Spotlight

Curious characters

By Suwitcha Chaiyong

Amanda X brings mystery to Thailand

Unsolved mysteries always arouse curiosity and make intriguing themes for novels. Amanda X and the Detectives by 55-year-old German writer Joachim Friedrich is the latest exciting mystery book to hit Thailand.

The story features an unusual 60-year-old detective named Amanda, whose best buddy is an alien sheep that wears sunglasses.

The Amanda X series is a big hit with German readers, and it has been translated into several languages, including Thai.

MOMO MUSE

When Joachim was in his 30�s, he read the fantasy novel Momo by Michael Ende. He related strongly with the book�s mysterious Men in Grey.

�At the time, I was a consultant for Lufthansa, and I wore a grey suit,� he said. �I worked on a project to speed up the work process, and I felt bad about it � I was a Grey Man stealing time from other people.�

Joachim wanted to change his life, so he began writing a book. Even as a rookie writer, he set high goals for himself.

�I wanted my story to be published by Thienemann, the publishers of my favourite author, Michael Ende,� Joachim said. �I didn�t want to be an author for money � I just wanted to write.�

After four years of hard work and determination, Joachim saw his first book, Tillys Traumschloss (Dream Castle of Tillys), published.

UNUSUAL HEROINE

Joachim now has two popular series to his name � 4 1/2 Friends and Amanda X. The idea for Amanda X originally came from The X-Files TV series.

�The X-Files was popular in Germany, so I called my creation Amanda X as a joke,� Joachim said. �Amanda combines my two favourite characters � Mary Poppins and Miss Jane Marple from the Agatha Christie books.�

Amanda�s unusual sheep friend, Sister X, came from a more mysterious source.

�I wanted it to be a bizarre situation when the two main characters first meet Amanda,� Joachim said. �Without reason, I suddenly got an image in my head of an old lady with a sheep in sunglasses.�

GRANNY DETECTIVE

Creating an elderly heroine was risky because young readers might prefer younger characters. Joachim admitted that he initially had second thoughts about the character, but the book turned out to be a huge success.

�Young people like Amanda because she�s a cool grandma,� he said. �Some fans even started an Amanda X fan club, and lots of older people said that they like the character.�

Another thing that attracts readers to Amanda X is the natural dialogue.

�Dialogue writing is my strength,� Joachim said. �The dialogue is realistic, so readers can identify with each character.�

LOGICAL ADVICE

• Did you know •

Agatha Christie�s play The Mousetrap had the longest first run of any play in the world.

Joachim advises aspiring writers to read and write as much as possible.

�Reading a lot is the first step,� he said. �It takes a long time to become a successful author. It took me more than 10 years to make a living from writing.�

Joachim also said that detective writing requires logical thinking.

�I get annoyed when I watch a detective show on TV, and all the clues just inadvertently appear,� he said. �Everything in a detective story has to be logical, and nothing should happen by chance.�

	arouse (v): to make you feel more active and want to start doing something intriguing (adj): very interesting because of being unusual or not having an obvious answer consultant (n): a person who knows a lot about a particular subject and is employed to give advice about it rookie (n): a person who has just started a job or an activity and has very little experience mysterious (adj): difficult to understand or explain bizarre (adj): very strange or unusual elderly (adj): a polite word for old heroine (n): a girl or woman who is admired by many for doing something brave or good initially (adv): at the beginning dialogue (n): conversations in a book, play or film aspiring (adj): wanting to start the career or activity that is mentioned logical (adj): seeming natural, reasonable or sensible clue (n): an object, a piece of evidence or some information that helps the police solve a crime inadvertently (adv): happening by accident, without intending to