Benjamin Bradley
What He Left Behind
In this town, everyone has a secret they’d kill to keep.
The Writer’s Dossier 4/29/2025 – The Benjamin Bradley interview
DOSSIER: You wrote a story when you were eight titled, Mr. Frog Goes to Jail. Each of the following three questions increase in terms of importance. Do you still have a copy? What did the frog do to end up in the slammer? Why do you hate frogs so much, Ben?
BRADLEY: I absolutely still have a copy! My mom likes to dust it off whenever I visit and it’s a ribbit-ing read (sorry, can’t help myself.) The frog actually was part of a huge government conspiracy. Really got himself in hot water. I plead the fifth on my backstory with frogs, that story is best toad another time.
The “men writing women” trap
DOSSIER: Your new novel, What He Left Behind from CamCat Books stars Detective Grace Bingham who’s investigating the death of a Jane Doe in a small town. She’s forced to work with an ex, Jacob Sawyer. In creating an authentic point-of-view perspective, how was the process of writing a female protagonist and a female victim? You can be honest here, you’re the Sawyer hero who comes back to save the day, right?
BRADLEY: Love this question. I really wanted to make the POV as authentic as possible and in doing so didn’t want the male/female element to cloud the voice. I actually wrote the first draft without any clear direction on what gender the MC would be, hoping to greatly avoid the “men writing women” trap. I really enjoyed getting feedback from sensitivity readers and female beta readers on what could be cleaned up
My hope in writing Sawyer & Grace reuniting was to put into conflict the perspectives of two types of people. One that left home once they hit adulthood and one that never left. It begged the question how their views of the world (and their hometown) might contrast, particularly while working a case. I think there are elements of me in Sawyer in that I left my hometown after high school, but I still visit from time to time!
Working and writing
DOSSIER: Where and when do you like to write? Are you hanging out somewhere cool in downtown Raleigh? Being from Jersey, are you listening to “The Boss” like fellow Dossier member Gregg Podolski?
BRADLEY: I’m a writer on top of a full-time job I love, so it’s all a balancing act. I write in the mornings or late at night, whenever I have enough time to spare. My favorite spots to hang in Raleigh are definitely on the miles of incredible trails and greenways here, especially in Umstead State Park. A few years ago, I started running ultramarathons and there’s a great crew of like-minded folks in Raleigh, so it’s a blast. It’s also the perfect way to pluck character names from people I know!
You can’t grow up in Jersey and walk away without a strong, relentless affinity for The Boss. Thunder Road has long been my favorite example of well-crafted lyrics — there’s SUCH a story there. I’ve recently become a father and one of my favorite things so far has been playing old Bruce records (among other artists) that I grew up on, just to complete the circle. Nostalgia’s a special kind of drug.
Traveling with AmeriCorps
DOSSIER: You’ve done a lot of travel including work with AmeriCorps. What kind of shenanigans did you find yourself in that helped you come up with good writing ideas? Anything you can share without naming names? (Go ahead, Benjamin … name names!)
BRADLEY: I’ve been SO fortunate over the years to do a lot of travel for work, both in AmeriCorps and in my nonprofit work internationally. Everything has threads in what I write too. I’ve spent time 46 states and months in South America and Asia, so there’s been some incredible people watching. However, the gig that brought me the most shenanigans and writing ideas was my first job ever: managing an Enterprise Rent-A-Car at Newark Airport. Let’s just say the cast of characters (both staff and the renters) provide a great mix of personalities. Something I haven’t been able to work into a story yet, but hope to is around 2AM one night, a father of two returned a rental car that was beat to hell and when the rental agent called him on hit, he put the guy in a chokehold. That was a wild time — trying to talk down this angry middle-aged man while also trying to talk down my employee who wanted to wring his neck. Ah, to be 22 again!
Shout out to Dossier writers
DOSSIER: Do you have any breaking news or special announcement you’d like to disclose in your Dossier?
BRADLEY: I’m just continually floored by the writing community, particularly the crime fiction/mystery writers in the mix. There’s an incredible sense of generosity across the board that’s such a bright spot in a rather dark timeline. I’d also like to shout out fellow Dossier members Scott Blackburn and Christopher Swann (among others) for being super supportive and friendly to a newer author. My philosophy lately has been that when the world is dark, focus on the small communities to find meaning & service — and The Dossier & the writing community at large are such prime examples of that.
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