Bangkok and Pattaya Crime - A Smorgasbord of Ideas for the Writer

Another Drug Bust (courtesy Pattaya Daily News)

It was most humbling for my flash fiction piece Raid on Soi 5 to get accepted at the Flash Fiction Offensive, especially since there is always a lot of kickass stories on the site. It's a tale of a drug deal gone bad amidst the sleazy underbelly of Bangkok's Sukhumvit Road (where I work). The only reason I can fathom that my story was up to par is because there is no shortage of fodder for the crime/thriller author in Bangkok and Pattaya. There's a steady stream of news about ladyboys robbing short-timers, massive drug busts, and even crazies pulling a gun at one of the Embassies. Writer's block for crime writers is virtually impossible if you live in this maelstrom, just ask Jake Needham.

Here's a wild story descibed in the The Nation that happened recently down in Pattaya:

A former Syrian Army commando has been arrested in connection with the murder of Charles Edmund Jones, late president of the World Croquet Federation, in Jones's rented condominium in Chon Buri's Jomtien area on Monday night.

The New Zealander's body was discovered in the condominium with multiple stab wounds on Tuesday.
Provincial Police Region 2 chief Lt-General Thangai Prasajaksatru and Pattaya Police superintendent Col Nanthawut Suwanla-ong yesterday presented the suspect, 21-year-old Mohamad Shanar Ryad, at a press conference along with the victim's notebook, cell phones and wristwatch, which were reportedly stolen, as well as a pocket knife they alleged was the murder weapon.


Ryad reportedly told police he met Jones on August 19 in South Pattaya. He said Jones invited him to smoke marijuana with him in his room and paid him Bt400 to perform oral sex on him. Ryad claimed that on Monday night, Jones invited him to his room again, but the pair got into an argument, during which Jones pulled a knife on him and attempted to sexually assault him. According to police, Ryad admitted to using his pocket knife to stab the victim about 20 times before fleeing with Jones's valuables and hiding at the room of Ryad's Thai girlfriend in Soi Chalermphrakiat 19.

How can you not write a story about this? It would probably be difficult to keep it under 1,000 words. This was the same week that MP Chuvit exposed an alleged police-run illegal casino here in Bangkok. I might be a bit timid to write about the casino caper for fear of getting whacked by the poo yai of the place. Nevertheless, you can always adjust the names and locations to protect the guilty.

The excellent author Christopher Moore argued that Thailand may have a reputation for international fugitives, but it may be unjustified. However, the longer I stay here, the crazier things seem to get.

Bangkok and Pattaya Crime - A Smorgasbord of Ideas for the Writer

America Goes On: A Novella - Now on Sale for $0.99

After some thorough editing and formatting, I finally released my debut novella: America Goes On. You can pick up a copy for just $0.99 at the Amazon Kindle store, at Barnes & Noble NOOK, or at Smashwords. All proceeds go toward the Kotchakorn Monica Salvette foundation, at least until she's old enough to get a job and start taking care of me and the wife.

I came up with the idea for this novella when I saw a Marine looking down as he smoked in a plywood shack at Ali Al Salem Air Base, Kuwait, back in June 2007. This base is a logistics hub for military and civilian personnel traveling into and out of Iraq and Afghanistan. A lot of people and a lot of stories come through this purgatory in the desert. Everyone talks to each other in this environment, since there’s nothing to do but wait for your trip into the combat zone or flight back home. And then I thought about how many I’ve seen go through this hub but never make it back.

I actually wrote this story in 2008 just before I finished my time as a lieutenant in the Navy. A year earlier I was a staff weenie in the International Zone under the Individual Augmentee program. It was a good experience for me, and I was fortunate enough to come away from the sandbox with all my fingers and toes. I have tremendous respect for the troops who’re patrolling outside the wire day in day out. It’s a very stressful environment where something bad and unexpected can happen 24/7.

When I got back from Iraq, like most veterans, I was disappointed that no one seemed to care about the young men and women who never came home. We’re creating a separate class of servicemen in America where the concept of civic duty is now a joke. I hope our politicians will think more rationally before sending off a small percentage of Americans to fight a long-term war on the entire nation‘s behalf. Even the New York Times has taken notice that there is too much a separation between the military and the civilian world

The reason I took so long to publish this novella is because I wrote it just for myself and a few friends. They gave me nice feedback, but it didn’t blow them away. Then, however, came the self-publishing revolution of 2011, and my wife was pregnant with our daughter. Seeing how a few extra bucks (or baht in my case) could go a long way, I decided to throw my hat into the ring.

I dug up the manuscript on my computer and re-read it. The grammar was awful, the dialogue was stilted, and the story didn’t make sense. Using the powers of editing, both mine and my brother’s, we polished the manuscript into the version before you today. I hope that you enjoy it.

Here's the blurb:

A young veteran of the Iraq war drives across America while struggling to find his place in the country he just defended. Confronted with complacent attitudes and narrow minds, he realizes his fellow citizens don’t even understand America is at war, let alone respect his sacrifice. At least he has his fellow Marines from his second tour of duty, along with a mysterious girl who is waiting for him on the East Coast. Or so he thinks. Travel with this veteran through the barren desert of California all the way to New York City as he learns about modern America, as well as himself.

America Goes On is a 15,000-word (~65-page) novella about the 21st century reality of war in America.

America Goes On: A Novella - Now on Sale for $0.99

A Daughter's Inquiry is up at Every Day Fiction

So in my thirty years, I've learned that life is a series of events determined by dumb luck. That's why I was happy to hear I got lucky and the kind folks over at Every Day Fiction published my flash fiction piece - A Daughter's Inquiry. It explores hypocrisy and moral superiority in Thailand in about 400 words.

The comments were pretty kind and provided a lot of very helpful feedback, primarily that I need to write flash fiction that is more like a story and less like a snippet. However, the ratings dragged me over the coals (2.3/5), so I guess there's some room for improvement. Just have to keep trying. Tomorrow, I'm going to accept the always hilarious Chuck Wendig challenge, and I'll have a flash fiction piece on an unconventional apocalypse.

A Daughter's Inquiry is up at Every Day Fiction

Good Girl at New Asian Writing - A Short Story about a Royal Thai Police Officer

The good folks at New Asian Writing have published my 3,200-word short story "Good Girl". The story is about a police officer in Bangkok trying to save face with his friends and neighbors by dealing with his drug-addicted girl friend. It focuses on the concept that people try to ignore or take the easy way out of problems in their own community because they see it as "the polite" thing to do.It is actually based on some true events that I witnessed at the apartments I used to live at, whereby a police officer's girlfriend would run amok through the building while he was off doing his job. I'm not trying to get up on my high horse and say "Thai people ignore domestic abuse", because I did nothing to stop it either.

The protagonist, Pon, is a fictional character obviously, but he is part of a real police division in the Bangkok Metropolitan Police - Thong Lor Station. Sure, I've heard all the rumors about corruption on the force, but if I only made about 10,000 THB ($300) per month and I had to pay for my own gun and uniform, I might find some ways to make ends meet too. I try to play on this moral ambiguity by having the people involved in obvious criminal activity seem like nice guys.

Thailand's strange because everyone knows there is problems, but people try to sweep them under the rug or politely play down the severity of the issue. Why else would the Thai military hold a press conference to say that there would not be a coup?

I hope you enjoy the story, and hit me up with some feedback. Thanks to my little brother, Ben, for editing.

New Asian Writing - "Good Girl" - by Paul Salvette

Good Girl at New Asian Writing - A Short Story about a Royal Thai Police Officer

First Submission Gets Accepted - The Curfew

Many thanks to Matt over at Thriller Killers n' Chillers for thinking that my 1,100 word story "The Curfew" was good enough to post on the site. Sure it wasn't a paid gig, but it's a good start.

The story I wrote is about Thai teenagers running amok after a curfew is implemented in Bangkok due to political unrest. Exactly one year ago, the military cracked down on the Red Shirts protesting in Rajaprasong (about 1 mile from where I work), much havoc ensued, and a curfew was put in effect for about a week. It was big international news last year, so no point on dwelling on the specifics. The government seized control of all the TV stations, and I recall there was just the Prime Minister and the military talking at these press conferences and looking very disheveled. It was sort of like the opening scene of Dawn of the Dead, and it was very bizarre. Also that night, some young punks threw a rock and busted a huge glass pane window at our internet shot which set us back 10,000THB (300 bucks) to replace. That was sort of the inspiration for the story.

Check it out here, and I'll add to the tabs on top if you prefer PDFs.

First Submission Gets Accepted - The Curfew