as the two men tell their stories one after the other.

This story was so twisty turny that I kept getting dry mouth from it because my jaw kept dropping. And as soon as I was done I had a bunch of questions for the author, which thankfully, he agreed to answer.

So I present to you my first author interview.

Rebekah:
Have you worked as a cop? Or a psycho killer?
Joe Compton:
No I spent time with a retired LAPD Robbery Homicide detective though and did a ride a long with the LAPD.
Rebekah:
Did you seek out this cop and do the ride along specifically for this book?
Joe Compton:
Yes, I sought him out for the purpose of the book. Actually, I read this true crime/non fiction book called the Life and Times of the LAPD Robbery Homicide Division and I wrote a letter (an actual letter you had to mail, I am old) to the publisher. It turned out the author was the publisher and he called me and we talked for like an hour and half. He gave me the retired LAPD detective's number and I called him. We sat in a pizza place near my house and talked 3 times for about 4 hours each time. He gave me the name of a desk clerk  with Oxnard Police and I got hooked up with a ride along shortly thereafter. The police department in Oxnard gave me all the websites I needed to go to to get any information I would need to authenticate the story and the rest I researched on my own
Rebekah:
Did you do other research for this work? I noticed that you didn't answer my question about having worked as a psycho killer. Please don't axe murder me if the answer is yes to that.
Joe Compton:
I am not nor have I been a psycho killer. Funny my Father In Law read the book and one day we were over there for dinner and he had just finished it. He looked at me and said who are you. This is not the Joe I know. I did a ton of research. I did a lot on survivalists.
Rebekah:
LOL that's awesome about your FIL. So who was your muse for Jack Casey?
Joe Compton:
He is a mix of a lot of bad dudes but also I wanted this to be a duality, so I had to make sure that him and Detective Street shared some traits, that was a huge key for me. I based him on Charles Mansion, Jack Torrance from the Shining, and a couple others.
Rebekah:
Did you ever feel like you were going crazy jumping back and forth between these two minds? I'll be honest, I had to put the book down a few times and take a breather to let the conflicting psyches settle into my mind.
Joe Compton:
You know I didn't have much trouble. What I focused on was what was next in the event timeline and I just had to keep track of who was talking and I was able to turn one voice on and one voice off. Some scenes though were definitely harder than others though.
Rebekah:
That's amazing. It really was like both men talked and told their stories, even as one devolved down into insanity and wanted to stay there. What gave you the idea to write it that way? So neatly divided with the back and forth?
Joe Compton:
I love the idea of there are two sides to every story. So I wanted to try and write a duality tale. Honestly it was all inside voices, I didn't add the cop vs serial killer element till after the 2nd draft, realizing I needed a setting and I think for this to work it had t be something like a cop vs killer idea. So it lent itself perfectly to the idea.
Rebekah:
From what you've said I assume you plotted this whole story out. Did it end the way you thought it would?
Joe Compton:
Actually I am a pantser believe it or not. I wrote the first draft in 3 days. I had a different ending at first and then my wife who was my beta reader when I dusted it off the shelf. Mentioned the third act was a glaring weakness in the momentum of the story. So I trashed it and rewrote it. I did not think it would end the way it would until I wrote 2 specific lines. Then I knew where my mind was going.
Rebekah:
You're a pantser?! I'm shocked! And I like it. I always have a rough draft but the story goes where the voices in my head direct me. So the ending was just as surprising for you writing it as it was for me reading it?
Joe Compton:
It was. Especially the phone call
Rebekah:
You didn't plan the phone call either?! Which one? Both?
Joe Compton:
Nope, not till I wrote it, the written reaction, is my reaction to it. The 2nd one is what i am referring to.
Rebekah:
I love it! Ok Joe take us home and tell everyone that is going to read this where they can find you.
Joe Compton:
On Twitter @Joedream73
On Instagram Joeidfilms73
www.youtube https://www.youtube.com/c/JoeCompton73

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