2010.07.07 - Ann Rule weighs in

[scandi]

Yes, the bank robber lived in Olympia. His name was Scurlock or something like that. I'll see if I can find it and edit this post. ::googles::

ETA: William Scott "Hollywood" Scurlock. Here is a link from the Washington State Historical Society:

http://www.historylink.org/index.cfm?DisplayPage=output.cfm&file_id=9043

Whoa, Talk about getting sidetracked, I just read that whole thing. LOL Really interesting. Thanks Haeve ;}

 

[bessie]

heheh.. mind-meld! I just came in to add basically the same thing.
If Ann Rule thinks it's bizzare.. well, the rest of us are down the rabbit hole!

lol So true. I've been a fan since The Stranger Beside Me and have read a majority of the books that followed. Of all the true crime stories I've read and followed, to this day, I think Everything She Ever Wanted takes the prize for most bizarro-crazy-cuckoo. Come to think of it, I see some similarities between TH and Pat Allanson. I hope we will hear more comments from Ms. Rule as this drama plays out.

 

[tiredblondy]

That *does* explain my bad haircut and penchant for shoulder pads though....

LOL :angel: I love shoulder pads too.

 

[scandi]

Been a long time since I read the book about Dianne Downs and did not realize it was in Oregon...........that case haunted me and still does to this day. She was something else.:banghead:

Gosh, Me too! I had to go review, but it was in Lane County, down Eugene way.


Now that I stepped back to think a bit, I hope if Ann writes about Kyron's case she does include the impact of Desiree, the real mother, and how she publicly called for the SM to come clean with what she knows, and to do it for the benefit of her baby girl so the child will grow up knowing she did the right thing in the end.

I don't know what you call that. A mother who's child might be lost forever, and who may never be found unless his stepmother shows honor to her own child, by telling the truth about what really happened to him. There has to be a word for that comparison. xox

 

[scandi]

Well, this is what Kyrons classmate (TP) says the teacher said. I, being naive I guess, assume that LE has either confirmed OR debunked what went on in that classroom and when it was noted Kyron wasn't there, who said what, whether or not there was a "sub" or it was a parent volunteer, or perhaps a teachers aide/student teacher, etc.
In my opinion (opinion only) we are far past the happenings of that AM as to who is suspect. The details, on the other hand, I'm betting will be quite fascinating.

My Nurseratchett, you do have a way with words. Yes siree ! Ann's word EXPLOSIVE has me curious, thinking what could be more explosive that what we have already read. Gets my brain a travlin, it does, and wondering about the teacher too wonder what, if any, other involvement she might have to bear in the case. Hmmm First year teacher, young . . . . maybe looked up to the SM . .

 

[chicagofa13]

This is one messed up sentence. It's 1983 in Oregon. What?

Explanation, IMO:

It's pretty much back to 1983 in Oregon again. That is when Downs shot her kids and blamed it on a stranger. Pretty much all of Oregon and many people in the country were interested in that case even without 24/7 news and the internet (I know I was fascinated!). She's seeing a similar storyline here.

This interview was done with a local station and they chat as if everyone would know what they mean.

 

[scandi]

Although Ann Rule isn't my fave author, she's up there!! And the amount of time and energy spent delving into crime and those involved really lends her expertise IMO. You can't poo-poo Ann Rule. Unless you know what it takes, what kind of research, etc., it takes to write a book? Especially on crime? And years of it? Yeah... glad she's piped in!

Yes, I agree with you.

Another fav of mine is Stephen J Cannell. :bowdown: I couldn't find a smilie for 'faint dead over' so chose this little hummer. I would really love to spend an evening with him discussing his take on what is the secret to, a , well, a well written crime TV show. :toast: :innocent:

 

[LadyL]

love Ann Rule!!!
my favorite crime writer, by far
interesting that she weighed in on this case and that she didn't waver about who she thinks is a suspect
she's certainly no fence-sitter

 

[scandi]

I don't know Ann Rule. However, I'm a fan! She won't write a book about a case unless it is resolved. If this is ever resolved; I am confident she will read this story. For Kyron...justice for Kyron!

Too early to pick a name for the book. Maybe something like 'A Froggin' he did go.

 

[emmcee]

I think that AR doesn't write books about cases that are heavily covered in the news. She is a terrific writer and understands the ins and outs with LE, perps, etc. I've read all her books. I love that she's interested in this case - it's a doozy alright!

 

[cluciano63]

Ok, I said I was not a big Ann Rule fan and it is exactly for the reasons other posters mentioned...totally one-sided to the extent that the guilty party barely deserves ink, she is so disgusted by him/her and the vicitm is always portrayed as near-perfect, even when the facts are staring the reader in the face. I am not one to speak ill of the dead, but I try really hard to find true crime that is more balanced and it is very difficult; almost all are biased. And she is former LE, so of course her victim-advocate feelings are stronger than someone who is strictly a writer.

That said, I know it is extremely hard work to follow a case and write about it and I give her a ton of credit for all of the books she has managed to produce.

I am a little disappointed that she would weigh in with such specific opinions in a case where there is no named suspect as yet, and seemingly agree that all signs point to Terri.

 

[gibby207]

I think that AR doesn't write books about cases that are heavily covered in the news. She is a terrific writer and understands the ins and outs with LE, perps, etc. I've read all her books. I love that she's interested in this case - it's a doozy alright!

Agreed! I take as much from the in's and out's of her books as say reading a Pulitzer book with their wordy drama. Both books are good in their own right (trust me, I love BOOKS!), but to appreciate Ann's research into a subject... sublime!

 

[gibby207]

I hear ya, cluci... you are one of my fave posters on WS!! You'll find that gibby is purdy open to all possibilities and opinions. I love opinions! It makes my mind work and makes the world more interesting!! And you are right: She's got stronger victim-advocate feelings. Good way to put it!

Ok, I said I was not a big Ann Rule fan and it is exactly for the reasons other posters mentioned...totally one-sided to the extent that the guilty party barely deserves ink, she is so disgusted by him/her and the vicitm is always portrayed as near-perfect, even when the facts are staring the reader in the face. I am not one to speak ill of the dead, but I try really hard to find true crime that is more balanced and it is very difficult; almost all are biased. And she is former LE, so of course her victim-advocate feelings are stronger than someone who is strictly a writer.

That said, I know it is extremely hard work to follow a case and write about it and I give her a ton of credit for all of the books she has managed to produce.

I am a little disappointed that she would weigh in with such specific opinions in a case where there is no named suspect as yet, and seemingly agree that all signs point to Terri.

 

[songline]

About the case, yes, you are probably right.

What she does know IMO, after being a crime writer of actual cases is how the criminal mind thinks, what makes it tic. She probably has the FBI's BAU knowledge wrapped up in her little finger. And she knows how LE works, how they approach a case, operate a 'war room', how they strategize and what it takes to find the unsub. That doesn't even touch her literary genius, putting a case together in story format to make sure the details are accurate and yet be able to hold the reader spell bound until the last page.

And It does not matter. because like Calliope said she know as much as we all do. And that is a lot of nothing.

What worries me is when someone like her comes into a case is getting a halo; just because someone likes reading her books does not make her a maven (all knowing) it sure does not mean we have to jump on her ban wagon.

 

[songline]

Thats if the little boy was even correct. Personally i dont think he was bearing in mind the police have said he was last seen with Terri.

MOO

I trust the police :innocent: On occasion, not all occasions. :crazy:
I almost rather trust the boy who was concerned about K being missing. SOMEONE OBVIOUSLY (the boy) did see K.

It is too easy for the police to stay stuck one one person and not do more. I still want to know where did the teacher go and was she scrutinized about her whereabouts.?

 

[Calliope]

Thats if the little boy was even correct. Personally i dont think he was bearing in mind the police have said he was last seen with Terri.

MOO

I don't think the police are going to comment on his account if for no other reason than to protect him (something his grandmother didn't seem willing to do).

 

[cluciano63]

I hear ya, cluci... you are one of my fave posters on WS!! You'll find that gibby is purdy open to all possibilities and opinions. I love opinions! It makes my mind work and makes the world more interesting!! And you are right: She's got stronger victim-advocate feelings. Good way to put it!

Gee thanks...I don't think I have ever been one of anyone's favorite anything before:dance::dance:

 

[songline]

Thats if the little boy was even correct. Personally i dont think he was bearing in mind the police have said he was last seen with Terri.

MOO

And they should take what they heard from this child through all the channels. I heard about no follow up on this.
How can we just point to step mom only???
I agree that it is not a pretty scenario. anyone willing to off her husband :waitasec: should be pointed at, but what IF it is not so. everything should be gone through including WHY the school did not call. that is sickening.
A parent leaving a child in school should feel secure that if the child is not seen they would call home.

 

[wfgodot]

First off, I kind of like Ann making the knee-jerk statement about this case; it shows she's human - unlike the rather formulaic nature of her many books (after the Bundy one and "Small Sacrifices," which were very good).

I actually paid full price for her "Every Breath You Take" hardcover - rare with me and non-fiction. Its setting is San Antonio, and it is bland beyond belief, everything San Antonio isn't. There is absolutely no sense of local color. As the excellent cluciano63 points out, her overwhelming one-sidedness swamps anything of interest in the narrative tension of the book. The dead mother of triplets is, therefore, a saint. And Rule mentions often the apparent fact that the victim said that if she was killed, she "wanted Ann Rule to write a book" about the case.

 

[White Rain]

I can totally appreciate what you are saying. Hence, she's not my favorite author, but I appreciate her expertise in the research involved in novels. My guess? You have to have a yin with the yang to grab a reader's interest. Unfortunately, being at WS, one learns the complexities of family dynamics so it's over the top sometimes.... I totally understand what you are saying!

I completely understand the yin/yang thing...but I am a lover of all things true crime...and every book I read I look at the review on amazon.com...and not only just me, but this seems to be a HUGE thing with Anne's readers...her taking one side and completely denigrating the other....
Alot of folks (including me) think if you're writing a book like this you should keep YOUR views out of it, and write BOTH sides...
I don't know that I could do that...but I don't write books either!