Life Stories( Cont’ d) Unit, so I had my hand directly in a number of cases around the country. That was valuable experience to say the least.
Nearly thirty years in law enforcement was finally enough fun for me. I’ d always wanted to use my degrees and experience to teach. I was hired as a full-time instructor at a small community college here in Colorado not long after I retired. A few years later, Pikes Peak Community College in Colorado Springs offered me a position as Criminal Justice Department Chair and Associate Professor. In a lot of ways, that was the best job I ever had!
During my thirteen years there I‘ invented’ the first class in profiling in the history of Colorado colleges. They’ re still using my curriculum in colleges where they’ re teaching it. Not many colleges are, because it’ s not like a former patrolman can go from the street to teaching a class about how to profile a case. That’ s one class where you definitely need the experience to back you up.
For a kid who grew up in a lower-middle income home and quit high school, I guess I’ d have to say I acquitted myself pretty well. Some have called my life colorful, and indeed it was. Had I not been so bored in high school and applied myself, I suppose I could have been a doctor or lawyer, or some other high-level position. However, I think when people find out what I did with my life, particularly having been in the FBI, they’ re probably more impressed with that. It’ s a job with more than its share of mystique. People have all sorts of pre-conceived ideas from TV, but none of that is close to accurate. As I look back, I think I did all right in the final analysis.
I’ m now writing a college textbook on“ Criminal Profiling although I don’ t have the exact title yet. Because of the way I am, it will be anything but a‘ traditional’ college text. It’ s going to be something more interesting and challenging than the garden-variety texts we all read in college. I’ ll write it exactly the way I did my classes— give them the theory, then a case study and have them apply the theory in trying to profile the case. I also think many members of the public will enjoy it.
I write like I am – silly and irreverent. I see humor in most situations, but I’ m not stupid about it.“ FBI Diary: Home Grown Terror” is the first of my three books that is more serious than silly.
The first two cop-related books I recall reading were“ The New Centurions,” and“ The Onion Field,” both by Joseph Wambaugh who had been a sergeant on LAPD. After I read‘ em I remember thinking to myself, I can do that. The idea was fomented in my middle twenties, but I had to go through a whole lot of career stuff and work as a college professor before I finally got published. The wait was worth it.
My advice to new authors is – write like you are. Don’ t try to copy someone else’ s writing style— it won’ t work, and besides your style may be better than theirs. Be yourself. Things will flow a whole lot better then. I’ m on Facebook as Pete Klismet and“ Pete Klismet Author FBI Series of Books.” Stop by and say hello!
WRITERS’ TRICKS OF THE TRADE
PAGE 7
MAY- JUNE 2016