MATTI JOENSUU

We hear that as well as being a writer, you work in the police force, in your experience is the truth stranger than fiction?

Yes. Real-life events are often so incredible that they wouldn't seem believable in a novel.

Do you have any rituals/habits or things you need by your side while you are writing? (coffee, vodka, etc.)

Before sitting down to write I have to find a suitable, small object, like a pebble, that I keep in my pocket and hold from time to time.

What kind of feedback do you get from your work colleagues?

Feedback has generally been very positive. Of course, sometimes colleagues try to suggest what topics I ought to write about next.

There is a boy in your novel 'The Priest of Evil' also called Matti. How much, if any, is he based on yourself as a boy?

Matti's small objects and the idea of 'composing and flying' are borrowed from my own experience.

Do you know the outcome of a novel when you begin or does it evolve through the writing?

I've never yet written an ending that I hadn't planned beforehand in some way. The real ending only becomes clear about half way through the writing process.

Because of your police work did you ever consider writing under a pseudonym?

No. As a policeman I am Matti Joensuu, as I writer Matti Yrjänä Joensuu.

We can't imagine many serial killer priests running around Finland, how did you come up with the idea?

The character stems from the current state of the world; people who believe that their creed alone is right and who are prepared to do anything to achieve their own ends.

What's the connection between crime and cold weather?

In the police force here we have a saying: "Sub-zero weather is by far the best policeman."

Are you motivated by plot or by character?

They are both important; they go hand in hand.

What could get you arrested?

By committing a crime for which the minimum penalty is one year's imprisonment.

How does it feel to be shortlisted for the 2006 Glass Key Award?

It feels marvellous. If only I could find the glass lock to go with it...

When can we be expecting the next book and is there a place for characters called Joe & Megan?

The next novel should be ready soon. Of course there will be room for Joe and Megan - as long as they come to Helsinki! (We're on our way! - J&M)