Even More True Crime on Cable The network TNT is delving into true crime with an original program it will call Shadow of a Doubt in an effort to feed the insatiable appetite for crime TV. Variety has some details.
A True Crime Comic Book? Sure. According to the publisher, which is giving away its most popular titles for free, its true crime comic is "a hit with critics and readers alike." Actually true crime comics are nothing new. Harold Schechter included the cover art from a true crime comic printed six or seven decades ago in his Savage Pastimes: A Cultural History of Violent Entertainment
The Dollhouse Murders Rumor has it that John Waters is going to narrate a film about the famous forensic dollhouses. Decades ago, dollhouses were used to teach scientific techniques to homicide detectives. They're still used today. Now these odd old objects are getting another hard look. I can only imagine what John will have to say, bless his sick sense of humor, and I'm already hiding my mouth.... Meanwhile, the film's producer has a blog devoted to the project, from which comes the picture above, a scene of slaughter in miniature.
How Canada Failed to Stop a Pedophile Mike McIntyre is one of Canada's most high-profile true crime authors. He's working on a new one - Devil Among Us: How Canada Failed To Stop Pedophile Peter Whitmore. It comes out this fall.
The Latest Member of the Edmund L. Pearson Club is Mary. She took my suggestion to give the dead genius a chance. She remarks: "Just a few stories in, and I already feel like I'm having fireside chats with a very dear, very morbid old friend."
Too Many Victims, Not Enough Justice When writing about a serial killer, true crime authors face a dilemma. It can be difficult to get a grasp on such a story when there are many victims. While reading Ann Rule's Green River, Running Red, the story of a man who killed nearly fifty prostitutes, I went blurry-eyed for more reasons than one. It was a very difficult read because of the sheer number of victims, their pitiful lives and awful deaths.
Recently I came across an essay about The Daughters of Juarez: A True Story of Serial Murder South of the Border (B&N)
While Rodriguez is able to discuss numerous personal details, including descriptions of specific victims and their families, her account isn’t grounded in any one place. She bounces from family to family, organization to organization, official to official, murder case to murder case. Her details are exhaustive, and sometimes exhausting. One problem is the fact that she is continually telling this story from multiple places, vantage points, and moments in time.... Rodriguez, in her attempt to cover everything, loses the concrete and intimate details.... In covering so many different people at such a rapid pace, her descriptions and portraits of her subjects lack life.... The book has numerous opportunities to establish a focal point for the narrative, as well as for the position of the author, but it never happens....
It seems to go against the grain to offer a serial killer story without delving into the background of each and every victim in great detail. But, remembering my reaction to Green River, I thought the piece made an interesting point.
Thank you for creating this site. I love true crime. If you or your readers ever need a great non-fiction public relations person, have them contact me at lyndao@oconnorpr.com. Many publishers don't give authors the attention they deserve. My husband is a writer and I know how difficult it is to make the world aware of your book. We represent 12 authors and we do a great job for them. We have been asked to speak on "How to Promote Your Book" at the James River Writers conference in the Fall.
I will frequently check this site because it has so much valuable information on it.
Lynda O'Connor, O'Connor Communications, Lake Forest, IL 847-615-5462.
Posted by: Lynda O'Connor | March 09, 2008 at 02:21 PM
If you want to see more great photos of Frances Glessner Lee's work (she's the woman who created the dollhouses in the first place), I can't recommend The Nutshell Studies of Unexplained Death by Connie Botz highly enough.
kath
Posted by: kath | March 12, 2008 at 12:10 AM