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Friday, February 28, 2014

Writing Styles In The Latest Crime Novels

By Leticia Jensen


While mysteries have always garnered rapt attention by their followers the writers of today face a big challenge to keep their audience interested. The latest crime novels need to maintain a much more sophisticated level of information and detail to survive the market they occupy. The simple plots and characters from the past need to be fleshed out and personalized.

The readers of today have much more sophistication than they did even twenty years ago. The movies and television shows available have increased the knowledge available to them and the result is that the writer must provide a far more detailed dialogue for their followers. They want to know what is being done to solve it and how it is being done without feeling like they are reading a text book.

Readers today expect to be able to relate to the hero on a very personal level. If he is a tough character they want to know that his behavior is justified and if he is clever they want to be able to follow his thinking to the ultimate last page. They want to feel like they are a part of his inner circle and perhaps could do what he does.

This allows the writer to develop a better image of the personalities involved in the story lines they are following. Because they are better evolved the characters have their own relationships and troubles to deal with and become more alive to the reading audience. The end result is that the reader can come away from the last page feeling fulfilled by the ending.

Another trend that is developing is the international high-concept thriller with mass deaths, presidential plots and billionaires creating havoc. These books have various story lines involving assorted characters and their lives that eventually come together at or near the climax of the story. These stories are high in intrigue and tension building suspense. A problem with this type of book is that it is sometimes a one hit wonder and very difficult to do a following best seller for the author.

A popular means to success that has developed over decades for some novelists is the continuing story of one character. Some writers are so adept at this line of writing that they have developed a character following that nearly guarantees a best seller with each new segment they write. You can see this with the Alex Cross series produced by James Patterson and in the Scarpetta series written by Patricia Cornwell.

Writers need to stay abreast of current events when devising their stories. Some areas they pay attention to are media based and currently in the public interest arena. The main object is to keep the interest of the reader throughout the book as well as pique the suspense, mystery or puzzle bones of everyone who reads it. That is the goal of every good writer.

The trends that the mystery novels are following are as varied as they have always been. The difference is that they are more technically correct and the characters have more to them than previously required. They have lives and the reader is more involved with their day to day lives than ever before possible.




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