Writing the Detectives:Character and the Series Form

Latimer, Elspeth (2025) Writing the Detectives:Character and the Series Form. Elements in Crime Narratives . Cambridge University Press, Cambridge UK. ISBN 978-1-009-50246-7

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Abstract

Crime fiction first emerged in the Victorian era and its series form continues to dominate the genre. Despite the prevalence of crime series, very little research has been done on how character is conceived. The Element’s focus is contemporary, from the 1970s onward, and it determines the literary theory and conventions behind writing the detectives in these modern meganarratives. Exemplary series and a range of subgenres are analysed, thriller to cosy crime, professional investigator to amateur sleuth, embracing diversity and different gender identities. Previous examinations have tended to interpret the detective figure as either mythic or realist, but the author argues that both modes are combined in the contemporary crime series, generating a mythorealist protagonist. This creative-critical Element celebrates the vibrancy of the form and its capacity to investigate the human condition. It also considers future trends and concludes with the author’s own guide to writing a crime fiction series.

Item Type:	Book
Uncontrolled Keywords:	contemporary fiction,crime series,detective fiction,amateur sleuth,protagonist,character,meganarrative,crime writing,sdg 16 - peace, justice and strong institutions ,/dk/atira/pure/sustainabledevelopmentgoals/peace_justice_and_strong_institutions
Faculty \ School:	Faculty of Arts and Humanities
Related URLs:	https://www.cambridge.org/core/elements/...
Depositing User:	LivePure Connector
Date Deposited:	13 Mar 2026 09:30
Last Modified:	13 Mar 2026 09:30
URI:	https://ueaeprints.uea.ac.uk/id/eprint/102333
DOI:	isbn:978-1-009-50246-7

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