The Perfect Murder by Poppy Gee

There are a limited number of ways to kill someone. How do you keep from repeating them? Or do you not worry about that at all? 

"It's harder to kill a snake than it is a person."

That's a line from my 2013 debut novel, Bay of Fires. The guy who says it is an odd, reclusive man who lives in a remote and rundown house with his cats. I actually stole the line from an interview I saw with the brother of one of Australia's most infamous murderers, the Bangalow State Forest killer. 

I imagine the logistics of killing a person are, in fact, easier than killing a poisonous snake. The challenge is, how to get away with it. Mistakes killers often make include: Googling information relating to their plans; lying unconvincingly to police, friends and family; or simply buying a mushroom dehydrator and then throwing it out days after their family members die from poisoned mushrooms. 

A police officer told me that most murders happen inadvertently, for example, a fight that gets out of hand. He said usually murderers don't mean to kill. When a person hasn't planned to commit the crime, they leave a trail of evidence, which often includes CCTV footage or phone records. This is helpful for homicide detectives.   

It can be boring in a book though, if the murder mystery is clear cut. 

Premeditation is a luxury for a writer. You have a really good opportunity to commit the perfect crime.

I think the type of murder should reveal something about the people and the place. Agatha Christie used her knowledge of pharmacy to kill her characters in a wide range of interesting ways that were relevant and revealing to the era. Tana French leans into Irish countryside and cultural traditions to create fascinating environments for her murders. 

In my last book, Vanishing Falls, one of the murder weapons was a poisonous substance used by farmers in the area. I won't do that again. Chemistry is not my strength, and it required so much research, tweaking of the crime scene, the clues, the investigation, to make it plausible. It wasn't much fun - locking down those factual details drove me crazy. A gun would have been easier, although no one has guns in Australia except farmers, organised crime gangs and police officers. 

I have a great idea in my current WIP where a character disposes of a body. I can't reveal it yet, in case someone steals the idea before I manage to get it published. It involves a boat. That's all I'm going to say. My character has been planning the murder for months, if not years. It's the perfect murder... as long as no one sees him returning to dry land.