1) So, who are you & what have you written?
My name’s Matt Wesolowski and I’m from Newcastle-Upon-Tyne. I’ve written horror ever since I could write and have had a novella and a good few short stories published in the genre.
Six Stories is my debut attempt at a crime novel that got picked up by the lovely Karen Sullivan of Orenda Books; although coming from a horror background, that element does creep in quite substantially! You can LIKE my page on Facebook; find me on Goodreads; plus you can follow me on Twitter as @ConcreteKraken.
2) Why do you write crime fiction?
I write what I enjoy. I’ve always read a lot of crime but never felt confident enough to break from the comfort of horror. Now though, I am quite enjoying writing using elements of both. What I read has a huge impact on my writing. Authors such as Kati Hiekkapelto, Lauren Beukes and Yrsa Siguðadottir have been hugely influential to my own work.
3) What informs your crime writing?
I have always had a fascination with true crime, especially serial killers and cases that cannot be solved like the Zodiac Killer or the Black Dahlia murder. I go to sleep listening to true crime podcasts and watch a lot of documentaries … You could say I’m a little obsessed! I try and steep my writing in as much reality as I can muster and hope that comes across. I like the idea of looking below the surface of crime, the causes, the underlying reasons – the dark places are the richest to explore.
4) What’s your usual writing routine?
The hours of my day job are quite sporadic (I am a 1-to-1 English tutor for young people in care) and I am a single father so now it’s fairly sporadic. Evenings are best or a few stolen hours before the school run in the afternoon, I try and aim to get a few thousand words at the very least during a week.
5) Which crime book do you wish YOU’D written, and why?
Oh for sure it would be any of Thomas Harris’ Hannibal Lecter series. They are just so magnificently written, deep and utterly believable. Lecter is an amalgamation of so many real people (Chikatilo, Gein etc) whilst still being utterly his own entity is a huge achievement. I would love to be able to create such a divisive antagonist.
