A few years ago I vowed to never read a novel by anyone under forty. But that was a stop-gap. In the last few years I’ve hardly read any novels at all.
It seems apparent that mystery lovers and true crime fans inhabit separate states. Fiction has zero appeal to most of us on this side of the border. Why study crimes that are the products of an author’s comparatively very limited imagination when true crime books offer so many mind-boggling permutations of a knife – a purse – a dark lane?
Alas, some authors cross the boundary and are trapped between genres like travelers stranded at the airport. Based on a true story is an appealing line on a fiction cover. If the book is billed as “true crime,” that phrase ought not appear anywhere inside or out. That plane won’t fly.
I feel so terrible saying this to someone who has put forth the effort to write an entire book, especially once they’ve published their “true crime novel.” I fear these titles have no audience. At least not in the true crime department. They are impossible for this true crime reviewer to review. I don't know what to say!
Sometimes I accept books for review – I’m flattered to be offered far more than I could read (and wouldn't I love to pass some of these kind book offers along to others interested in posting reviews!) – only to discover that some of them are fictionalized accounts, not what I was expecting.
Now what? I puzzle over these books. I wonder what the author was thinking. Who was the intended audience?
I feel terrible telling authors that they’ve missed the mark entirely. But an account that changes the names of towns and people, that uses invented dialogue (you can always tell), that introduces speculation as fact – they go against the genre grain. Fictionalization destroys the raison d’etre of the true crime story. Fictionalization destroys your book's value as a reference. In my humble opinion, the psychological insights and emotional responses that create loyal readers in the genre cannot be gleaned from an account that is even one percent fictional. If there is one hard and fast rule in true crime, it’s got to be true.
Amen! I feel like reading anything that isn't [100%] true is a waste of time!
Posted by: Trucrym15 | February 03, 2009 at 08:37 AM
Laura, I totally agree with your comments regarding true crime vs. "based on a true crime." Nine years ago I became intrigued by a series of killings that occurred during my childhood in my hometown. I didn't understand them as a child, but after reading 50-year-old news accounts, I decided to summarize the killings in a local monthly publication. The "summary" grew to a 13-part series of articles. I heard from many people who remembered the crimes (including families of victims, attorneys, law officers, and a relative of the murderer) who offered their memories. As a result, I began additional research and am, finally, working on the first draft of my book. The facts are too compelling to use fictionalization. The story tells itself. This past month, another writer self-published a book on the same subject, claiming it's "80 to 85 percent correct." (More like 40 percent.) On the copyright page she writes that the facts are "as accurate as possible after 50 years." The book is pure fiction. She wrote it from the viewpoint of the murderer (who died in 1983) and the chief detective on the case (who died in 1974). It's full of grammatical and factual errors, anachronisms, and shows no sign it was proofread or edited. She told a local newspaper reporter that her book was true crime, reiterating it was 80 to 85 percent correct, but that she used fiction techniques, as inspired by Truman Capote. I went to her book signing and she told me she will be selling the book to "the movies." People who know how much time and effort I've put into my book, not to mention travel and hours of interviews and researching at archives and courthouses, are encouraging me to finish my book. I am blessed to have that encouragement and will do so. I hope to have it published by a reliable "old-fashioned" publisher because I can't afford to self-publish. If I can't sell it to a "real" publisher, I'll pass out copies to my friends and know I did it "the right way." I wish there was a "true crime writers" organization that addressed the issues and concerns of true crime writers, with annual conventions and perhaps local chapters. The closest I can find online is the International Crime Writers but it's still not ideal. Thanks for letting me vent. You have a wonderful website, and your book was great. I hope you write more books.
Posted by: Peggy K. Newton | May 22, 2010 at 11:30 AM