I actually don't think he did it to sell books per se. I wrote what I think happened above. JMO but I think over the years he told Lana bits of the story and changed up a lot of what happened. I think he's lied from the start.
IMO it doesn't make sense that NW would ever go to the dingy herself. He states he was on board listening to loud music to drown out their fighting. This is corroborated by the other boat. So it shows that NW would have known he was awake. Her dress suggests that she wasn't intending to go to shore. If she wanted to stop the dingy from banging, I think she would have gone to ask him to fix it. And so I think really what happened is that he was involved somehow. I think he untied the dingy. I think she may have fallen in or whatever.
And if they were friends, well, if my husband embarrassed me in front of my coworker and I had another friend on the boat, I probably would be upset and want to talk to someone. Think about it, your husband gets angry and ruins the evening smashing a wine bottle and asking CW "do you want to eff my wife!" All that fighting and upset would make it difficult for me to fall asleep. If I knew the guy had something to help me sleep I might go get it, or if I were drunk I might want to talk about it and have another drink.
I'd still like to know if that other wine bottle was found in the dingy. I think it's an important clue.
But I think he had something to do with her death. They spent the night previously in a hotel room together. He says she was a dear friend. She had just been fighting with RW.
I think he did something which is why he sat there and got drunk. Then he finds out later that others heard her cries in the water. And a drunk man say "Don't worry we're coming to get you." I think it was him.
IMO it aligns with his testimony if you look at it carefully and match up what others have stated as well.
CW states he saw NW go to bed. So did RW. CW doesn't say he heard NW arguing with RW on the boat afterwards, rather he and RW were arguing on the boat.
Only DD says it was NW and that RW was fighting with her and hearing banging sounds. CW does not report hearing her fighting with RW or hearing banging sounds. It was a small boat, he certainly would have heard her.
DD admits to giving Natalie Wood quaaludes and drugs. I have a feeling she went to get drugs from him and he did something to her and she fell overboard and DD panicked and let her drown.
When he was telling his story to Lana, I think he lied more, and let things slip by accident and she started pestering him for details. In the end he had to either blame it on RW or take the blame. So he blamed it on RW.
Also the note that was slipped in the other boat's mailbox could have come from DD because he was on the same sound stage. I can see him getting drunk and doing that.
It seems to me he had to alter his story when the witness on the other boat came out.