BEHIND THE HEADLINES

BESTSELLING THRILLER AUTHOR MARK EDWARDS TELLS CRIME MONTHLY WHAT INFLUENCES HIS WRITING

‘WRITING IS MY WAY OF DEALING WITH THINGS I’M SCARED OF’

What was the inspiration behind your new novel?

I read an article about parasocial relationships, where someone believes they have a connection with a person they’ve only seen online. It can happen to anyone on social media, you don’t have to be famous, and it struck me as a chilling topic for a psychological thriller. I then put that together with an image I’d had of a man buried up to his neck on a beach and left to drown as the tide came in, and The Darkest Water was born. What attracts you most about writing crime and thrillers?

Writing thrillers is my way of dealing with the things I’m scared of. I’m rehearsing what I’d do if I ever encountered a truly evil psychopath. Is anything you write based on real-life experiences?

My earlier books were about a few of the terrible things that had happened to me, including having neighbours from hell (The

Magpies), and a rail journey through France that ended with me being stranded with no money, passport or ticket (Follow You Home). These days, it’s all made up, which is a lot harder. How do you come up with your ideas, and how do you keep track of all the twists and turns?

Ideas come to me from all directions, whether it’s overhearing an intriguing conversation in a coffee shop or reading about a true crime case.

I fill endless notebooks with twists and turns, and then have to figure out how everything fits together. Has anyone inspired your work?

Stephen King and Donna Tartt are my biggest inspirations. I grew up reading King and also write about ordinary people in scary situations, but with nothing supernatural in mine. With Donna Tartt, my greatest ambition is to make readers feel how I felt when I first read The

Secret History – utterly transfixed. How easy do you find writing?

It’s never easy. The hardest part is staying one step ahead of my readers, who will guess twists before I’ve even dreamed them up! What’s your advice for writers?

I wasted a lot of time unsure of what kind of books to write and hopping between genres. Once I settled on psychological thrillers, everything clicked. So, figure out what you want to write and read everything in that genre. Become an expert. What do you love most about your job?

Despite the topic of The Darkest

Water, where a man regrets responding to a message on Instagram, I love engaging with readers, either online or at events. Having cheerleaders who get excited that I’m writing a new novel keeps me going whenever I find myself stuck in a plot hole.