I was reading
something this week about Jimi Hendrix and his feeling that performing in
concert was a spiritual awaking for him, and he hoped, his audience. Yes, yes,
yes. The Electric Church.
I feel the
same way about each one of my novels; that each one of my heroes, Frank Miles,
Teddy Mack, Lena Gamble, and Matt Jones stand out because solving the crime is
not their number one priority. Each one of these characters is vulnerable in
some fundamental way. Each one of these characters is on a personal journey
where self-discovery, their gut instincts and sharp minds, lead them to solving
crimes that are bigger than themselves.
I'm working
on Matt Jones's third murder case right now. I'm often asked how this wonderful
character came to life. Matt came to me in a single moment, a single sentence
written by Henry James that I loved so much I opened City of Echoes with it. Curiously, I revisited the quote this
weekend when a reader posted it online and sent me a note. Many thanks for the
fine memories it conjured up. This truly is the essence of Detective Matt
Jones.
"The power to
guess the unseen from the seen, to trace the implications of things, to judge
the whole piece by the pattern, the condition of feeling life in general so
completely that you are well on your way to knowing any particular corner of
it—this cluster of gifts may almost be said to constitute experience." -- Henry
James
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