Crime writers ask readers to believe a lot.
We ask them to follow detectives into murder scenes, laboratories, interrogation rooms, and autopsies. We ask them to accept the evidence we place before them and trust that the world we've created operates according to rules that make sense.
But what happens when the writer actually knows those places?
Steve Rush spent years as a detective and forensic investigator before turning his experience toward writing. His background gives him an unusual perspective on one of the most important—and sometimes misunderstood—parts of crime fiction:
Authenticity.
In the essay below, Rush explains why accuracy matters, where writers can find the details that make a scene believable, and why “write what you know” doesn't have to limit what you write.
Strive for Uniqueness
By Steve Rush
Whether writing fiction or nonfiction, it is essential to engage the reader with a unique perspective.
In nonfiction, that uniqueness comes from the writer's voice and presentation of the subject. In fiction, it can come from the characters, the setting, the plot, or the way familiar elements are combined into something readers haven't encountered before.
But uniqueness alone isn't enough.
A writer also needs credibility.
Readers are willing to enter worlds they have never experienced themselves, but once they're there, they expect those worlds to make sense.
That's especially important when writing about crime.
Write What You Know
We've all heard the advice: write what you know.
I spent many years working as a detective and forensic investigator. That experience gave me knowledge I can bring directly to my writing, particularly when it comes to crime scenes, investigations, forensic evidence, and the people who work within that world.
But “write what you know” doesn't mean a writer can only write about things they've personally experienced.
It means understanding the value of knowledge.
If you don't know something, learn it.
Research it. Talk to someone who does know. Find the details that will make the scene credible.
A reader may never have stepped inside a homicide scene, but that doesn't mean you can simply invent how one works.
Someone reading your book will know.
And when something is wrong, it can pull that reader straight out of the story.
The Details That Make a Scene Real
Authenticity often lives in small details.
What does the room smell like?
What sounds are present?
How do investigators move through the scene?
What catches someone's attention first?
What does a detective notice that another person might overlook?
These sensory details can give readers the feeling of standing inside a place they've never actually been.
For writers, this is where experience—or careful research—becomes especially valuable.
It's easy to focus on the dramatic parts of a crime scene.
But often the ordinary details are what make it believable.
Accuracy and Storytelling
Accuracy matters, but fiction is still storytelling.
A novel isn't a forensic textbook.
The goal isn't to show the reader everything you know. The goal is to know enough that the world you're creating feels authentic.
Technical information should support the story rather than overwhelm it.
That's a balance crime writers have to learn.
Give readers too little and the scene can feel generic or unbelievable.
Give them too much and the story can disappear beneath the procedure.
The details have to earn their place.
Characters Need Authenticity Too
Credibility isn't limited to forensic evidence or investigative procedure.
Characters need it as well.
A detective shouldn't simply be a collection of familiar crime-fiction traits. Neither should a victim, suspect, medical examiner, or forensic investigator.
People are complicated.
Their backgrounds affect the way they see the world. Their experiences affect the decisions they make. Their personalities shape how they respond to pressure.
Creating believable characters requires the same kind of attention writers bring to creating believable scenes.
Observe people.
Listen to how they speak.
Pay attention to contradictions.
The best characters often contain them.
Find Your Own Perspective
My experience in law enforcement naturally influences my writing.
Another writer will bring something entirely different.
That's the point.
The goal isn't to imitate someone else's expertise or voice. It's to recognize what you know, what you've experienced, what interests you, and what perspective you can bring to the page that another writer can't.
And when the story takes you beyond what you know?
Do the work.
Research.
Ask questions.
Learn from people who have been there.
Then use that knowledge in service of the story.
Because whether you're writing about a homicide scene, a forensic laboratory, or a place that exists entirely in your imagination, readers don't need to know everything you know.
They just need to believe that you do.