John Dean – Crime Writer

Publishing has become ever more complex and emerging writers trying to break into the crime fiction market are an example of the need for them to know exactly what they write.

It is no longer enough to pitch to a publisher or agent saying that you write ‘crime’ because the category has become more complicated and the publisher/agent expects to see evidence that you realise that.

So, to help out, here are some of the categories:

Cosy crime – these are very popular, usually set in a middle-class environment, all spinsters and vicars, and often revolving around a murder that’s solved by a private detective. The ‘cosy’ bit comes largely because the authors avoid the gory stuff (but not always) = think Jane Marple, Agatha Christie’s creation

Hard-boiled – graphic, gruesome and unsentimental, they often feature psychopaths, serial killers and flawed detectives – and dialogue or inner monologues so sharp that you could cut your finger on them. No one does it better than the classic American writers, although the UK has a few that push them close (to see a classic UK example, it’s worth reading Brighton Rock by Graham Greene)

Private detective – as it sounds  – think Hercule Poirot and Sherlock Holmes

Locked room – featuring crimes in which the dead person/murderer could not possibly escape a room where the door is locked (think Jonathan Creek)

Courtroom – based on trials and using plenty of flashbacks, they usually feature judges, barristers and legal teams

Spy – the action centres on espionage. Usually feature spies working for intelligence organisations – think John le Carre. No one did it better

Caper – told from the criminal’s point of view with the main focus of the story being their crime and their attempts to avoid capture. Lots of action and often plenty of humour

Police procedural – these novels focus on the work of the police to identify the perpetrator and include lots of detail about crime detection, interview and forensic techniques. The main character is usually a detective.

These are actually very broad categories and, if you do your own research, you will find that the genre sub-divides time and time again.

I know exactly what I write, namely police procedural stories told from the viewpoint of police officers, usually detectives. This is because, before I started writing crime novels, part of my newspaper career was as a crime reporter then, when I set up my freelance business with my wife Frances, a significant proportion of my work was covering crime for newspapers and specialist magazines.

That experience gave me a valuable insight into not just police procedure but, more importantly, into how the police officer’s mind works, which gives my work an authenticity which makes the stories real.