Those Who Shall Be Inspired
- Michael Bradley
- 53 minutes ago
- 2 min read
The inevitable question that every writer is asked before the release of a new book is, "where do you get your ideas from?"
The spark for THOSE WHO SHALL DIE was born several years ago over dinner at ThrillerFest, the annual conference hosted by International Thriller Writers. Like so many great thriller ideas, it began with a dark joke and a table full of people who understood exactly where that joke could lead. During that meal, horror writer C.A. Schulden and I started talking about how funny it would be if there were an actual murder at the conference. Surrounded by crime writers, suspense novelists, and thriller obsessives, the scene practically wrote itself. Instead of panic, we imagined a room full of authors leaning in, notebooks open, quietly taking mental notes for future books.
That image stayed with me long after dinner ended. There was something irresistibly perfect about the idea: a gathering of people who make their living imagining violence suddenly confronted with the real thing. Writers are observers by nature. We notice odd details, strange behavior, snippets of overheard conversation, and the tiny tells that reveal what someone is really thinking. Put a crime into that environment, and you don’t just have chaos—you have curiosity, suspicion, and a crowd of people uniquely equipped to turn tragedy into story. That tension became the foundation for THOSE WHO SHALL DIE.
The novel also draws on the many ThrillerFests I’ve attended over the years. Anyone who has been to the conference knows it has its own rhythm, energy, and wonderfully specific culture. Over time, I’ve collected countless anecdotes—moments of awkward humor, surprising generosity, late-night conversations, industry gossip, and the strange camaraderie that forms when writers, readers, agents, and editors are all packed into the same space. Several of those tidbits found their way into the book, helping create a world that feels vivid, authentic, and affectionately observed. So while THOSE WHO SHALL DIE is fiction, its roots are very real: one memorable dinner, one wickedly funny conversation, and years of conference memories that refused to stay on the sidelines.
THOSE WHO SHALL DIE releases on July 7th, and is available now for pre-order.