The Dry: Writing Crime Fiction

"The crime genre can be a wonderful playground for writers, where they get to push boundaries, explore human nature, play with reader expectations, and find inventive ways to create suspense. But with so many possibilities, and so many thrilling stories, what are the elements of crime fiction that can make your novel stand out from the crowd and grip readers and publishers alike? ... "

"From the crime scene to the clues to the culprit, a great mystery novel turns readers into amateur sleuths. With literary devices that create an interactive experience and build maximum suspense, mystery stories have unique elements that propel their plots and engage readers ... "

"Crime fiction is one of the world’s most popular genres. Indeed, it has been estimated that as many as one in every three new novels, published in English, is classified within the crime fiction category ... "

"All crime fiction is based on a mystery to be solved. But since the beginning of the crime fiction in the early 1800s to the thousands of contemporary authors this genre has evolved continuously, creating new sub-genres and crossovers ... "

"Crime fiction is as popular with writers as it is readers. Fans of the genre often try their hand at writing the gripping noir and twisting tales they love. But writing crime fiction comes with its own unique challenges as crime readers demand tight plots, dark settings and gripping mysteries like no other ... "

"In this short extract from Crafting Crime Fiction, Henry Sutton, Professor of Creative Writing and Crime Fiction at the University of East Anglia, passes on key ‘craft tips’ he has shared with students of crime fiction over the years ... "

"There are some hard ethical questions in the writing of crime fiction. For me, the most difficult one is how to portray violence. For one thing, should you depict it all? And if so, how do you do it with some sense of morality? ... "