Achieving verisimilitude in your work is the Holy Grail for Crime and Thriller writers, because as soon as the reader gets a whiff that something doesn’t stack up, doubt will begin spreading like Covid 19 on a cruise ship.
I first became aware of the effort that some writers put in behind the scenes to achieve verisimilitude when studying Wuthering Heights for A Level. I came across a small book which told me that almost every event in the novel’s thirty-one-year timeline could be precisely dated, or at least placed within a small window of time, even though relatively few dates are mentioned. The book printed a chronology, not dissimilar to the one shown here. I was fascinated by the idea of Emily Bronte working obsessively on these details, perhaps before she even began drafting the story in her tiny handwriting. It also intrigued me that she set her book some half a century before she was born. Was she seeking greater clarity or objectivity by doing so?
When writing my debut novel, Indefensible, I also used a table document, which in this case ran to forty-five pages. My chronology sets out (in columns headed with character names) the key points in their lives, and which chapter, if any, these events appear in. My novel is also set in the past, and my chronology contains a column for news events that were talking points at the time, such as the collapse of Barings bank or the declaration by Jonathan Aitken that he will “fight the cancer of twisted journalism with the simple sword of truth”. In Indefensible, every news event referred to is precisely dated within the narrative.
I went a good deal further than chronology, however. Indefensible follows a barrister, Daniel, who defends a man charged with a grisly murder at the Old Bailey and then becomes too close to his ex-client afterwards. With their permission, I included two clerks as characters in the novel, both with their real names and acting as they would have done in their professional lives almost thirty years ago. Bill Conner was the right-hand man to the legendary barrister, George Carman QC, who successfully defended Jeremy Thorpe in his attempted murder trial. Carman is also a minor character in my book. Bill was able to provide many details about his former head of chambers, such as his close attention to the earnings of other barristers in the same set, as each barrister paid a percentage of these towards running costs. As the highest earner of them all, Carman was naturally hit with the biggest deduction – something he was never happy about.
As well as people, I tried to ensure the authenticity of all locations in the book. I even included a flat I once shared with my brother in Hackney as the site of a murder. The property is arguably identifiable, so someone may get a surprise when reading! I was very keen not to trip up on forensic matters too. My novel opens with a report that a man’s head was seen being thrown into the River Thames. Eventually, when the head surfaces, a murder investigation begins. When researching the book, I spoke to David Tadd, a forensic expert whose team worked on many high-profile cases, including identifying the Grand Hotel bomber of 1984. David offered great advice about the state of decapitated heads that have been floating in rivers for rather too long.
Moving on to objects and day-to-day clutter, I am not gifted with a great visual memory, but wanted to ensure that the things my characters use are not described generically or seem anachronistic. My favourite example of my over-the-top attention to detail was when I researched a 1990’s handbag which is used by a court reporter who becomes involved with my protagonist. I found the perfect one on eBay and bought it for my partner. I’ve been trying to persuade her to use it at the book launch in February.
My final thought on achieving verisimilitude concerns theme. Having worked in the legal sector for over twenty years, including running the ethical hotline for barristers, you might say I turned my day job into a novel. As well as being a legal thriller, Indefensible is also a discussion about professional boundaries and what can happen when they break down. My main character, Daniel, recommends to another barrister that he should phone the Bar Council but at times in the story he should have done so himself. I like to think that had he spoken to me when I was working on the hotline, he would have received sound advice.
Indefensible by James Woolf (Bloodhound Books) Out Now.
A lawyer crosses a dangerous line with a former client and discovers that some decisions are indefensible…Daniel, a criminal barrister, is working all hours on a sensational trial, defending a client he believes is wrongfully accused of a grisly murder. Determined to keep Rod out of prison, he begins to neglect his wife—and soon suspects she’s having an affair. After Daniel triumphs in court, the bond with his newly acquitted client grows even stronger. And when Rod offers Daniel a favour that he really shouldn’t accept, things take a catastrophic turn. Daniel realises the lethal consequence of his actions and now his dream case threatens to become his worst nightmare…
James Woolf can be found on X @WoolfJames
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