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True Crime Novelist On Helping To Decipher Zodiac Killer Code
1. Can you tell us why you decided to publish “HACK” under your real name?
I wanted to keep my non-fiction writing – my newspaper reporting and true crime books – separate from my fiction but when I retired from The Post this past June, I no longer needed to do that. As long as it is labeled fiction, a novel, the sources that tell me things about police work, about counter-terrorism and about intelligence are comfortable.
2. What can you share with us about the killer and the victims?
Well, without giving it all away, it appears a serial killer with a wicked sense of humor is hacking up celebrities. The first slaying is bizarre and the only witness is Skippy, a Siberian Husky. Someone does not like TV reality show stars.
3. Shepherd is an unusual sort not using a gun but unique weapons to defend himself. Why is this?
We learn that Shepherd has a violent history and never wants to fire a gun again. He knows how to defend himself without weapons but sometimes, when he is outnumbered, for example, he is not above improvising. That’s why a fax machine can come in handy in a pinch.
4. Skippy his Husky dog plays a significant role in the story. Could you share some light on his
furry friend?
In some ways Skippy is more mysterious than Shepherd, who has a hidden past. Skippy seems to be a rich man’s pet who witnessed a terrible murder but he also seems to be highly-trained and smart. Shepherd does not uncover Skippy’s past fully in HACK but he will delve more into Skippy’s former life in the next book.
5. I think its great that the killer goes after celebrities in the story. In some ways
it makes me like the killer. What made you decide to go down this route?
I think you put your finger on it. Reality TV viewers very often love to hate the stars, because they are so unpleasant or annoying – it’s what drives their ratings. I think everyone in America has a nasty reality TV star they would secretly like to strangle. But, in this case, they are hacked to death and defiled and humiliated in death by this cruel jokester – almost as if the killer were starring in their own show.
6. I find it fascinating about your role regarding the Zodiac killer. Could you tell us a bit
about helping to deciphering his secret code?
The Zodiac Killer in New York was shooting one person for each sign of the zodiac. He sent us letters at The New York Post. I made him mad because I was able to preserve one of his letters to me so NYPD detectives could find a partial fingerprint. I also said he was a liar and was not The Zodiac serial killer from the 1960s in California, come to New York. He sent us a code and I broke it. He warned “Be ready for more” killings. There was genuine city-wide panic in New York back then.
7. What about your help with serial Killer Robert Shulman? Would you be willing to tell us about
that as well?
I tracked down a hooker who worked with one of Shulman’s victims – before the police did – and she gave me a description of him and his blue Caddy. He later told police he stopped killing when he read that in The Post. He actually said “I knew I was F***ed when I saw that in The Post.” I am glad I got him to stop killing women. Unfortunately, when the cops narrowed down Cadillac owners and began to watch his house, a neighbor tipped Shulman off and he cleaned his house with chlorine and dumped some evidence. The good news was there was plenty of evidence remaining to convict him.
8. When it comes to writing books, what advice would you give to upcoming writers trying to get published?
Just write. Write every day, as much as you can. The more you write, the better and faster you will get. When you finish one book, start another and just keep on banging those keys. If you need authenticity, go to locations you are using and try things you write about – to see how they feel, to see if they are possible. I have put on a suit and had people tie me up and push me into a swimming pool to see how it felt to be trussed up and dropped in the drink. But do it safely, please. I do not recommend getting duct taped and put into a car trunk. Reality makes fiction better, I think.
9. I see you have another book coming up Smash. Any info you can give away regarding it?
SMASH is a stand-alone novel, I think, about a detective in a small town in Kansas, Art Doyle, who is frustrated because he has never had the opportunity to try to solve a murder mystery. Not one. Be careful what you wish for. Suddenly, scientists at the town’s nuclear accelerator facility start showing up dead – with bizarre, unexplainable injuries. Art Doyle has a lot more mystery and danger than he can handle and things get progressively more strange, with his reputation and life also on the line.
10. Do you have any links you’d like to share and also where is the best place to purchase your book? Thanks.
Sure, thanks. You can buy HACK and my other books on amazon.com, bn.com and other book sites. Soon the paperback version will be available for order on Amazon and from bookstores. My website is kierancrowley.com, where I also write a blog about murder and crime and writing. Thanks for taking the time to chat, I appreciate it.
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