An Interview with Writer Susan D. Mustafa
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| Susan D. Mustafa lives and writes in Baton Rouge, Louisiana |
An Interview with Writer Susan D. Mustafa
A long-time entertainment journalist, general assignment freelancer, and magazine managing editor, Susan virtually stumbled into a whole new career as a writer of true crime books when Special Prosecutor Tony Clayton tabbed her to co-write the true accounts behind the investigation and ultimate capture and conviction of Baton Rouge area serial killer Derrick Todd Lee. The result was Blood Bath, a gripping, unflinching look into the twisted mind of a psychopath and the brutal slayings of his beautiful victims and the bungled police work that allowed the killer to operate under the radar.
She’s following that up this summer with another true crime book, co-authored with Sue Israel, titled Dismembered, about serial killer Sean Vincent Gillis. Slated for publication July 5, 2011, this one comes with a warning from the publisher that it may be too gruesome for some readers.
And between writing her first attempt at fiction – tentatively called The Crescent City Killer – Susan is researching her next true crime book featuring a pack of killers, Daniel and Michael Garcia and James Nelson II.
The Redman Writing Project (RWP) recently reached out to Susan for an interview, to which she graciously agreed:
RWP: You have a new book coming out July 5, 2011. Tell us about it...
Susan D. Mustafa: The name of the new book is Dismembered, and it is the true story of serial killer Sean Vincent Gillis, who confessed to the gruesome deaths and mutilations of eight women in Louisiana. The information provided in this book may be difficult for some readers to deal with because this sociopath was a very sick man who enjoyed not only the killing, but he especially enjoyed what he did with the victims’ bodies after they were dead. It is so gruesome at times that Kensington Books, my publisher, put a warning on the back cover. However, it is also a unique look into the mind of a serial killer, and parts of the story are told in his own words.
RWP: What was the biggest challenge you faced writing it?
Susan D. Mustafa: The biggest challenge with writing any true crime book is the extensive research involved. It takes more than a year to collect all of the information necessary, which includes interviews with family members, friends, detectives, etc. It also involves sitting through trials and sifting through a mountain of police reports and other relevant material.
RWP: From beginning to end, how long did it take you to write? How many re-writes?
Susan D. Mustafa: For me, the research is the most time-consuming part. While writing, I have to constantly stop to look up this fact or that. This book took about three months to write. When I finish, I give it to my writing partner, Sue Israel, who edits it and makes suggestions. I then make her suggested corrections or revisions before turning it in to my publisher.
RWP: What was the biggest lesson you learned while writing your first book?
Susan D. Mustafa: The biggest lesson I learned while writing Blood Bath was the importance of researching every aspect of the murders, the killer and the victims. It is very important to make sure that all of the facts are correct, so that you will be able to produce an accurate version of events as they happened. In true crime, you have to connect the dots, so to speak, so you must be have intimate knowledge of your subjects to be able to do that accurately.
RWP: We hear you’re also writing a fiction thriller. What is the inspiration behind it and what can you tell us about it?
Susan D. Mustafa: This is my first attempt at fiction writing, and I’m very excited about it. I actually dreamed the plot, got up the next morning and started writing. I’ve never thought about writing fiction before so this came as a surprise, but I’m enjoying it immensely. I’m about a quarter of the way through, and surprisingly, it is coming along quickly. I’ve learned that it’s much easier to write serial killer fiction than it is to write true crime because I don’t have to do as much research or stop to check facts because it’s all coming out of my head. I’ve given it the working title of The Crescent City Killer because it’s set in the French Quarter. I’m really enjoying writing about New Orleans because I love the city so much.
RWP: How do you write? Not just mechanically (long-hand or on the computer), but do you create elaborate outlines or thin sketches? Do you create biographies for each of your characters? Do you already know how it ends?
Susan D. Mustafa: When writing true crime, I don’t have to create elaborate outlines because of the amount of research I do. I simply tell the story in chronological order from the killer’s childhood to adulthood to capture and trial, and the victims’ lives and deaths from first to last. Because so much research is involved, I already know what I will write about each victim before I start. I wait until all of the research is complete before I start writing. I do, however, write an outline of each chapter to give to my publisher before I write the book to make sure the publisher wants the book. I don’t necessarily know how all of the book will be written, but I just let it go where the story dictates if that makes sense.
RWP: Many writers will tell you that there is a particular time of the day they feel they are most creative and do most of their writing. When do you do the bulk of your writing?
Susan D. Mustafa: I do most of my writing at night and am most creative around midnight. However, considering the subject matter I work with, night time is probably not the best time for most people to do this sort of work. It gets difficult sometimes, and I have nightmares when I am in the process of writing these books.
RWP: What is the most difficult aspect of writing for you?
Susan D. Mustafa: I think I’m very lucky in that writing comes so naturally to me. I am a procrastinator, though, and have a bad habit of waiting until the last moment and then rushing to meet my deadline. I like to think I write better under pressure. At least that’s what I tell myself to excuse my procrastination.
RWP: What are your interests? How do you incorporate your interests into your writing or how have they influenced your writing?
Susan D. Mustafa: Writing true crime can be very disturbing because the material is so dark, so I like to immerse myself in things like art and books and music. I love the blues and enjoy having my musician friends over for impromptu jam sessions. Walking through the French Quarter and experiencing the culture of the area is always a lot of fun for me, so I’m incorporating some of that culture into my novel. I also enjoy spending a lot of time with my family because we always have a lot of fun together. They keep me laughing, which is a wonderful thing when I’m researching a serial killer.
As a writer, I think all of my interests and experiences influence the way I write. How I choose to tell a story, what facts I focus on, how I express the emotions of others, it all stems from what I feel and what I find interesting… to a degree. Two people can tell the same story in entirely different ways, and that’s a result of the writers’ personalities and interests and what each writer deems important.
RWP: Let’s step back in time briefly and find out your earliest writing experiences. Did you write for the high school newspaper and did you keep a journal? Did you enter any writing or poetry contests in school? What did you do to foster the writing bug?
Susan D. Mustafa: As a teenager, I did write poetry, but it was awful, filled with the angst of being a teenage girl. I did not really begin writing seriously until I moved to Baton Rouge in 2000, although I always knew I could write and hoped to write a book one day.
RWP: At what point did you decide you wanted to be a writer? Was there one teacher, one influence or was it just an accumulation of events?
Susan D. Mustafa: When I attended (Southeastern Louisiana University), my journalism professor, Dr. Joseph Mirando, was a huge influence on my life. He believed I had talent and was really hard on me, demanding my best in everything I wrote. He taught me how to research and the importance of writing interestingly and accurately. I really became interested in writing while attending college and began my career the year after I graduated.
(RWP Note: Susan holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Mass Communication and Journalism from Southeastern Louisiana University in Hammond, Louisiana.)
RWP: How did you get your first start? What was your first published piece?
Susan D. Mustafa: My writing partner and editor, Sue Israel, gave me my first writing job at a magazine in Baton Rouge—City Social. She assigned me to write about people who go skiing in Colorado for Mardi Gras. That was my first published story. Because she liked that story, she hired me as a freelance writer for the magazine and later promoted me to managing editor.
RWP: What advice would you give to novice writers or even those unpublished writers still slugging it out?
Susan D. Mustafa: I would say do not give up. You never know which piece you write will be the one that gives you the break you’ve been waiting for. When I talk to college students, I always tell them to do their best on everything they write because people do pay attention. For example, I did a story on Prosecutor Tony Clayton in City Social two years before he tried Derrick Todd Lee for the murder of Geralyn Barr DeSoto. Because he liked the story I had written about him, Tony asked me to collaborate with him on the book. If I had not done a good job on that original story, I would not be writing books today, so it’s very important to do your best on every story you write, no matter how inconsequential it may seem.
When we first wrote Blood Bath, we self-published it under the title, I’ve Been Watching You, because we could not get a publisher. We simply marketed it ourselves and kept trying to get publicity for the book. Three years later, our efforts paid off, and Kensington Books picked it up. I would advise unpublished writers to be patient and never give up. Keep sending out proposals to agents and publishers. If the work is good, eventually someone will want it. Also, do not get discouraged by rejections. Specific publishers look for specific things, and a rejection could simply mean they were not looking for that specific topic.
RWP: List five of your favorite authors:
- Arundhati Roy
- Alice Sebold
- Truman Capote
- Maya Angelou
- John Sanford
RWP: List ten books you’ve read that you’ll never forget:
- The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold
- The God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy
- Hannibal by Thomas Harris
- I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou
- Dante’s Inferno by Dante Alighieri
- In Cold Blood by Truman Capote
- Helter Skelter by Vincent Bugliosi
- The Flame and the Flower by Kathleen Woodiwiss
- The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown
- The AP Stylebook
RWP: What are you reading right now?
Dead Man Walking by Sister Helen Prejean (again)
WHERE TO FIND AND SHOP FOR SUSAN D. MUSTAFA:
Susan’s books are available in bookstores across the country as well as in some Walmart stores, Target and airports. They can be ordered online at any major book retailer or through her publisher at Kensington Books. She is currently building a website that will include all of her books and interesting facts about the serial killers she writes about.
Susan D. Mustafa Bibliography:
Dismembered by Susan D. Mustafa and Sue Israel (due for release July 5, 2011)
No Such Thing as Impossible (buy it here) by Susan D. Mustafa and Jairo Alvarez Botero
Blood Bath (buy it here) by Susan D. Mustafa, Special Prosecutor Tony Clayton and Sue Israel
Copyright 2011 Donald G. Redman All Rights Reserved
I have read Blood Bath. Very good, but was very scared due to the fact that my daughter was headed to LSU at the time. Very glad they caught the "bad" guy before she enrolled!! Great Book Susan!!
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