When I write I let myself go, I follow my character wherever he or she leads me. Then comes editing when you try to link dots discovering hidden ideas. A book is a journey, either reading or writing it. Of course, writing comes with work, but it’s enjoyable, nevertheless. 

Kirill Khrestinin – 13 December 2020

The Back Flap

It was a cold, rainy night when I came home and found a package on my front porch. The sender’s name and address were missing from the label. I opened the package and discovered inside of it a manuscript titled Psychopath’s Diary Vol. I I was instantly pulled into the mind of a serial killer and introduced to a reality that far surpassed any definition of normal in today’s society. Psychopath’s Diary Vol. I is the essence of taboo. It can only be described as a poetry of violence. A symphony of torture. A tale of sexual deviance with a drop of incest and necrophilia. You want to stop reading, but you simply cannot. It is like taking a bite out of a forbidden fruit even if the taste of it spoils the sensitive stomach of our morality.

One question ran through my mind over and over, why me? Why did the killer send his confession of the crimes he had committed to me? I searched for an answer within the pages of the manuscript, but could not find one, not even a hint. There is something that has to link him and I, but what?

About the book

What is the book about?

Psychopath’s Diary Vol. I is about Chester LaRue who is a psychopath. In this book we dive deep into his inner world frighteningly leaving nothing to imagination. We follow after him learning about his first murders and his very first victims. But mostly we learn his personal philosophy of life and intellectual justification of his deeds.

When did you start writing the book?

I began working at my book about seven and a half years ago while living back in Russia. This book went through a long journey, experienced a number of transformations with each draft. I changed with years, so the same fate had been bestowed upon my book.    

How long did it take you to write it?

About five years though for some time it has been lying on the shelf collecting dust while I was working at something else. Eventually, I returned to it seeing some hidden potential on its pages.

Where did you get the idea from?

I got the idea after watching a show, Dexter. I thought it would be interesting to write my own version of a psychotic mind who kills and not only bad people.

Were there any parts of the book where you struggled?

Not really. When I write I let myself go, I follow my character wherever he or she leads me. Then comes editing when you try to link dots discovering hidden ideas. A book is a journey, either reading or writing it. Of course, writing comes with work, but it’s enjoyable, nevertheless.

What came easily?

The plot. It almost built itself and I just was writing down what my character was telling me. Luckily, Chester wasn’t shy with me and let me explore the most intimate part of his entity and life.

Are your characters entirely fictitious or have you borrowed from real world people you know? 

Kind of. Chester is a jigsaw puzzle created out of pieces of numerous biographies I read about real serial killers. His attractive looks and charm I took from Ted Bundy. His love of books and intelligence from Edmund Kemper. His madness from Andrei Chikatilo and so on. A piece here and a piece there.

We all know how important it is for writers to read. Are there any particular authors that have influenced how you write and, if so, how have they influenced you?

I read a lot. Some of my favorite writers are Truman Capote, Ernest Hemingway, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Vladimir Nabokov, Fyodor Dostoevsky. Their books help me to discover something within me and after that I write this discovery on the pages of my own books.

Do you have a target reader?  

I don’t know. I never thought about it. I guess people who like to read and not afraid to think out of the box.

About Writing

Do you have a writing process? If so can you please describe it?

Writing is a labor. I write at least two hours a day, every morning. The process of writing is pretty simple, I open my MacBook, then Word and the fingers start typing my soul mixed with my thoughts come out filling the whiteness of the screen.

Do you outline? If so, do you do so extensively or just chapter headings and a couple of sentences?

Never. For me every page is like a walk in an unknown town. I have no clue what is waiting me around the corner.

Do you edit as you go or wait until you’ve finished?

I always edit when I’m done.

Did you hire a professional editor?

 Yes, I do have a professional editor.

Do you listen to music while you write? If yes, what gets the fingers tapping?

No. When I write I need complete silence to dissipate my mind inside of the world that has been born in front of my internal eyes.

About Publishing

Did you submit your work to Agents?

Yes, but my work got rejected.

What made you decide to go Indie, whether self-publishing or with an indie publisher? Was it a particular event or a gradual process?

Just a gradual process.

Did you get your book cover professionally done or did you do it yourself?

I did it all by myself.

Do you have a marketing plan for the book or are you just winging it?

I guess you can say I’m just winging it.

Any advice that you would like to give to other newbies considering becoming Indie authors?

Read, write and read some more and don’t forget to publish whatever you wrote.

About You

Where did you grow up?

Somewhere in a small town in the middle of Russia.

Where do you live now?

In a small town somewhere in the middle of Kentucky.

What would you like readers to know about you?

When I know this by myself, I’ll let them know because so far, I still haven’t figured it out.

What are you working on now?  

My new book that will be presented soon to certain agents and publishers.

End of Interview:

For more from Kirill, visit his website and follow him on Twitter.

Get your copy of Psychopath’s Diary Vol I from Amazon US or Amazon UK.