Q:Is writing non-fiction crime a cathartic act for you? Do you think the audience gets anything out of it other than a Detectives Magazine thrill of seeing the crime/accident scene? Anotherwords are books like this helpful in any respect beyond all the rest of us rubbernecking at these terrible incidents? A: While it is undeniable that car wreck gawking exists with a small element of true crime readers, the overwhelming majority come for these books for a multitude of reasons. You have the ultimate Good vs. Evil tale, tragic victims and sometimes even tragic perpetrators, police procedurals, trial machinations, and the quest for truth and justice. Not to mention the examination of those we call "evil," how they became that way, and hopefully, what we can learn from studying these depraved individuals. For me personally, I have several outlets for cathartic release including writing true crime, reading horror novels, watching underground horror films, listening to heavy metal music, and changing my daughter's incredibly messy diapers. For many of the readers of true crime, these books, such as my newest release Pure Murder, are used as a tool. You can learn several ways to protect yourself, the types of individuals to be leery of when out at night or walking alone by yourself, or just some basic tenets of self-preservation. I have received numerous letters and e-mails from readers thanking me for opening their eyes to the potential dangers that lurk outside, but also thanking me for showing them that you cannot live in a constant state of fear. That you need to live your life to the fullest extent, but just be smart. Q: Since not one crime has ever been correctly linked to anything like a Satanic cult why do you feel that keeps popping up? A: Roman Polanski! It's his fault. Rosemary's Baby scared the tar out of an entire generation. On a serious note, the whole Matamoros killings did not help matters back in 1989. I was attending the University of Texas at the time when one of my fellow students, Mark Kilroy, went missing. Turned out he had been kidnapped and sacrificed by a Mexican drug dealer, Adolpho Constanzo, who wanted to scare the hell out of rival dealers, the police, and to provide protection for his illicit activities. He did it by killing Kilroy and twelve others and draping the murders in the trappings of Santeria and palo mayombe. This gave it a rather sinister air of weird religiosity, but in reality, it was more the workings of an unhinged mind who used everything in the book to keep up his drug trade. Of course, the cops and the press ate up the Satanic angle and ran with it endlessly. Good way to scare the citizenry and sell newspapers. Q: Since there has never been a psychic that has revealed any facts that weren't generalized or that actually helped a detective force solve a case in any way (despite their lame claims) why do you feel that sort of phony crap still has people who pay attention to it? A: People want answers and are willing to go to any lengths no matter how implausible, inconceivable, or ridiculous they may be. A good friend of mine (and patron of Dark Delicacies), the late true crime author/astrologer wrote a book called Zodiac of Death that attempted to assign common traits amongst killers who shared zodiac signs. I did not believe in astrology, however, my knowledge of the field was practically non-existent so I kept my skepticism to myself. After reading Dana's book and going over several of the charts and readings she had conducted on numerous serial killers whom she corresponded with, I began to understand where she was coming from. She explained to me that people once scoffed at the concept of fingerprints. In other words, anything is possible and everything should be used as a tool to find the bad guys out there regardless of how silly or seemingly worthless it may be. I guess the same mentality holds true with psychics who claim they can locate dead bodies or find the killers. You never know when they might actually be right. They can't be any worse than those so-called "profilers" that hog up the media spotlight with their inanities. NOTE FROM COREY: My first ever book-signing, for my first book, Hollywood Death Scenes, took place in the incomparable Dark Delicacies. I will always be grateful to Del and Sue for welcoming a true crime guy into their incredible horror bookstore. Plus, I had the added bonus of having Daniel Roebuck, who played the killer John in River's Edge (one of my favorite movies of all time), attend my signing. As an added note, everyone should visit Del and Sue at Dark Delicacies. It is, by far, the coolest bookstore on the planet and they are the greatest bookstore owners ever. I rue the day I moved from Los Angeles. I have not had a Dark Delicacies fix in nearly five years and the effects are painfully etched on my face. All hail Dark Delicacies! Corey Mitchell