Clayton McBride is an Australian crime writer, director, artist and illustrator and has a Bachelor of Arts degree in Screen Production. Born in Darlinghurst and raised in Sydney, Clayton’s fascination with the criminal underworld began in his youth.

"My dad would drive us through Kings Cross on a Friday night, coming back from my nan's in Chatswood. All Sydneysiders know of the mythology of Kings Cross, but I actually saw it as a 10-year-old boy in the early 2000s, and I was captivated by it. As soon as I was allowed out of the house, I was going up there to people watch."

Clayton's first written works were short existential plays for the theatre and then comedies for cinema. He was interested in the arts from an early age, having a long affiliation with the creative arts, painting and drawing as soon as possible and was making films and acting through school.

"My father was a musician, still is, and my mother was an actress, both are qualified art teachers, and all of that shaped me into the person I am now. My mother taught me the technical aspects of being an artist, and my father's genetics did eventually lead me to music, not to an instrument, but I love music. I am my parents' son, truthfully, what can I say, the artist, the actor, the sometimes rapper, but mainly the storyteller, culture maker, to me, the arts holding up that mirror to reality, in all its glory, beauty and hideous nature"

Clayton's original writing focused heavily on existentialism, with society and people being the heart of his work. His comedy, on the other hand, was quite the opposite and pushed the boundaries of what was acceptable and what was perhaps going too far.

"Writing novels was actually my final literature progression. I got over writing scripts for a team to interpret, but I wrote those for years. I mainly stopped because I spent years trying to get my works made, but neither of us nor anyone would see the vision I had, or they just didn't want to touch what I was writing. I think you deal with a lot of discrimination in the Australian art world as a straight white male. It's pretty much implied our kind had our time, and now we need to sit back and shut up. Scripts require so much work post-mortem, lack so much detail that I loved so I think novels were the final progression"

Clayton’s immersion in the city’s underbelly took its first escalation during his university years when he started filming music videos for Sydney rappers. This association led to the YouTube series in 2019 called Behind the Music. This series is known more for its introduction of social media influencer Spanian. His work exposed him to a raw, chaotic world far removed from conventional life and in these hidden environments, he was exposed to those living on the margins, their stories, psychology, and the invisible forces that shaped them.

"Spanian was pretty much the green light I needed to deep dive into my fascination, and without question, it opened a lot of doors that are shut for most. It was a pivotal moment, until then I'd just hung out with rappers, after Spanian I stepped into that world properly. What I witnessed was the tragic nature of this world, the live fast die young mentality, the intensity of loyalty and betrayal, rebellion and the extreme, and it all seemed to revolve around these complex cycles of trauma that echoed across generations. The longer I was there, the more I wanted to help and the more I felt I couldn't. It was quite a process to get myself out; it's an all-consuming world."

Clayton’s writing is defined by a forensic psychological detail, unflinching authenticity, and richly developed characters who exist far beyond crime fiction clichés; most are actually plucked from the underbelly of Australia with new names. Through obsession and a search for the truth, Clayton has put himself into a different lane as an authentic Australian crime writer exploring intergenerational trauma, fractured mateship, and the dark psychology of crime.

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