Too Many Shortcuts? Mental Health in Crime Fiction - CrimeSpace2024-03-29T12:19:08Zhttp://crimespace.ning.com/forum/topics/too-many-shortcuts-mental-health-in-crime-fiction?x=1&id=537324%3ATopic%3A373420&feed=yes&xn_auth=noFrom the reviews that I read,…tag:crimespace.ning.com,2013-07-13:537324:Comment:3743412013-07-13T16:27:58.987ZMartyn V. Halmhttp://crimespace.ning.com/profile/MartynVHalm
From the reviews that I read, some readers are eager to psycho-analyze my protagonist, but I resist the idea that there's anything mentally wrong with her. As far as killing people goes, financial gain must be the purest motivation of all.
From the reviews that I read, some readers are eager to psycho-analyze my protagonist, but I resist the idea that there's anything mentally wrong with her. As far as killing people goes, financial gain must be the purest motivation of all. An interesting book on the su…tag:crimespace.ning.com,2013-07-13:537324:Comment:3747462013-07-13T16:20:00.137ZMartyn V. Halmhttp://crimespace.ning.com/profile/MartynVHalm
An interesting book on the subject of Psychopaths working and the environment they prosper best is the book Snakes in Suits by Paul Babiak and Robert Hare (who designed the psychopathic evaluation test).
An interesting book on the subject of Psychopaths working and the environment they prosper best is the book Snakes in Suits by Paul Babiak and Robert Hare (who designed the psychopathic evaluation test). I've been reading her poems f…tag:crimespace.ning.com,2013-07-09:537324:Comment:3745792013-07-09T14:49:48.919ZCaroline Trippehttp://crimespace.ning.com/profile/CarolineTrippe
<p>I've been reading her poems for some time, but not always understanding them as well as I wanted to. On the recommendation of a poet friend, I finally bought Helen Vendler's <em>Dickinson. </em>There are 150 poems (as you know, a mere fraction of her output) with a commentary on each one, and as I said, they are a "revelation" which has brought me to a deeper appreciation and understanding of the poems <em>and</em> this amazing poet. I've read one really fine & extensive biography of…</p>
<p>I've been reading her poems for some time, but not always understanding them as well as I wanted to. On the recommendation of a poet friend, I finally bought Helen Vendler's <em>Dickinson. </em>There are 150 poems (as you know, a mere fraction of her output) with a commentary on each one, and as I said, they are a "revelation" which has brought me to a deeper appreciation and understanding of the poems <em>and</em> this amazing poet. I've read one really fine & extensive biography of Dickinson, but this book has revealed far more to me about her. I think it's OK to talk for a moment about Emily Dickinson on CrimeSpace, because she herself has always been a "mystery." :) </p> I love Emily Dickinson.tag:crimespace.ning.com,2013-07-09:537324:Comment:3745782013-07-09T13:08:45.508ZI. J. Parkerhttp://crimespace.ning.com/profile/Ingpark
<p>I love Emily Dickinson.</p>
<p>I love Emily Dickinson.</p> Well, I've only read one Mais…tag:crimespace.ning.com,2013-07-09:537324:Comment:3744952013-07-09T12:37:14.919ZCaroline Trippehttp://crimespace.ning.com/profile/CarolineTrippe
<p>Well, I've only read one Maisie Dobbs so far, the first one, and it isn't really a cozy, though I sort of expected it to be. It is "period," that is, 1920s-30s, & the first novel has a large section about Maisie's past which takes place during WW I. It isn't gory violent, but it does not shy from violence nor cover it up, and it certainly is never tongue in cheek, not a "caper." Maisie, who was from a working class family (father a costermonger, mother dead) served as maid in a…</p>
<p>Well, I've only read one Maisie Dobbs so far, the first one, and it isn't really a cozy, though I sort of expected it to be. It is "period," that is, 1920s-30s, & the first novel has a large section about Maisie's past which takes place during WW I. It isn't gory violent, but it does not shy from violence nor cover it up, and it certainly is never tongue in cheek, not a "caper." Maisie, who was from a working class family (father a costermonger, mother dead) served as maid in a great house for a time, where she began her education under the tutelage of a mentor. She suffered both personal injury and loss while working as a WW I nurse, events which formed her character. I'm intrigued enough to try a couple more. I really do not like Val McDermid, and frankly I have had quite enough of that kind of ripper torture/murder. So if Maisie Dobbs is Nancy Drew all grown up, that's fine with me! I just need a little change from my Emily Dickinson studies. :) (Though reading Helen Vendler is a revelation indeed, and one I am truly enjoying). </p> I suspect MAISIE DOBBS is a c…tag:crimespace.ning.com,2013-07-08:537324:Comment:3744732013-07-08T13:54:54.293ZI. J. Parkerhttp://crimespace.ning.com/profile/Ingpark
<p>I suspect MAISIE DOBBS is a cozy. Not for me. Murder is violent and you can't cover that up. Though I also dislike excessive violence that serves little purpose.</p>
<p>I suspect MAISIE DOBBS is a cozy. Not for me. Murder is violent and you can't cover that up. Though I also dislike excessive violence that serves little purpose.</p> I have read some of Val McDer…tag:crimespace.ning.com,2013-07-07:537324:Comment:3743902013-07-07T20:54:12.912ZCaroline Trippehttp://crimespace.ning.com/profile/CarolineTrippe
<p>I have read some of Val McDermid's novels (and I've seen the Wire in the Blood series too), and I have to say she is just too violent for me! I've been kind of "off" mysteries lately for some reason, reading other things. I sort of OD'd on the violence in some of my more recent "reads." So maybe Robotham would be too much for me too. Perhaps it's my age. </p>
<p>Although I did venture to read the first "Maisie Dobbs" novel at the recommendation of another friend. We'll see!</p>
<p>I have read some of Val McDermid's novels (and I've seen the Wire in the Blood series too), and I have to say she is just too violent for me! I've been kind of "off" mysteries lately for some reason, reading other things. I sort of OD'd on the violence in some of my more recent "reads." So maybe Robotham would be too much for me too. Perhaps it's my age. </p>
<p>Although I did venture to read the first "Maisie Dobbs" novel at the recommendation of another friend. We'll see!</p> Hmm. Not familiar with Sande…tag:crimespace.ning.com,2013-07-06:537324:Comment:3741322013-07-06T17:18:26.564ZI. J. Parkerhttp://crimespace.ning.com/profile/Ingpark
<p>Hmm. Not familiar with Sanders. I came at thrillers via mysteries. To this day I have reservations about them. Val McDermid writes a series featuring a psychologist, and just lately I find that Michael Robotham (a very good mystery writer) has also gone this way. He is better than McDermid, I think, but I'm troubled by the repetitiveness of certain subjects. Victims are almost always women. In Robotham's case, ratchet that up a bit: prepubescent girls manipulated, raped, and abused by the…</p>
<p>Hmm. Not familiar with Sanders. I came at thrillers via mysteries. To this day I have reservations about them. Val McDermid writes a series featuring a psychologist, and just lately I find that Michael Robotham (a very good mystery writer) has also gone this way. He is better than McDermid, I think, but I'm troubled by the repetitiveness of certain subjects. Victims are almost always women. In Robotham's case, ratchet that up a bit: prepubescent girls manipulated, raped, and abused by the villain. Though in the case of "Shattered" (I think), prepubescent girls are only used to get at their mothers, proving that a mother will do anything, no matter how horrible, to protect her child. I found that interesting, convincing, and inventive. Otherwise, thrillers are rarely inventive.</p> Yes, that is one fad where k…tag:crimespace.ning.com,2013-07-06:537324:Comment:3741292013-07-06T14:37:24.438ZCaroline Trippehttp://crimespace.ning.com/profile/CarolineTrippe
<p>Yes, that is one fad where knowing about mental health can be of use. I've read a few of those. Although one of the finest crime novels about a serial killer was Lawrence Sanders' "The First Deadly Sin," in which Detective Delaney is on the trail of killer Daniel Blank. Blank's condition is never actually named, although the author does show us how this man behaves as he chronicles his deeper descent into madness, and at one point describes scenes from his early life. Although the reader…</p>
<p>Yes, that is one fad where knowing about mental health can be of use. I've read a few of those. Although one of the finest crime novels about a serial killer was Lawrence Sanders' "The First Deadly Sin," in which Detective Delaney is on the trail of killer Daniel Blank. Blank's condition is never actually named, although the author does show us how this man behaves as he chronicles his deeper descent into madness, and at one point describes scenes from his early life. Although the reader is left to guess just what is wrong with Blank, his actions are entirely believable. What Delaney is actually trying to discover then trace is the weapon that Blank used; the weapon, he knows, will lead him to the killer. But throughout the novel, as it oscillates back and forth between the POV of the killer and the detective, we are as much in the mind & world of Daniel Blank as we are in that of Edward X Delaney. It's compelling, disturbing, and incredibly suspenseful! The writing is also top notch. Lawrence Sanders wrote so well BEFORE he died! :) </p> I've always followed that met…tag:crimespace.ning.com,2013-07-05:537324:Comment:3742582013-07-05T13:28:48.352ZI. J. Parkerhttp://crimespace.ning.com/profile/Ingpark
<p>I've always followed that method, Caroline, but I write about the past where such conditions existed but noone named them or discussed them as diseases. They were simply behavior patterns of certain people.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>However, the modern fad for thrillers has created a new protagonist found in a surprisingly large number of books these days: the psychologist on the trail if the serial killer. Such a main character will of necessity speak of mental conditions in technical terms and the…</p>
<p>I've always followed that method, Caroline, but I write about the past where such conditions existed but noone named them or discussed them as diseases. They were simply behavior patterns of certain people.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>However, the modern fad for thrillers has created a new protagonist found in a surprisingly large number of books these days: the psychologist on the trail if the serial killer. Such a main character will of necessity speak of mental conditions in technical terms and the author will need to be up-to-date on current jargon and research.</p>