From Army Tours to Crime Fiction: Keith Dando on Creating Tom Crane | Plot Twist

[00:00:00] Welcome to Plot Twist Radio, the show where creativity, storytelling and the unpredictable path of the creative life all collide. I'm your host Erin Egnatz. Hi Keith! Hello, how are you doing? Wonderful! Can you tell the audience a little bit about yourself? My name is Keith Dando. My pen name in terms of writing is KJ Dando, just because my real name was taken by another author, a children's author. But yeah, KJ Dando.

[00:00:29] I've got two books currently published, both crime thrillers based where I live in South Wales, which is obviously in the UK, just next to England, which is probably the country that you hear most of over there. Yeah, definitely. We have a lot of authors from there. I absolutely love you guys. You have some of the best stories to tell. Fingers crossed. Fingers crossed. Doing a good job. Doing ourselves justice.

[00:00:57] Fingers crossed. You've lived a life that already feels like a thriller. You've done military service, careers, now writing. What was the specific moment where you thought, okay, I need to tell stories?

[00:01:38] Cause we'll go through school at 18 as high school. And then you either go on to further education or choose to get a job. And so at 16 years old, I sort of decided to join the army. As you can probably tell, it's a while ago now, so before times of internet and smartphones. So when I was away on tours and things like that, I'd be reading books. And so I picked up Lee Child, Jack Reacher novels, and other things. And as I was away on tour, because we didn't have smartphones and internet

[00:02:08] as much as we did nowadays, just, I wouldn't say obsessed, but it became something for me to be able to, how do I put it, just relax and wind down, especially in the evenings before I go to sleep. And I even do it to this day. I can't sort of lay down and put my hair on a pillow and go to sleep. I kind of need something to escapism, I suppose, to get me to wind down before I get to sleep. All the way through, I've just always, as I've been reading these novels,

[00:02:36] I'd love to one day, if one day be able to create my own story that people would enjoy and yeah, be entertained by, I suppose. Did you start writing yourself? Not many people know this, but I had a little bit of a dabble when I was in my twenties. So a while ago now, it was brutal honesty. If I think back of what it was, it was a very immature, it was literally just me typing away

[00:03:06] and not really knowing what I was doing and just having a go. I didn't do anything with it. I ended up just, it was on an old laptop and that laptop is now gone and disappeared. As you already mentioned, I went through several different careers since and the only person I ever admitted it to is my wife. I said, one day I'd love to be able to write a book and to get published and that is one of my lifelong goals.

[00:03:35] And as I was approaching my 40th, I just, I was actually on holiday at the time and I remember being, laying on the sunbed and I was reading, funny enough, I was reading a novel and I just sort of said, do you know what, enough's enough. I just need to just start, I just need to do it. I need to put some words on a page and then see where it goes. So the day we got back from holiday, I went onto my mobile phone and got Google Docs downloaded as an app

[00:04:03] and literally started typing away. I know it's probably not the most conventional way and not what way most people do it, but I literally started tapping away. I work full time in quite a high pressurized environment and I have two young girls, so it's quite difficult to find the time to be able to dedicate to writing. But what happened was, as soon as I got Google Docs, I could realize I could just tap away a couple of sentences, put it away, go back to it again later on in the day.

[00:04:32] Every five minute or 10 minute break that I had throughout work, throughout the evenings when the girls were in bed, I would literally just tap away and again, using the same word again, but become obsessed with it. And before you knew it, within five months, I'd written the rough manuscript of Lies After Death, which is my first novel. That is a very common theme I've noticed is 40. It seems to be the magic number. For most of the people I've talked to,

[00:05:00] they're saying around my 40th birthday, that's when it happened. For me, I'm almost 40. I turn 40 next week. And last year is when I finally published. So I think there's something about it. Yeah, I think it's one of those where you, I think before you reach that kind of age, you almost have a, not an invincibility, but you just think you've got so much time. And then when you start approaching that age, you start realizing, if I want to achieve certain things, now is the time to just, yeah, just do it, I suppose. Yes.

[00:05:31] So let's talk about Tom Crane. What's the original spark for Tom Crane? Um, going back to what I mentioned earlier. So when I, I was just tapping away in my twenties and it, it went nowhere and it, it was, I mean, I'd be embarrassed if somebody was to find that, that writing, cause it, it was not good. Um, but I suppose, my, my reading influences, I've already mentioned Lee Childs and Jack Reacher series. Um,

[00:06:01] I've read quite a bit of Greg Hurwitz and the orphan X. Um, one of my favorites would also be Clive Cussler in terms of the, the adventure novels and always having something going on. Um, I kind of felt like the story that I wanted to create for the world, uh, would be character led. So I always started with the character, which was, which was Tom. Um,

[00:06:24] I wanted to create a gritty character that was not invincible, but tough, a bit of a lone wolf. Um, but also relatable. Um, also had a bit of a soft side as well. Um, and then on that same platform. So I, I had the character, that's the character I wanted to create. And then I remember thinking to myself, well, you have a lot of books out there that sort of go into New York and London and Paris and, and somewhere,

[00:06:54] one of the big cities, the world that people will be drawn to. And I, I flipped it with that idea. And then I, eventually I just, it boiled down to, um, I don't know if I'd overheard something years ago, but if you write what, you know, it'll be a bit more authentic. And, and that's in all honesty, that's ended up what happened. So I start, as I started writing and creating this character and creating the world, um, I chose areas around where I currently live, where I was brought up. Um,

[00:07:24] and even with Tom Crane as well, as, as much as you try and take yourself away from it, you end up putting bits of yourself into the work, which I'm, I'm sure you can relate to yourself. Um, it's, it's, there's, there's no, there's no way of escaping it. There's so much time and effort that goes into creating the work. Your, yourself just seeps into it, I suppose. Yes. Is he one of those thriller characters who is, you know, your typical protagonist?

[00:07:53] Is he willing to cross certain lines or, you know, is he like, probably great? You know, I get different, um, answers as far as thrillers go. I've noticed more so than my fantasy. Yeah. So I, I didn't, because I've got no, um, police procedural background. I didn't want to do that because I, I, again, I, I'm sure there'd be, um, I don't, people who work within the police force, they would turn around and crucify me, maybe I'd be getting certain things wrong. Um,

[00:08:23] so again, I want to try and make it as authentic as possible. Um, try and keep it with my own sort of knowledge and background as much as possible as well. Um, so he's, he's, he's more of a fixer than anything else. So he's not again, police procedural. Um, he is very much an honest and moral person. Um, it's a very difficult thing though, isn't it? Because morals are different for everybody, I suppose. Um, however,

[00:08:51] I would say that the vast majority, and I'm talking 99.9% of people know right from wrong. Um, how you interpret justice is, probably different. Um, probably leading on to, uh, the second in the series, which was a craftsman's work. Um, probably made people, um, question their own morals as well. The first one is very much a personal story for Tom. Um,

[00:09:19] because it's all about his wife and what happened to his wife. Whereas the second one is him taking on effectively a case, um, to try and find the missing child. Um, I'd like to think the way it's written, um, he does everything morally right, but there definitely is cases of him seeking justice and, uh, enacting justice, which is in the gray. Um, but yeah, it's, uh, the main thing is, I suppose,

[00:09:47] the people that are entertained by them and enjoy them. Um, hopefully they warm and relate to the character. Um, but, um, but yeah, there's, there's definitely a moral gray area as to how he seeks justice. Um, um, than, than the wrong. I hope that makes sense. I'm not sure. Yes, it does. It does. Don't worry. Um, so if Hollywood were to come calling,

[00:10:18] who do you think would play Tom? Um, it's funny cause I've had a few friends and family asking the same question. I'm gonna, I'm gonna feel really bad in saying this because it's probably an ageist thing, but I don't know if you know Tom Hardy, the actor, Tom Hardy. Oh yeah. Yeah. So he's probably a younger version cause Tom in the not was I've written. He's in his mid thirties, whereas Tom Hardy, obviously a fantastic actor. Um, if you can imagine a younger Tom Hardy in, in sort of mid thirties,

[00:10:46] that's the kind of vision that I'd, I'd, I'd imagine playing, playing the character. It's a good leading man. Every great story has a turning point or as the show is called plot twist. What was your biggest plot twist? I can't really say I've got a huge plot twist. I mean, um, my, obviously my background, I spent a few years in the army, um, did operational tours. Um, I spent time in Iraq during 2004. Um,

[00:11:15] then went on to Kosovo and Bosnia afterwards. And when I was leaving the army, I wanted to pursue, um, health and fitness. So I ended up becoming a personal trainer, qualified in spa, sports massage therapy, et cetera. And now I suppose, I don't know if you'd even call this a plot twist. I don't know if I went off on a tangent, but, um, me, me and my wife met, um, in the gym. Funny enough, she was the studio coordinator, the studio manager. I was the gym manager, at the time. Um,

[00:11:43] we decided we wanted to obviously start a family and get married. Um, I'm not sure what it's like, uh, out in the States, but over here, the, uh, health and fitness industry, isn't the best in terms of financial reward for, for the work you do. Um, so I ended up going into the automotive industry in the UK in order to try and effectively make a bit more money. Um, and yeah, so long story short, I've, I've been in the automotive industry for quite a while now doing different job roles,

[00:12:12] starting off as a sales executive and becoming a business manager, which is a finance manager, effectively currently now a sales manager. I don't know if you can empathize with this, but it's, it's long hours. It's very stressful. And it's, it's one of those where I, as I mentioned earlier, I have escapism when I go to bed because I have a bit of a, a read. Um, but yeah, the, the writing part of it was again, pure escapism. It's, it's different. Again, it's difficult to find the time,

[00:12:42] especially when you do a full time job and try to be daddy and husband as well to a family. Um, but yeah, that the plot twist for me was somehow, and, and I speak to friends and family now and they, they still can't really quite believe what I've done in the, in the small amount of bite sized chunks of time that I have outside of, of that. Um, to be able to create, um, the, the, the two, the two books that I've had published so far and fingers crossed. I can, I'd love,

[00:13:11] my aim is to hopefully obviously keep continuing the series and write book number three as soon as possible. Um, but it, I'm not going to lie. It's challenging. It's very, very challenging. It is. It is a hard industry to be in, but it is therapeutic. I find my writing therapeutic, even though it's all fantasy. It's still, you know, like you said, it's an escapism. Yeah. Yeah. It's, uh, it's, it's one of those where, yeah, the, the date, I suppose, I, I'm not sure about yourself in terms of the driving forces of why you write.

[00:13:40] I know that during the hard part of my life that a lot of people do yoga, a lot of people do meditation. And in all honesty, I've started taking up those kinds of things as well to the side. My, my wife is, is a, is a big yoga fan and instructor. Um, but it's, it's, it's that escapism from the, the real world and the stresses and the, and it's, I just, even if one person reads one of my novels and gets completely entertained and forgets about their issues and their problems, that, that, that's enough for me in all honesty.

[00:14:11] So, where can the listeners find you? Uh, in terms of social media or in terms of the books, social media. I, I was very active when we, when, when, when Lies After the Death was being published and at the time, I was very active on, uh, Twitter, which is now obviously X. Um, and I, I am on Instagram and I am on Facebook. Um, again, I'm one of the, I'm very brutally honest. I, I struggle to keep going into those realms, if that makes sense. Um,

[00:14:42] I, I am planning on going back in and being a bit more proactive in it. Um, but I, whereas for instance, when I was coming up to Lies After being published and trying to promote it, et cetera, I was on there multiple times. Every single day. Um, I, I'm struggling to find the time at the minute. Um, and I've taken a little bit of a break from social media. Um, but I am planning to, to go back in and being a bit more proactive. And this, this, the one thing I have to say out of all the different platforms, there was, uh,

[00:15:12] particularly on X, which obviously was Twitter at the time. Um, there's a really good, um, I can't remember what they named it, but a very good book, Twitter community. Um, and it's very supportive. And there was some fantastic people that I met through that, that helped support me and, and, and get me going and, and, and engage with me, especially, uh, after the publication of, of Lies After that. So yeah, I am planning on getting back into it. Awesome.

[00:15:42] Well, thank you for joining me and I will make sure that the books are linked in the show notes, but thank you again. Thank you very much. Appreciate you having me. Okay. Thank you.