The Mexicutioner aka "Muerte Liquida" developed as a matter of pure inspiration as I wrote the manuscript. He was never in the outline, but I required a character such as this to begin the book. Originally I thought Liquida would merely be a minor character. The reader would see him once and not again. But as I wrote he developed a personality and a reputation that became increasingly rich and multi-faceted. I couldn't let him go. He is a dark character but he drives the story and has become a continuing character. It's as if you have a character who appears in a story, they apply for a job, sometimes the interview goes so well that they get a permanent job. What's really nice is you don't have to pay them, there's no unemployment tax if you fire them (or worse kill them) and there is no health insurance.
This sometimes happens in my stories where one time inventions in the form of characters suddenly grow and become fixtures. Herman Diggs, Paul's private investigator entered the series in this way.
Steve Martini
