Crime Fiction Dossier

Paul Guyot on How Television Shows Are Created

I've been meaning to link to this for a while, but kept forgetting. Paul Guyot, reluctant blogger and reformed television writer, has written the first part in a series on How Television Shows Are Created over at Murderati.

Guyot's blog essays are always worth reading and this one is particularly good. If you're interested in screenwriting, you'll definitely want to check this out. But even if you're not, it's still fascinating to read about the absurd world that is Hollywood.

Book of the Week: D.P. Lyle's "Forensics and Fiction"

Nothing ruins a good crime novel faster than factual errors or logical mistakes. That's why so many writers turn to Dr. D.P. Lyle for help. A practicing physician, Lyle is a writer himself, and he helps his colleagues figure out inventive (and accurate) ways of doing mayhem to the human body. Forensics and Fiction collects some of the most interesting questions Lyle has answered. Want to know how long a human head immersed in the North Sea would remain recognizable? This is the place to look. Not only is the book valuable for all the useful, obscure information it contains, it's also fascinating to see what kinds of questions writers ask. (Some of them, as you might expect, are rather strange.) Forensics and Fiction is an excellent resource for writers and an entertaining, informative read for fans.

Book of the Week: Charlie Huston's "The Shotgun Rule"

One of the strongest crime writers to emerge in recent years, Charlie Huston changes pace with this pitch-perfect story of four teenage boys and how they spent their summer vacation. They entertain themselves by smoking and swearing and dreaming about sex, but when they break into the house of the town's biggest meth cookers, their adventure turns into a nightmare. Huston has the characters down pat in The Shotgun Rule, capturing their attitudes, ideas and speech like few writers could. Most thrillers aim to entertain by being larger-than-life. The Shotgun Rule, however, is an intimate, realistic and contained story, and one of the summer's most impressive.

Review of Joseph Finder's "Power Play"

One of my favorite thrillers of the year so far, Joseph Finder's Power Play, is the subject of my latest review in the Chicago Sun-Times.

Joseph Finder in the Harvard Business Review

The much-admired Harvard Business Review has selected their first novelist to write one of the publication's iconic "Case Studies" -- and, not surprisingly, the author is Joseph Finder.

Finder wrote a fictional scenario (based on his current book, the excellent Power Play) in which a company's CEO has to decide if she should investigate her own company for corruption.

In the printed version of the magazine, they have four business experts comment on the scenario, giving their recommendations. But in the online version, anyone can share their thoughts.

Even if you're not interested in the HBR aspects of the Case Study -- and I'm not -- it's cool to be able to read what is in essence a prequel (the unwritten first chapter) to Finder's book.

Book of the Week: Nick Stone's "Mr. Clarinet"

One of the best debuts of the year (or last year, if you're in the UK), Nick Stone's Mr. Clarinet is a dark, atmospheric story of an ex-PI sent to Haiti to find a missing boy that he suspects is already dead. There unfolds a suspenseful story of secrets and lies, flavored with dark magic, depravity and deceit. Max Mingus is a tortured but compelling protagonist and he leads a stellar cast of characters who make the story come alive. Stone's work is not for everyone -- the subject matter can be challenging -- but he's a true talent worth watching.

Latest Chicago Sun-Times round-up column

Although my name doesn't appear to be on it, the round-up column that ran in this morning's Chicago Sun-Times is mine. It includes reviews of:

Daniel Silva - The Secret Servant
Karin Slaughter - Beyond Reach
David Ellis - Eye of the Beholder
Harley Jane Kozak - Dead Ex
Ellen Crosby - The Chardonnay Charade

Enjoyable books, all of them, with the Silva probably being my favorite of the bunch.

Book of the Week: Jonathon King's "Acts of Nature"

Acts of Nature is another fine, atmospheric novel from Jonathon King featuring PI Max Freeman. This time out Freeman isn't working a case; he's just trying to take a vacation with his girlfriend. But a peaceful trip into the Everglades turns nightmarish when the couple find themselves trapped in the middle of a hurricane. At the same time, King weaves in two other plot lines, one involving a pair of oil company bad guys, the other a trio of criminals looting their way through the hurricane's wake. The way King brings the three divergent plot lines together into one suspenseful whole is as clever as it is thrilling.

Taking advantage of the desperate

I'm on record as not thinking very much of the "publishing services" provided by such outlets as PublishAmerica and AuthorHouse. These companies have much more in common with con artists than they do with real publishers.

(On the other hand, it's the responsibility of the consumer, as well as the would-be author, to educate themselves to the realities of the industry. If people get taken advantage of, they usually have only themselves to blame.)

Now, The Bookseller reports that Borders UK is going to start selling space on their shelves to self-published writers. For a price ranging from £849 to £1999, AuthorHouse will not only "publish" (in reality, they will print copies of) your book, they'll also make the book available for purchase on the shelves of a select number of Borders bookstores in the UK.

Granted, the book will only be available in one of five Borders stores (for 10 weeks), and there will only be three copies of the book, segregated in a special area of the store. (I'd love to see what the sign on that section says.)

Still...Doesn't that sound like it's worth 2 grand?

Book of the Week: Harley Jane Kozak's "Dead Ex"

Greeting card designer and serial dater Wollie Shelley returns in Harley Jane Kozak's delightful third novel Dead Ex. When Wollie's ex-boyfriend, a terminally-ill soap opera producer, is murdered, her best friend (who also dated him) is the prime suspect. Wollie must jump headfirst into the shark-infested waters of Hollywood to find out what really happened and clear her friend's name. Dead Ex is a charming book with a well-done mystery and plenty of fun characters.