Crime Fiction Writing Guides
Craft guides on plotting, suspense, dialogue, and character — from Phillip Strang, author of 150+ crime novels. Practical techniques from the writing desk.
The British police procedural operates within a rigid framework of conventions that readers expect and publishers demand. These aren’t arbitrary rules but hard-earned traditions that distinguish authentic UK police fiction from generic crime stories wearing a thin veneer of British setting.
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Writing Australian crime fiction demands more than dropping a detective into Sydney Harbour or the red dirt of the Outback. The landscape, voice, and market expectations create a unique set of challenges that can make or break a crime novel. Too many writers treat Australia as exotic window dressing...
The detective protagonist carries the weight of every investigation, every revelation, and every reader’s investment in your series. Creating a character compelling enough to sustain multiple books while avoiding staleness or repetition presents one of crime fiction’s greatest challenges.
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The psychological thriller demands a delicate balance between revealing and concealing, between drawing readers into a character’s mind and keeping them questioning everything they think they know. Unlike traditional crime fiction where external action drives the plot, psychological thrillers live...
Espionage fiction demands a delicate balance between authenticity and entertainment, where the wrong detail can shatter credibility and the right one can elevate tension to unbearable levels. Unlike straightforward crime fiction, spy novels operate in a world of shadows where nothing is quite what it...
The tension between procedural authenticity and narrative drive sits at the heart of every police procedural worth reading. Real police work involves mountains of paperwork, hours of waiting, and bureaucratic frustrations that would kill any story’s momentum, yet readers expect the ring of truth...
Most crime writers nail the setup, build tension expertly through the middle, then deliver a satisfying climax where the killer is caught or the conspiracy exposed. Then they stumble badly in the aftermath, treating those final scenes as obligatory cleanup rather than the crucial story completion they...
Writing the Final Confrontation: Craft Lessons from 150 Published Books
The final confrontation in crime fiction carries the weight of every page that preceded it. Get it wrong, and readers will remember your book for all the wrong reasons. Get it right, and they’ll be reaching for the next book...
Writing the Opening Chapter of a Crime Novel: Hooks That Actually Work
The opening chapter of a crime novel carries the entire weight of reader engagement, and most writers get it catastrophically wrong. They either dump backstory like concrete or manufacture tension so artificially that readers smell...
The reveal scene is where crime fiction lives or dies—yet most authors treat it as an afterthought, dumping exposition instead of delivering theatrical justice.
Nothing separates the amateurs from the masters quite like the killer’s unmasking. After 300 pages of careful misdirection, false leads,...
The stakeout remains crime fiction’s most underestimated weapon—a masterclass in restraint that separates amateur procedural writers from those who truly understand the craft of sustained tension.
Nothing in police procedural fiction tests a writer’s skill quite like the surveillance scene....
The courtroom scene remains the ultimate proving ground where legal thrillers either soar to greatness or collapse under the weight of their own procedural pretensions.
Writing effective courtroom drama requires more than theatrical flourishes and shouted objections—it demands an understanding of legal...