🎥 Inside the Mind of Power: A Conversation with Makitia Thompson
Behind the Book: Criminal Plague
"Michelle Hartmann is greed in human form."
She was one of New York’s most powerful attorneys. She freed killers, protected predators, and built an empire out of other people’s pain. In Makitia Thompson’s Criminal Plague, we meet Michelle Hartmann: a ruthless, privileged legal juggernaut whose downfall is as calculated as her rise.
But this story isn’t just about crime—it’s about the culture that creates monsters and lets them thrive.
In this exclusive Behind the Book interview, Makitia opens up about the inspiration behind Michelle, the political fire that birthed the story, and the real-life emotion she poured into some of its darkest scenes.
🧠 Q1. Michelle Hartmann is a morally twisted, dangerously brilliant woman. What drew you to write a character like her—and what part of her felt the most disturbing or honest to bring to life?
Makitia:
I wanted to write a character who had behind-the-scenes power—not someone adored for their fame or loved for their charm. Michelle Hartmann has control over the most sacred system in society: justice. She’s born into wealth and connections, so she walks into law with everything handed to her, already convinced she’s earned a win before she’s even played the game.
She was my way of examining what it means to raise someone without accountability. Honestly, writing her was also personal. I have family members who refuse to take responsibility for anything—they don’t reflect, they just deflect. Michelle became a way for me to not only confront that behaviour but show how dangerous it is when someone like that has real power.
🧠 Q2. This book doesn’t seek redemption—it leans into corruption, power, and control. Did writing from such a dark psychological space take a toll on you personally?
Makitia:
Writing the book didn’t drain me emotionally—but it did open my eyes. Michelle was a chance to explore a kind of character we often only see on television: the one who suffers no consequences.
Through her, I explored a world where privilege is currency and everyone without it has no value. It’s a world I hope I never have to live in—but I enjoyed unmasking the monsters who thrive in it. Monsters with contact books full of judges, politicians, and people who’d burn down lives to protect their own power.
🧠 Q3. You explore the justice system through Michelle’s manipulation of it. Was there a real-world influence that inspired this portrayal?
Makitia:
My inspiration wasn’t a single person or case—it was the entire political climate of the time. Every time I turned on the news, I saw political leaders causing chaos, making reckless decisions, and harming everyday citizens. And yet somehow, the story never ended with them being held accountable.
Michelle Hartmann is that leader. She did whatever she wanted for decades—kept dangerous people on the streets, made millions, and lived in luxury while others paid the price. She never expected to face consequences. But they still found her, right at the moment she was preparing to do even more damage.
🧠 Q4. Michelle helped a child killer go free—and it cost more lives. That’s a harrowing narrative choice. What made you brave enough to go there?
Makitia:
I needed Michelle to be undeniably wrong. A lot of lawyers represent guilty clients—but they usually use legal skill to defend them. Michelle didn’t even do that. She used her family’s name. She blackmailed judges, paid off jurors, and bullied victims.
Having her manipulate the system to free a child killer wasn't just shocking—it was necessary. That one act alone shows how her privilege isn’t just unfair, it’s fatal to the people she steps on.
🧠 Q5. Do you believe Michelle ever truly felt guilt—or do you think she saw herself as a necessary evil?
Makitia:
Michelle understands that what she did wasn’t right—but she doesn’t feel regret. She has guilt, yes, but it’s about getting caught. It’s about bringing shame to her family’s name.
She doesn’t see herself as evil. She sees herself as a competitor—someone who did what was needed to win. In her mind, her actions were necessary only because someone else would’ve done it anyway. So why not her?
🧠 Q6. Some readers have called this your most emotionally unflinching work. Looking back, do you see Criminal Plague as a warning, a character study, or something else entirely?
Makitia:
It’s absolutely a character study. There are enough warnings in the world—and they’ve done almost nothing. Criminal Plague is a deep dive into the mind, habits, and choices of a privileged, well-connected narcissist.
Michelle Hartmann exists to dissect the wealthy elite—people who already have too much power but still want more. She’s not an exaggeration. She’s a reflection. There are real people like her out there.
🧠 Q7. What part of writing this story made you pause the longest—or scared you the most to share?
Makitia:
I definitely paused the longest while writing Michelle’s first major criminal case. It involved serious sexual assault, and in my opinion, it was where Michelle was at her absolute worst.
She didn’t just defend the accused—she destroyed the victim. Michelle sparked a public campaign of harassment that eventually pushed the woman to take her own life. It was hard to write—not just because I wanted it to feel realistic, but because it was realistic.
Without saying too much, my own mother experienced something not identical but painfully similar. That made this scene hit even closer to home. It wasn’t just fiction anymore—it was memory.
🧠 Q8. If Michelle Hartmann sat across from you right now, what would you say to her?
Makitia:
Honestly, I wouldn’t even know where to begin. I imagine it would become an argument pretty quickly, because Michelle truly believes she’s right.
But I’d have to ask her: why have all your choices hurt the people who were already struggling? Why target the under-serviced, the less fortunate, the ones without the connections to fight back? I’d want to know why she needed to win so badly—why was losing so unbearable?
Of course, I know the answers. She’s my character. But if she were real, I’d sit across from her and try to understand her greed, her manipulation—her emptiness.
🧠 Q9. What do you want readers to walk away feeling after reading Criminal Plague—and why did you think this story needed to be told now?
Makitia:
I want readers to walk away feeling like they’ve just stepped into the mind of an empty person—someone who fills themselves by draining everyone around them.
This story is about power—too much of it. Michelle Hartmann is the embodiment of advanced narcissism, unlimited resources, and an upbringing where emotion was seen as weakness. She’s not just greedy—she is greed in human form.
Criminal Plague needed to be told because we don’t talk enough about the people who exist like this in real life. People who will step on anyone if it helps them stay on top. This book takes you straight into that world—and then hands you Michelle Hartmann, a woman who will do anything to keep her crown.
🛑 Ready to Dive Deeper?
This is just a glimpse into the chilling mind of Michelle Hartmann.
Read the full story in Criminal Plague—available now on Amazon.
→https://a.co/d/aJ3OlCq
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