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3/14/2016 3 Comments The WRITERSDETECTIVE ManifestoMy name is B.A. “Adam” Richardson. I am a real-life Detective in California. I am also a Teacher. I created WRITERSDETECTIVE to help authors and screenwriters add realism to their fiction writing. Why does crime fiction even matter? Why should I devote my free time to helping writers craft yet another cop story? It has been said “art imitates life imitates art.” The sad reality is that “life” is currently at odds with its cops. We are besieged with news coverage featuring allegations of racial bias and brutality on a daily basis. Even the “positive” news coverage of “good cops” tends to focus on cops not doing the job of enforcing the law, giving warnings instead of making arrests. The current media trend is a dangerous one, rewarding nonfeasance over justice. So if our criminal justice system truly is this broken, how does faith that “good triumphs over evil” still persist? Why do people still call 9-1-1 when catastrophe strikes, confident that altruistic men and women will risk their lives to help a stranger? Because despite all the negative stories surrounding us, we want to believe in heroes. We want to believe that everyone we love on CSI, Law & Order, Criminal Minds, NCIS are based on real people that will vindicate or find those we’ve lost. We hope a real life Kinsey Millhone will solve cold cases long after Sue Grafton runs out of alphabet titles. We still want drug dealers to be brought to justice by fearless undercover cops like Sonny Crockett and his squad from Miami Vice. We hope brilliant psychologists will opt to carry a badge and capture serial killers like James Patterson’s Alex Cross. We want to believe a Fox & a Mulder are out there to protect us from whatever defies explanation, even if we don’t have a security clearance to read X-Files. In a world where Instagram selfies with Cristal & Franklins and $1M rounds of Venture Capital seed funding are considered benchmarks for “success,” why would anyone want to become a cop? What is it that draws anyone to a life of duty over riches? It’s the fiction surrounding the battle of good over evil. If we didn’t have these tales of modern day folklore to remind us that we WANT sheepdogs to protect us from the wolves, we may well forget that it takes dedication and sacrifice for good to triumph over evil. That is why crime fiction matters. That is why I help authors tell better tales. It’s more than just a story. - Adam Want to learn more about adding realism to your crime fiction?
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3 Comments
As a passionate reader of crime stories, a passionate follower of crime tv shows and a former student of forensic chemistry I know both the importance of this modern day folklore, as you call it, and realism in it (I know the difference between what CSI kabs can do and what a real lab can do). I've encountered cops & ex-cops who offer similar advice. Some are better at it than others, we'll leave it at that. You're one of the best because you don't talk down to people whose knowledge of law enforcement is what they've seen on screen or read in books. You do it with patience and a sense of humor and you do it with passion because you love what you do and it shows, whether it's here on your blog, in emails or on Facebook. You take the time. And as a crime writer, I am eternally grateful. 3/16/2016 12:10:46 pm
I've got goose bumps. Well said, my friend. And beautifully worded. Perhaps there's a crime fiction novel inside you bursting to get out. :-) Your comment will be posted after it is approved.
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