January 22, 2025
True crime writing is a favorite among readers, and some writers have risen to the top of the best-seller charts with their stories of murder and mayhem. Well-written crime stories can be as gripping as the best fiction—with the bonus that they are based on real stories and real people. Are you ready to join the ranks of true crime writing? Follow these tips to make your true crime writing stand out.
What makes for good true crime writing? The possibilities are endless, but the most gripping cases usually involve normal-seeming, successful people who commit terrible crimes. Other good choices are crimes that involve unusual weapons or exotic settings.
Most true crime writing authors find cases close to home. They concentrate on strange cases from the states they live in. Even small towns can produce some interesting crimes and criminals. You can probably find a case close to home that other people would enjoy reading about.
Some true crime writing is rushed into print at once after a crime hits the headlines. These are the publishers’ response to the public’s desire to know all the grim details about the killers and their victims. These books might sell well initially, but there’s a risk involved in publishing a book so quickly. These true crime writing books sometimes have inaccuracies and often lack the kind of details that true-crime fanatics crave.
What about a famous case that’s been covered before? There’s nothing wrong with writing about a case that another author examined. Look at Jack the Ripper—there are probably 100 or more books written about the infamous London slayer, including one that examines his victims in detail.
The question to ask is, why do you want to also cover this case? Maybe you think previous books on it weren’t well-written. You might have a different take on it. You may even think that someone else is guilty of the crime, or that the victim wasn’t as innocent as previously portrayed.
The most popular true crime writing depicts the victims and their families as full human beings. They author their books to honor the victims and to show that they were complete human beings with lives, dreams, and hopes. View your book as a chance to treat them with the dignity their killer denied them.
The victim is the most important character in your true crime writing. That doesn’t mean you have to portray them—or their family members—as perfect angels. It does mean honoring the life they led, the struggles they faced, and the impact they had on others.
Similarly, your villain should be shown with all their talents and flaws. Draw a picture of their background, including where they grew up, what their family was like, and whether they did well in school. Were they popular? Did they excel at anything?
Your research will likely turn up troubling signs from an early age. You can depict these, but don’t get bogged down in too much detail. Focus on showing how people around them reacted to those early warning signs.
After the victim, the detectives who solve the case are the most important characters in a true crime book. Don’t just describe the investigation. Tell the reader something about these investigators, detective, private eyes, district attorneys, and others who helped bring the killer to justice. Readers of true crime books want someone to root for, and that’s usually the people who hunt the killer down and bring them to justice.
Good true crime books don’t leave their readers hanging. While the story may end with a trial and prison time, readers want to know what happened later. Use an epilogue to update them on where the characters ended and how their lives turned out.
Some true crime writers have made it to the top of the best-seller lists by penning true crime books that read like the best fiction. These writers do thorough research, pick unusual cases, and tell the stories in compelling, page-turning prose. If you want to learn from the best, you can’t go wrong by reading their books.
The Seattle native came to fame with her first book, The Stranger Beside Me, about serial killer Ted Bundy. In it, she described going to work every day with the charming, handsome Ted, her coworker at a social service organization. Published in 1980, it was a smash success and led to a string of best-sellers.
Until her death in 2015, she wrote more than 30 books of true crime, including several collections of stories that intrigued her but couldn’t be developed into full-length books. Her books include Small Sacrifices: The True Story of a Family Destroyed by a Mother’s Ultimate Betrayal, about the Diane Downs case, and If You Really Loved Me, which chronicled the case of Linda Bailey Brown, an Alabama woman who was shot by her stepdaughter in mysterious circumstances.
Casey has probably come the closest to toppling Rule from her perch as queen of crime. The Texas native is known for her beautiful writing style and her knack for finding the tiniest, most intriguing details about both victims and killers. Casey also writes two fictional mystery series starring detective Clara Jefferies and Texas Ranger Sarah Armstrong.
Casey has covered both well-known and lesser-known cases, mostly from her own state. She has been a steady best-seller since the publication of her first title, Evil Beside Her: The True Story of a Texas Woman’s Marriage to a Dangerous Psychopath, in 1995. Her most famous books include Possessed: The Infamous Texas Stiletto Murder and A Descent Into Hell: The True Story of an Altar Boy, a Cheerleader, and a Twisted Texas Murder.
Caitlin Rother is an established journalist who has written about crime for many publications. Rother mostly writes about crimes in her home state of California, where she finds plenty of grisly tales to tell. She has written more than 15 books of fiction and non-fiction.
Rother staked her claim in the true crime world with her 2019 book, Dead Reckoning, about the horrifying murders of Tom and Jackie Hawks, who were killed by a former teen TV actor. She also wrote Poisoned Love, about Kristin Rossum, a toxicologist at the San Diego medical examiner’s office who was accused of poisoning her husband.
Glatt is an investigative reporter with a knack for firing off books immediately after a true crime story hits the news. The prolific author has covered every major true crime story in more than 30 books.
Glatt’s tight, readable prose and ability to write a balanced story have made him a reliable source for readers who want the facts about a case. He regularly appears on TV true crime shows.
Glatt’s best-known books include Tangled Vines: Power, Privilege, and the Murdaugh Family Members and The Perfect Father: Chris Watts, His All-American Family, and a Shocking Murder.
Joe McGinniss wrote several well-received true crime titles, including Blind Faith and Never Enough, but he is best known for his smash best-seller Fatal Vision, which chronicled the story of Jeffery MacDonald, a former Green Beret and physician who was found guilty of murdering his wife and children.
When he started the book, McGinniss was convinced that MacDonald was innocent, and he planned to write the book from that perspective. He even moved to North Carolina for a year to work on the book with MacDonald’s full cooperation. After spending time with MacDonald and looking at the evidence, McGinniss changed his mind. MacDonald, he decided, was guilty.
The result was one of the best-selling true crime books of all time. It was made into a miniseries in 1984. The series, which starred Gary Cole as MacDonald, received five Emmy nominations.
True crime writing can make you popular as a writer. Many well-known writers find that this niche is fascinating and profitable. People never get enough of well-written crime stories, so if you have one to tell, write it. You’re sure to find a ready audience. When it’s time to print your true crime book, turn to the experts at Publishing Xpress.
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