HOW DO YOU PREVENT EXPLOITATION WHEN FICTIONALIZING REAL CRIME?

Character studies with a crime hook are my favourite types of thrillers. They are narratives about people's deeds, responses, behaviours, and feelings against the backdrop of a gripping mystery. They focus on characters first and crime second. Great examples include books like The Girls by Emma Cline, which features a Manson-like cult; Whisper Network by Chandler Baker, which features a #MeToo-like storyline; and Luckiest Girl Alive by Jessica Knoll, which features a Columbine-like shooting.

The voice of the main character or characters grabs our attention and draws us in. We support them, hate them, love them, want them to succeed, or want them to fail. In either case, we develop a strong attachment. When writing fiction based on true events, there is a thin, hazy line separating a gripping tale from gossipy exploitation. I've discovered that developing the most compelling, irresistible characters—characters who make the story about them and their experience rather than the actual events on or inspired by which the book is based—is the best way to combat this. Knoll discussed the research that went into writing about a high school shooting while planning Luckiest Girl Alive.

According to Knoll, the story of Columbine has always captivated him. I imagined what it would be like to have that shadow follow you around for the rest of your life after reading about Columbine, where they always suspected there were other people involved but couldn't prove it. Something that inspired a desperate need to succeed

That is how the voice for the lead character, TifAni FaNelli, was created. Someone who is enraged and driven by a desire to succeed in order to escape or atone for her past. The plot shifts to focus on how a violent crime can continue to affect a person fifteen years later. how it influences, shapes, and ingrains itself into them. When I was writing The Social Climber, my second book, I experienced a similar feeling.

The story follows Eliza Bennet during the week leading up to her wedding, when revelations from her time spent studying at an evangelical college in the past begin to raise doubts about her sincerity. Universities affiliated with megachurches and extreme religions have always fascinated me. For me, college was a time of "pseudo-freedom," where the risks of doing something bad were minimal for a rule-follower like me, but I was still able to take a tentative step into adulthood.

A temporary purgatory-like middle ground where I lived with friends and made choices on my own with little guidance or oversight It was a time to begin discovering who you are when no one is around to direct you or tell you who to be.

However, the ultra-Christian colleges I studied ran in a different way. My most notable researched example was Liberty University, the largest Christian university in the world, with Oral Roberts University and Bob Jones University coming in second and third, respectively. These institutions had rules. rigid ones, relating to visitors, dress codes, friendships, and relationships. They imposed curfews and required rituals.

I was interested in finding out what happens when someone who thought attending college would grant them more freedom instead experiences restrictions. I pondered what it would be like to look for freedom somewhere else and what sort of trouble one might encounter when every choice they make is subject to regulation.

It brought to mind the restrictions on bingeing that I had grown accustomed to in relation to eating disorders. If you constantly restrict, eventually bingeing is inevitable. Do you rebel if you're constantly being controlled? When I was considering the theme of the book, I kept asking myself, "What message do I want to send? What point do I want to make?"

At that moment, Chanel Miller came to mind. On the campus of Stanford University in 2015, Brock Turner attacked her sexually.

Turner was found guilty on three counts of sexual assault, given a six-month prison term, and released after three months on the condition that he behaved himself. The handling of sexual assault in colleges and privilege were two topics that were discussed as a result of the case. What would happen in a school that also has extremely strict abstinence policies if schools are generally underreporting sexual assault? According to one study, "the actual rate of sexual assault is at least an estimated 44% higher than the numbers that universities submit in compliance with the Clery Act." a college like Bob Jones University, Liberty University, or Oral Roberts University.

Twelve former Liberty University students filed a lawsuit against the school in July 2021, alleging that school administrators had a history of "discouraging, dismissing, and even blaming female students who have tried to come forward with claims of sexual assault." The lawsuit asserted that the school failed to assist sexual assault victims and that the student honour code increased the likelihood of assault by making it "difficult or impossible" for students to report sexual assault.

The key for me in exploring how privilege and antiquated practises contribute to the improper handling of sexual assault reports on college campuses was to simply refrain from writing about it. There is no gory assault scene in The Social Climber.

Instead, it shows Eliza Bennet, who is still in shock over her past but is adamant about making amends. In order to move on, the character in question must get over his or her feelings of rage and betrayal. Because so much of her past was characterised by a lack of autonomy and a lack of self, she needs to feel in control. a lack of freedom Eliza carefully ascended the social ranks as an adult from a religious cult upbringing to the Upper East Side elite.

She has a stunning old-money fiancé, a posh penthouse apartment, and a high-profile job. In a city that would never have accepted the old her, she has succeeded. The older she was, the less likely she was to try. We can start to comprehend how individuals like Brock Turner or any of the dozen men who assaulted the women in the Liberty University lawsuit

can be protected thanks to her astute observations of the privileged world of the one-percenters she has surrounded herself with. Show, don't tell is a popular phrase, and I believe it is especially true when true crimes are fictionalised. Don't list the elements of crime you want to emphasise or preach the point you're trying to make.

Create a memorable character so that readers can identify with her and see the world through her eyes. Let the actions, responses, behaviours, and emotions of your character lead the discussion about what you're trying to get across.  (“When Fictionalizing True Crime, How Do You Avoid Exploitation?”)