If your cash is running out fast and you have an incessant need to write, why not turn to crime?
No! Not committing crime, but to writing about crime. Crime is all around us, and people want to know about it. Don't believe me? Turn on the five o'clock news, Lifetime TV or USA TV Network. You'll see true crime stories run rampant across television schedules. True crime on television is the number two genre (next to romance). And guess what? Someone has to write those movie scripts--might as well be you.
Many movies are adapted from books. Again, someone has to write those books. It's legal, profitable, and downright intriguing.
You ever wonder, when you're watching the news, "How could she be so stupid?" or "Didn't they know they were living with a maniac?" I do, it's only natural. In fact, I think we feel it could never happen to us.
But, crime can happen to any one of us. That's where true crime writing comes in. It answers the questions in story form.
For instance, we have learned that kids believe 'strangers' are ugly and 'scary-looking'--like monsters. But we know that's not accurate, so we teach our kids that a stranger can be good looking, well educated, and considerate. We can tell them about Ted Bundy (without the violence) and show them a picture if we really want to make the point. Many surviving crime victims often say that the person was so nice; they never suspected he could be capable of such destruction. We know this because we were told a story either in verbal, written, or picture form.
If true crime writing interests you, begin by searching local newspapers for stories. Don't search across the country, unless you are independently wealthy! Anytime you see an article that looks interesting, clip it and put it in your 'true crime clippings' file. If there are more articles about the same crime, then you know it is intriguing enough to warrant your attention. Still... it does not mean it is enough for an entire book. To discover the answer to that question will take research.
Do you have a fascinating criminal? Is the crime random, or was the victim chosen for a reason? Is the place of action special (was it at Disneyland, for instance)? Can you write about a totally different lifestyle than what we know? Is the criminal a member of MENSA? Is she dressed up as a clown when she commits her crimes? Is the victim the first woman space rocket engineer? Perhaps the victim is a deaf child. All of these facts increase the story's public interest and can take us into a world we have never been in before.
Are there subplots in the crime (not only did he murder his best friend, he also barged into his friend's family life and became like another son, then he robbed them one night, and then...). These questions will help you decide if you have a story worth considering?
True crime writing is lucrative and actually a challenging kind of fun. It is about combining journalism with novel writing. Nonfiction with fiction. If you have what it takes -- determination, time, and a strong stomach -- you can take up this as a career and soar.
About The Author
Nithya K is a India-based writer who specializes in writing fiction and has tremendous interest in writing non-fiction related to science, technology and other genre. She is also experienced in creating technical documentation. Basically a BE graduate with an MBA degree, her main focus is still writing. Nithya is also interested in Ghost writing of books and articles in the areas of business writing, technical writing, science and technology writing and fiction.
The author can be contacted at tutor19us@yahoo.com and also invites readers to visit her webpage at tutor19us@yahoo.com
Wood Dale Chicago prom limo .. Lockport Chicago limo O’HareTo help build your profile and reputation within a large... Read More
Before you even begin writing your novel, you need to... Read More
As a student of Spanish, my goal was to think... Read More
Les Edgerton writes in his book, Finding Your Voice, that... Read More
Communication is effective when we follow certain rules. These rules... Read More
Creative Writing Tips ?Your theme has to be something you... Read More
Writing better is critical for students. But it's even more... Read More
Have you ever wondered how you can adapt your screenplay... Read More
This is a tough question for every freelance writer. For... Read More
Language Training - A key to Global CommunicationLanguage Training is... Read More
Short Story Writing Tips:Your title is your selling tool. It's... Read More
The urge to write fiction seems God given for some,... Read More
First, let's tackle the question that is uppermost in many... Read More
You might not need any memoir writing help, per se,... Read More
Rudolph Flesch, a pioneering advocate of readability, put great stock... Read More
Writing technical articles is a challenge. There you sit, surrounded... Read More
A frequent conversation I have with my writing clients is... Read More
If you haven't realized the success you wanted last year,... Read More
Questions and answers on writing life experiences for ourselves and... Read More
If you have an online home based business you know... Read More
You may wonder why I have chosen this title of... Read More
Nothing is more daunting for any writer than having to... Read More
Creative Writing Tips ?What a plot is and what a... Read More
How long should your chapters be?I can't resist... I have... Read More
Recently I was watching the Oprah show and it was... Read More
Antigo wedding limo .."This is just brilliant. The whole interview is incredible? I'm?... Read More
It's clich?, but true-a picture does paint a thousand words.... Read More
This article is to help identify which style, technique or... Read More
Not all writers write good grammar. That's a fact. It's... Read More
When you get stuck for ideas, and the words won't... Read More
When I first started tracking the information preferences of people... Read More
This is a tough question for every freelance writer. For... Read More
At some point along the way, most of us have... Read More
The principle for writing good screenplays begins with good idea... Read More
What is a prologue? When should you use one? Should... Read More
Did you know that your back cover information is, after... Read More
So you want to be a successful author? You want... Read More
Q. I'm staring at a blank screen with an equally... Read More
In one of the exercises in my "Getting Started as... Read More
Are you ready to abandon your short stories? Before you... Read More
So you've decided to crown yourself with a title that... Read More
Poems. Just the mention of them makes me smile. Why?... Read More
Editorial guidelines, also known as writer's guidelines, are the rules... Read More
Sometimes a freelance writing career can feel very much like... Read More
In the beginning of your story you have to grab... Read More
In most aspects of business, we will be expected to... Read More
Eight or nine times out of ten, picking up and... Read More
It occurred to me one day that I needed something... Read More
When we write stories, with the purpose of sharing them... Read More
If you think proofreading equals editing, then you're wrong! Editing... Read More
Writing |