Zoë Beck is one of the most successful crime writers in Germany. In 2022 she was named Bookwoman of the Year. In her novels she often paints a bleak picture of the future. She takes up modern and current topics and packs them with a good portion of social criticism. “The crime novel is a very good genre for expressing oneself in socio-political terms,” she says in an interview with “Die Boss” host Simone Menne. In her most recently published book “Paradise City”, the 48-year-old creates an incredibly credible scenario of a Europe in 100 years, in which surveillance and climate catastrophes rule – and a pandemic breaks out. Beck thus demonstrates a keen sense of reality, because of the plot she had already developed this story two years before the outbreak of the corona pandemic.
Despite all her success, Beck remains very self-critical. “I’ve now written my 20th book and every time I sit there and think, I can’t do it. I think that’s also a typical woman’s thing,” says the author. She could have become an excellent pianist, too “She started playing the piano at the age of three and won several awards. However, she then decided to study German and English literature. She then worked as an editor, screenwriter and television producer until she took off as an author. Meanwhile, she no longer only writes books , but founded the publishing house “CulturBooks” with a friend and works as a dubbing director for streaming services such as Netflix and Disney. “I think it’s great to familiarize myself with something new,” she says of herself.
She only wants to stay true to her genre, the crime thriller. “I’ve tried love stories with a lot of pain – and they even sold. But I suffered a lot writing such happy, optimistic, free from the cares of this world stories because I just don’t care. I watch I don’t watch it on TV, I don’t read it either. I think others can do it much better,” she says on “Die Boss”. The author also strikes a very thoughtful tone. Beck has been suffering from depression for years and has to take pills. With “Depression. 100 pages” she has dedicated a non-fiction book to the subject, in which she gets to the bottom of the causes, effects and consequences of the disease and gives tips on how to deal with those affected.
In an interview with Simone Menne, the author gives a deep insight into her work. In this episode of “Die Boss” you can find out how Zoë Beck develops the plots for her successful crime novels, whether she also uses artificial intelligence and why she calls for a quota for women in literary criticism.
At “The Boss – Power is Female” top women speak among themselves: hostess and multi-supervisory board member Simone Menne (including BMW, Deutsche Post DHL, Henkel) meets female bosses from all areas of society to talk to them about their lives and careers. “Die Boss” appears fortnightly on Wednesdays on stern.de and the stern YouTube channel as well as on Audio Now and all common podcast platforms.
