At the Craftfest portion of the Thrillerfest conference this week, novelist Lisa Gardner shared her secret writing weapon–obsessive research with the help of real life law enforcement officials.
These interviews provided the backbone for her bestselling novels like The Perfect Husband and Alone. Gardner (pictured, via Philbrick Photography) told a roomful of aspiring novelists that they should all spend time interviewing cops, FBI agents, and other law enforcement officials while writing.
“I didn’t have any contacts in law enforcement. I cold-called back in the day. I visited the FBI field office–I made an appointment with the media affairs department,” she explained. Gardner soon found herself in a roomful of FBI agents eager to help with her novel.
“Law enforcement people love this kind of thing,” she laughed. The thriller author found that her sources would actually feed her the best plot twists as they imagined what a criminal mastermind would do. “They really enjoy being an arch-criminal in their free time.”
“Send a thank you note,” she reminded the authors. “And follow up with their superior officer as well.”