Crafting Crime Fiction with Dinuka McKenzie

Are you an aspiring or emerging writer working on a crime fiction manuscript? Are you stuck on your current work in progress and need some inspiration, or want to tackle the crime fiction idea you’ve been sitting on for years but don’t know where to start?

Crafting Your Crime Novel with Dinuka McKenzie is a one-day workshop perfect for beginner and emerging crime writers wanting to delve deeper into the crime genre and how to write a compelling crime manuscript that will keep readers hooked.

In this workshop, participants will explore the fundamentals of crime fiction, with a focus on generating narrative tension through characters, setting, plot and novel structure. You will learn about sub-genres, reader/industry expectations, research and how to generate page-turning ideas. Finally, you will explore how to craft compelling characters, with a focus on writing unlikeable characters and unique villains.

The workshop will be interactive with multiple writing exercises and plenty of time for questions.

Expected learning outcomes

In this workshop, participants will gain:

1. An understanding of the basic elements of a crime fiction novel and audience and industry expectations of the genre.

2. Techniques for writing compelling and complex characters, including what to consider when writing outside your lived experience.

3. Techniques for generating narrative tension through characters, setting, plotting and novel structure.

Participant requirements

Please bring a pen and notebook or laptop.

Optional: bring a one-page sample of your writing (scene, short story, or novel extract) to use in class exercises.

Is this workshop right for you? Please read our FAQ> for important information before enrolling.