Penning a nonfiction novel is quite an endeavor for any writer, especially when it comes to true crime because the stakes are so very high, humanly and legally.
Writer Ann Rule has often been credited with having invented the true crime genre and even if it is not the case, she has surely contributed to boosting its popularity and made a fortune doing it.
Ann Rule
Ann Rule started writing true crime under the male pseudonym Andy Stack. Her early work appeared in many publications including Master Detective, Inside Detective, Front Page Detective, Office Detective and True Detective. She was a police officer and knew that at the time, people did not put too much stock in what a woman had to say about crime so she wisely used an alias to get her message across.
She has published over 1400 articles and 41 books and most of them made the bestseller’s list. She was part of a task force that created a serial-killer identifying computer system called Vi-CAP and is a certified instructor in many states on serial murder, sadistic psychopaths, women who kill, and high-profile offenders.
In 2012, the Writer’s Digest published boot camp advice from the popular writer.
Ann said that at an early age, she was fascinated by crime—not the how, but the why.
“I think that we come to our genre naturally,” she said.
She was known to take ride along with law enforcement and worked hard to obtain an associate’s degree in criminal science.
Like most writers, she faced many rejections and that’s why she wrote for true detective magazines to be able to earn a living.
“You have to write about what you know about,” she said.
Back then, not even her children slowed her down. “Unless the kids were actually fighting on top of the typewriter, I could keep writing.”
Ted Bundy
One day, destiny decided to knock at her door in the person of Ted Bundy. She wrote her famous book The Stranger Beside Me after having worked with Ted in a crisis clinic in Seattle. Talk about serendipity.
After the tragic suicide of her brother, Rule had volunteered at a crisis center where she met and worked with Ted, who was a work-study psychology student getting paid $2 per hour.
After Bundy’s horrendous crimes were revealed, Rule attended his trial and as a result, wrote her first bestseller.
Rule is known to be kind to aspiring writers and she encouraged them by saying ‘’You can’t let the naysayers make think you can’t make it, because you can.’’
If you want to be a true crime writer, Rule said the best thing you can be, is immensely curious. And, you should go to trials—something anyone can do. From a life spent in courtrooms, here are Rule’s tips and etiquette for doing just that.
You can usually get a press pass, but there’s often a deluge of writers trying to obtain one. Rule calls the prosecutor’s assistant.
- Study the witnesses, watch the jury, and soak up the entire experience.
- Try to obtain the court documents from the court reporter or the prosecutor, or purchase them.
- Observe the other reporters in the room, and analyze what they’re doing.
- If you’re sitting out in the hall with potential witnesses, don’t ask them about anything. You can comment on the weather or the courtroom benches being hard, but “Keep your eyes and ears open and your mouth pretty shut.”
- Don’t take newspapers into the courtroom.
- Know what you’re getting yourself into. “You don’t want to start a nonfiction unless you’re really in love with it, and usually you want a go-ahead from an editor.”
- Absorb detail. “When I’m writing a true-crime book I want the reader to walk along with me.” Rule describes the temperature, how the air feels—“I think it’s very important to set the scene.” As far as the writing, you can novelize, but keep all of your facts straight.
- Don’t use the real name of a rape or sexual crime victim in your writing. (Though Rule has written about a few who have asked to have their names included.) As Rule said of her subjects at large, “I always care about my people. And if I didn’t, I wouldn’t be doing what I’m doing.”
Some compare the documenting she uses for her stories to Truman Capote’s In Cold Blood, but he went about it in a very unique way. One would have to be quite ingenious to find a parallel between her style and methods and his brilliant creativity.
Truman Capote
As a former police officer, Rule might be at a disadvantage, because her law and order background leads her invariably down the most travelled path unless there is a giant road block, and it can only lead to perdition for the main characters of her books. Capote with his masterful genius, did not follow any path and went on his own unabashed way, willing to see a light at the end of any tunnel. The only point they had in common would be the fame and notoriety that afforded them both the possibility of taking liberties.
George Plimpton from the New York Times wrote in 1996, that ‘’In Cold Blood is remarkable for its objectivity – nowhere, despite his involvement, does the author intrude.’’
I would beg to differ because even if it was written in the third person, his own inclinations floated like a gentle breeze, yet ruffled the delicate feathers of some readers or critics not willing to disregard some ethical problems they found in the novel. Capote was not always truthful and he changed some aspects of one of the main characters, Perry Smith, in order make people feel sorry for him; he exaggerated his level of remorse as he awaited execution and no one heard Smith enunciate an apology before his hanging. Most readers went along for the ride because he had been portrayed as a sensitive troubled soul whose bad luck and misfortune led him to the road of perdition. Capote felt strongly about his redemption and it reverberated in the story.
In fact, he said ‘’It is true that an author is more in control of fictional characters because he do anything he wants with them as long as they stay credible. But in the nonfiction novel one can also manipulate.’’
Plimpton did a great interview with Capote and asked him about the new literary art form which he called the nonfiction novel.
He felt that few first-class creative writers ‘’had ever bothered with journalism, except as a sideline, “hackwork,” something to be done when the creative spirit is lacking, or as a means of making money quickly.’’
Such writers say in effect: Why should we trouble with factual writing when we’re able to invent our own stories, contrive our own characters and themes?–journalism is only literary photography, and unbecoming to the serious writer’s artistic dignity.
‘’Another deterrent–and not the smallest–is that the reporter, unlike the fantasist, has to deal with actual people who have real names. If they feel maligned, or just contrary, or greedy, they enrich lawyers (though rarely themselves) by instigating libel actions. This last is certainly a factor to consider, a most oppressive and repressive one. Because it’s indeed difficult to portray, in any meaningful depth, another being, his appearance, speech, mentality, without to some degree, and often for quite trifling cause, offending him. The truth seems to be that no one likes to see himself described as he is, or cares to see exactly set down what he said and did. Well, even I even can understand that–because I don’t like it myself when I am the sitter and not the portraitist; the frailty of egos!–and the more accurate the strokes, the greater the resentment.’’
What Capote was talking about in 1996, has come home to roost with the true crime genre. But it is not solely the subject of the books that are not happy with their portrayal, but also the authors, who at times, have some explaining to do and resent being exposed. What’s good for the incarcerated Goose should be good for the Gander writer as well.
Ann Rule wrote the best-seller Heart Full of Lies in 2003. Liysa Northon was the villainess of the book and in July 2001, had pled guilty to killing her husband in a northeastern Oregon camping ground. She received twelve years and was released in October 2012 after serving her full sentence.
It was not a real high-profile case but when Rule rolled into town, it became obvious that the ghost of infamy would haunt Northon for a long time. She would declare later, that Rule’s ‘true crime’ story had been more damaging to her life than the trial itself.
After learning about the lawsuits filed between Liysa, her fiancé Rick Swart and Ann Rule, I read Heart Full of Lies to judge for myself if the claims from both sides were valid.
I must admit to only reading a few of Ann Rule’s books through the years and Heart Full of Lies was definitely not her best literary achievement. But as usual, the style was inviting and it drew you in with vivid sensory descriptions and the specter of evil within. But it left me with some serious questions and at times, it felt inchoate and pushy. Contrary to Capote, the intrusion from the author in the narrative was not breezy and subtle. The proverbial elephant was in the room awaiting its rescue from the Circus.
In the prologue, Rule talks about the importance of presenting both sides. And at times, she plants among the weeds, some positive remarks about Liysa. She calls her an excellent mother, a great writer and keeps repeating that she has strong supporters. But in my opinion, some of her comments sound quite insidious and have the effect of a stink bomb; sure to infiltrate, permeate and overwhelm the readers with her own impressions.
I continued reading the story and following its logic or lack thereof at times, till the end. Then, I read the rebuttal of facts on Liysa Northon’s website as well as her husband’s article.
I had no interest vested in the outcome of that trial, so it was not difficult to remain objective but I must admit that I found the whole saga quite captivating:
Rick Swart
Rick Swart was the editor of the Wallowa County Chieftain newspaper when Liysa Northon shot her husband, Chris Northon in July 2001. He never was directly involved in the case but his paper covered it and he edited stories about the killing.
The case was in the local media but did not make much headway in the national press. The case came and went and three or four years later, as Rick was flying to Hawaii for a well needed vacation, he picked up Rule’s book Heart Full of Lies.
He was in for the shock of his life when he finally saw pictures of Liysa Northon who, in fact, was Liysa DeWitt, the girl he had met as a young man and who had been part of his social circle. The 5’4’’ slim and lovely girl he wanted to date and who even broke his heart when she did not show up for their ‘first’ date, was the ‘sociopath’ Rule had described in her book.
He decided to write Liysa at the Coffee Creek Correctional Facility where she was now known as ‘Surfer’ and well-liked by staff and other inmates. His newspaper’s reporting of the case had been pretty hard on her so at first, she was standoffish with Rick and expressed her discontent in no uncertain terms.
Coffee Creek Correctional Facility in Oregon
In time, they became true friends and eventually fell in love. Some would say that Rick could not be objective because he developed feelings for Liysa, but his initial intention was and remained to check her whole story piece by piece and he was by all accounts, really rigorous about it. He wanted documented facts or witness confirmations. He could not afford to give her the benefit of the doubt.
Liysa Northon claimed that Rule’s book had 287 errors and falsehoods, including a description of her as an untidy housekeeper. So Rick recreated every one of them and did research until he could prove or disprove them.
Once he had compiled everything, he tried to get newspapers interested in publishing his findings. But with a case that had now become high-profile, and with Ann Rule at the helm, people were too intimidated and declined.
Finally, as a freelance journalist, Rick decided to submit the story himself to the Seattle Weekly. The editor was quite interested and published ‘’How Seattle’s Queen of True Crime Turned a Battered Wife into a killer Sociopath.’’ The problem is that he neglected to tell them that Liysa was his new romantic interest.
To say that they were not pleased is an understatement, but they still confirmed that Rule’s story was one sided, after reading all the official documents provided by Swart.
Swart does not regret the omission as it was his only way to get the story out.
“My personal life is my own business,” Swart said. As for his article, “I’m selling a product.”
In a telephone interview from Coffee Creek Correctional Facility near Wilsonville, Northon said Swart knew what he was doing. “Nobody would have run the story when he told them he’d fallen in love with me,” she said, “and the utter injustice that was done to me needed to be printed.”
Ann Rule stood by her characterization of Northon as a methodical killer and as a woman who “can make any man do what she wants, for a while.”
“I certainly didn’t make up anything,” Rule said. “It was all in the files and the transcripts. I couldn’t find any real indication that Liysa had been battered, not by Chris.“
In Liysa’s eyes, she was a battered woman who killed to save her children. In Rule’s eyes, she was a killer who wanted to inherit money and get rid of her husband.
I wondered how Rule could have come up with some of her conclusions if she read transcripts but did not interview Liysa, her family, friends or supporters. She had talked to the victim’s family but had ignored the other side. I figured that she probably stuck to proven facts and concluded that it was sufficient. But I was wrong because I realized that at times, she strayed even from official and verified information.
It must have been upsetting for Ann Rule to see a front page caricature of herself on the Seattle Weekly and to read derogatory comments about her book. She is used to coasting on her reputation and does not usually worry about her readers checking the validity of her stories because they despise the subject already, and they are a very compliant audience. After all, most people do not care about the rights of inmates.
Caleb Hannan
She filed a lawsuit against the Seattle Weekly owned by Village Voice Media at the time, Swart and its editor Caleb Hannan contending that he failed to do basic research into the reporting of Rick Swart titled ‘’Ann Rule’s Sloppy Storytelling.’’
”The article contained innumerable inaccuracies and untruths concerning the testimony and evidence in the trial of Liysa Northon and also included various unfounded personal attacks on Rule,” attorney Anne Bremner said in the lawsuit.
“Because of the article’s publication and defamatory content, Rule has been significantly damaged personally and professionally,” Bremner continued.
Hannan went on to pledge to fact check the story and publish the results; Seattle Weekly subsequently corrected several minor errors to the story, which remains on the website. But the bulk of it turned out to be correct.
click to read his answer and corrections.
Judge Laura Inveen dismissed the claims made by Ann Rule’s in her defamation suit against Seattle Weekly stating that the article was free speech and protected by the First Amendment.
The Judge also found that Rule had not proved that Swart’s allegations in his article were false or defamatory. She had to pay Swart, the newspaper, and two other defendants each $10,000, as well as attorney legal fees.
Rule subsequently filed 13 declarations in support of a Motion for Reconsideration of Orders of Dismissal. It was basically a motion to attempt to go through the back door to litigate the matter again. Judge Inveen denied the motion.
Judge Laura Inveen
In the order, Inveen criticized Rule’s “attempt to interject new facts into the matter, much of which are irrelevant and appear to be designed to appeal to the passion, prejudice and sympathy of the reader, whether it be the judge, or anticipated wider audience.”
Swart submitted a claim for approximately $65,000 in fees and costs, while Seattle Weekly submitted a claim of approximately $120,000, and the judge will rule on those claims.
In 2004, Liysa Northon had filed a complaint against Rule and her publishers in Multnomah County Circuit Court because the book Heart Full of Lies had damaged her reputation. The suit also named prosecutor Daniel Ousley who according to Northon, told Rule there was no evidence Chris Northon used drugs or was abusive to his wife. It was dismissed by the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals and Liysa had to pay $60,000 in attorney’s fees.
In her 2006 Anti-Slapp motion filed in the libel suit against her, Ann Rule said ‘’I can say whatever I want about Liysa, true or not. Inmates are libel-proof. Due to the fact that they are incarcerated they cannot be further defamed.’’
Liysa Northon’s father had tried several times to show Ann Rule some documents that flew in the face of her findings. She never contacted him.
Some facts presented in Ann Rule’s book
Liysa’s injuries
Liysa Northon was never a battered woman: Liysa Northon had been determined by the court and by professionals to have been a victim of domestic violence. Documents, photos and witnesses support this.
Liysa is histrionic, a sociopath, perhaps bipolar and suffers from incurable personality disorders: She was diagnosed by six different mental health professionals, including the state’s own expert as suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder, PTSD, as a direct result of the trauma of the abuse she endured.
Wayland Dewitt (Liysa’s father) fancied himself qualified to make a diagnosis of Chris’ mental state. He was a religious lay counselor in the prison: Dr. Wayland DeWitt received a doctorate in psychology. He practiced both with private patients and he worked in a mental institution.
Her husband Chris was a mellow guy who would never hurt anyone: There is a police report about domestic violence and a therapist letter.
Liysa never finished College and only took elective courses: Diploma proves she graduated.
Liysa’s son loved Chris: INVESTIGATIVE INTERVIEW 10-13-2000—Justice Department. According to the child’s father, the child was very afraid of Chris, and the child had told him this on several occasions.
Liysa said her mother beat her and broke 26 bones: Her former husband and friends stated that Liysa said she had a ‘tough childhood’ but her mother consulted and they worked through it. The only person who mentioned the broken bones is the victim’s mother.
Liysa pled guilty to Felony Murder: The plea bargain was for Manslaughter with Extreme Emotional disturbance.
Liysa lied repeatedly to her attorney about not having any insurance: she provided all relevant documentation about the modest life insurance policy, she provided the policy numbers, the name and phone number of her insurance agent to the legal team on a number of occasions.
Rule denied that Chris held a knife to his son’s throat: SP00-437609 POLICE INVESTIGATION INTERVIEW OFFICER JIM VAN ATTA LIYSA NORTHON’S OLDEST SON (10-10-2000, 11:05 am) “My little brother told me Chris was chasing him around with a knife.”
It is only a sample of all the facts contested. You can read and judge for yourself on http://www.liysanorthon.com/factorfiction.html
Whatever one’s opinion is about the case of Liysa Northon Swart, a true crime writer should not publish a book without checking all facts in order to make a defendant look guilty as sin. With great power comes great responsibility. Because she is an icon, Rule’s books are usually sure to propel the main character into infamy and it should not be taken lightly. With the fortune she has amassed so far by marketing villains, it might be tempting to reproduce this winning formula by glossing over many shades of grey or by accepting blindly the victim’s family version of events.
Rule was once fooled by sociopath Ted Bundy and she might be afraid to let it happen again, but to come up with a one-sided story is symptomatic of a chronic case of ‘I can say whatever I want because inmates have no rights.’’ She keeps repeating in the book that Liysa is a great mother but doesn’t it contradict the fact that she labels her as a sociopath with personality disorders?
Liysa, Rick & the boys
Liysa Swart has paid her legal debt to society, she is now remarried, has started a new life and reconnected with her two sons.
I hope that the author of Heart Full of Lies will review her book or simply take it off the market. Maybe she could declare it a work of fiction and change the protagonists’ names. Or she could face her detractors and study the evidence they are providing. After all, she is the one who said about Liysa ”She spent her entire life weaving an intricate web of lies” and was purportedly trying to untangle them in her book. If Rule cares about her reputation and the truth, it would be a great step towards the rehabilitation of nonfiction writing.
Truman Capote
I got this idea of doing a really serious big work – it would be precisely like a novel, with a single difference: Every word would be true from beginning to end.
Update: Ann Rule died on July 26, 2015. In recent years, her failing health kept her home-bound and two of her sons were accused of defrauding and bullying her. Her daughter announced that she died peacefully and got to see all her children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
Right before her death, the Washington Court of Appeals ruled that the state’s free-speech laws allowed Rule’s lawsuit to go to a jury. Click to read.
I read “Heart full of lies” recently and as much as no-one except Liysa and her husbands know the true facts – am stunned.
I am working on my thesis in Clinical Psychology specIalising on abnormal psych and have spent many hours with battered partners in counceling and shelters. I wish all those who comments so yeasily (positively and negatively) whould consider the following:
Abusers and minipulators are not always men as are so often suggested. Women can be as cruel and manipulative as men. As matter of fact many females who batter men, do so to men much larger than themselves.
There have been cases where abuse victims (men and women) are quite capable of fabricating wounds and threats, bite marks, broken arms, black eyes as way of manipulation. The types of people that batter and abuse in many cases are quite capable of showing themselves as a victim, especially females as they are considered weaker than men.
Interesting enough battered men and women usually also shy away from the fact and reality of being battered. They often excuse and draw attention away from it or even live in denial themselves, living fake outward lovingly towards their partners. I am yet to come accross a battered person who walks around exclaiming ther abuse so widely. These people are usually genuinely lacking self-esteem and often live in clearly confined borders of abusive partners.
As the saying goes ” if you have to ask, there are no guilty people in prison”. If she is indeed a psychopath or sociopath as some claim, she surely would not be screaming it out to the world (these personality types are much more suttle and intelligent and manipulative)
As I said…..none of us knows the truth, and half of it died with her husband. But before all raising so much criticism………..might do some good doing some homework and seeing what battered men looks like and what they go through especially emotional manipulation. Battered man syndrome is also a reality.
Anway……………just a thought.
My blog is about the fact that Ann Rule wrote a book about the case, and it was full of lies. This is my point.
Northon did her time in prison. She was assessed by countless mental health professionals and she is not a sociopath. Never was.
She paid her debt to society as to what happened between her and her husband. If not from Rule’s Heart Full of Lies, this tragedy would have been easier on her kids and family.
Rule had no right to write a book with her own heart full of lies. Not allegations, but plain lies. Everything the Seattle reporter wrote in his article about the lies contained in Rule’s book were verified. The editor made a few minor corrections that he published but the bulk of it was true.
It is a huge problem because she declared that inmates have no rights, and waited for someone to be found guilty to pounce and make money out of the tragedy.
Now that she has passed away, this legacy will end.
Are you saying Northon was a sociopath who faked her injuries and was abusive towards her husband? She reunited with her children after a long 12 separation. They had witnessed the abuse. It was documented.
Not that I don’t believe that some women can be abusive, but this was not the case. If Rule had painted an objective portrait of the situation, it would not have changed the fact that her husband’s death was a tragedy, but readers like you and I could have tried to form an opinion with both sides of the story.
Liysa is now married and has a very peaceful relationship with a very kind and bright man. NO abuse from either side.
She is very involved in helping battered women and has even won awards.
As I said, she paid her debt to society. The one the court decided to impose upon her. Not Ann Rule or readers who like to fantasize instead of sticking to facts.
I wanted to leave a comment because: No where does anyone dispute Roth’s claim that the reason Liysa stayed in the marriage in the begining after many warning signs was because of the hot sex she and Chris had together. That was laughable! If it was just the sex she was after, why marry the guy? Oh ya, for the money. Duh. Well, isn’t everyone guilty of that?
I had a hard time reading Rule’s account, and it’s easy to see that it is lopsided, but I wouldn’t say it’s one-sided, not even close. Rule is trying to make the book sell, be provocative and sensational, and tell a story she hasn’t really told before, to persuade us, but Roth for sure left it up to the reader to draw our own conclusions. Not all of us are weak enough to be mind controlled by Roth.
I don’t think liysa’s website makes her look better because of the many claims in Roth’s book that she doesn’t address. The page numbers make me cringe, because she would have to address each page, realistically. It makes Liysa look bad when she only focuses on some aspects of Roth’s book, and ignores the rest. It also makes her look mental, too. Like she was in prison having a break down and obsessed over Roth’s book when she wrote all of the rebuttals.
Either way, it’s sad to say that it’s all very entertaining.
Are you talking about A Rose for her Grave? The name Roth keeps popping up in your comment. Interesting that you were entertained by this tragic story. A man lost his life and his children grew up without their parents. Liysa, like other victims of Ann Rule, wanted to rectify the many errors and lies in Rule’s book. It does not mean that part of the story is not based on real events.
When you write true crime, the goal should not be to make the book sell, be provocative and sensational. It is to tell the truth. Liysa sure does not look our sound mental to me.
Oh, sorry, was typing Roth because i was so sleepy and i’m reading Roth book’s.
Well, I think both parties don’t look good, Christopher or Liysa.
I don’t mean to shame Liysa by saying she seems mental, I just don’t think it helps to address some of the lies, and not all of them. but I also have never been put in that position so it’s not my place to judge.
You have to admit, some of the blame has to go on Liysa for the tragedy. She was drawn to, and attracted to a wife beater for a reason. As they say, it takes two to tango.
Thanks for responding and you are a great writer! And I shared this site on facebook with my friends…because i really admire what you’re doing.
My position is that Liysa was tried and did her time. It’s not my place to judge her. My blog is to address the fact that Ann Rule, as a true crime writer, took liberties, not unlike other writers in her situation because it was easy and in her eyes, inmates had no rights.
Thanks for reading.
So if this is about Ann Rule n the horrible job she did on this case I guess she was wrong about Diane Downs as well right? Because she basically said the same thing. Ann Rule lied and manipulated the evidence. Sounds like they have a lot in common. Ann Rule goes to the trials and goes through all the evidence and yes she tries to wait until the trial is over before publishing her books. That’s because everyone wants to know the outcome of the case. N she was found GUILTY in her husbands death. As for making it harder on her family n children it sounds like she n her fellow sheep followers do everything they can to make those poor children believe that Chris was a drug addicted alcoholic who was abusive to their mother mentally n physically. They were very young and impressionable. If Chris was abusing drugs and alcohol how could he be a pilot when they test them randomly all the time? Ann Rule can not defend herself anymore but her family and friends and colleagues and others can defend her good name. She was not a monster who tried to ruin a families life. That was Liysa when she shot her passed out husband in a sleeping bag point blank n tried to say she shot at him from a distance. I’m not saying he was perfect or that she was or was not abused. However why did she plead guilty if she wasn’t. If it was self defense as she claims. Also, why isn’t anyone asking her to refrain from saying derogatory things about Chris for their son’s sake? N thank you CJ for all the information you provided. I didn’t know all that information before. Stop trying to ruin a wonderful, talented woman! Yes Liysa has paid her debt to society and if she wants it to be over than she needs to leave it alone!!!
Please note Tracy that I wrote this blog before Ann Rule passed. It is not a personal attack, but the result of her sloppy writing. This blog does not portray Chris as a monster and does not even discuss the case. It is all about writing true crime novels.
Liysa has moved on. Someone had to point out the mistakes in Rule’s book. She has moved on to doing productive things for society. She has left it alone.
But, Lise, the forensic evidence does not lie, period. Chris was sedated to the point of coma, zipped into a sleeping bag and shot in the head at a downward trajectory. She said that she fired while running by the sleeping bag and heard a sound come from it. The angle of the shot did not add up. Then she said that Chris was very drunk and they found and photographed liquor bottles lying all around. But, there was no alcohol in his blood at the time of death. How did the bottles get there? This is a classic case of why you do not say anything to the police. Her story and the forensic evidence were miles apart. You say that you are not focusing on whether she was guilty or not and she did her time and all that. But, there is a human being who only got to live half of his life, who had a son and people who loved him. He got a death sentence that day and everything points to first degree murder. Monsters do things like this, but it looks like you are falling for the same manipulation she is so good at. But what will really tell the story is what she does from now on. A leopard does not change his spots and she thinks she got n away with something I’m sure because she was in prison and surely people in there told her that she got off easy. So we’ll see.
Hi David,
As I posted, ”Whatever one’s opinion is about the case of Liysa Northon Swart, a true crime writer should not publish a book without checking all facts in order to make a defendant look guilty as sin. With great power comes great responsibility.”
This blog is not about her guilt or innocence. Your comments would be great for the ones that were discussing her trial and case.
Here, I am talking about the aftermath and the fact that Rule took liberties with the truth. Such as with what she was charged with, what her father did, her level of education, how she was not abused, etc. All points that were confirmed to be false after several checks.
This blog starts after she was found guilty and served her entire sentence. Whatever people think of this aspect is not discussed here.
I’ve held off on commenting on this one, but this an amazing article & I used the background documents you link to in a short article I wrote about the case. (I should have given proper credit, I know!)
Full disclosure: I corresponded with Lisa Swart while she was prison. We never met in 3D life, but I have to say, she is a wonderful person who used her time in jail productively, is an amazing writer, and I do not believe for a second that she killed Chris Northon in anything other than self-defense. (I was *not* her attorney. Though I wish I had been, bc I think I could’ve done a better job–and heaven knows I’m no Gerry Spence or Vincent Bugliosi, but I like to think I’m, you know, COMPETENT!) Anyway, from my own experience I can say that she was a wonderful person who often wrote long letters helping to comfort & counsel *me,* rather than the other way around. I am so delighted that now she is happy and free, and I hope she can pick up her live & have an amazing one. Because she deserves it.
I found “Heart Full of Lies” the same way many people do–in an airport. I had read her previous book, Dead By Sunset, and thought it was interesting, even if I wasn’t overwhelmed by her pedestrian prose. I did, though, sense something wrong–I’d finished law school by that time, and life-wise, Liysa & I had a lot in common. Something didn’t pass the smell test, as they say. I was a bit swayed by Rule’s reputation–after all, people called her “The Queen of True Crime,” she’d written so many books, surely they were rigorously fact-checked? Yeah, I’m astonished at how naive I was.
I got in touch with her. Was very glad I did.
This article was very necessary, if only to shed some light on the fact that “true crime” is not always so true. You’d think we’d know better, with all the “based on a true story” movies that turn out to be anything but–but still, you have once again shown the high standards in your own journalism that Rule failed to reach here. Now can you take on M. William Phelps? LOL! 🙂
You don’t have to give me credit for the documents. We all take them somewhere and I find it futile to post my sources. We write blogs and not university papers or magazine articles, and if you notice, they all use the same facts without posting their sources. I have always found the bibliography to be the annoying part of writing. Instead, in my most recent blogs, I add the links as I go along, in case people want to read the in depth story.
Interesting disclosure. I am not aware of the legal representation she had at the time. I guess you would know better and as an attorney, you could see where you could have done better.
I am aware of what she does now and it is extremely positive.
Liysa is not the only one to have gone after Rule or to be totally flabbergasted by the content of her books. After reading more about her participation in the Ted case, I was far from being impressed. I do not like to talk ill of the dead, but she should have stuck to fiction and restrained from calling her work true crime.
Her books were never fact-checked because she dealt with a vulnerable section of our population: convicted inmates. She waited for them to be convicted before writing the story. The fact that she used to be a police officer obviously rendered her biased. And she needed to remain in good terms with them to have their cooperation so she was not going to go against public opinion.
She was more or less fishing in a barrel. She used subjects already despised in the community and chastised by the media. Liysa’s case was not well-known, but Rule brought national attention to it. How lovely for her children and family.
And let’s face it, she was way too close to the victim’s family to write an objective story.
I am glad you followed your legal instinct and communicated with Liysa. Going against what the Queen of True Crime has to say to get to know an inmate and listen objectively to her story takes a valiant effort.
I don’t see what Liysa would have had to gain by wanting her husband dead. She had everything to lose as a mother and a citizen. And it is not like she tried to hide the cause of his death. He was not pushed down a ravine or poisoned and his death not made to look like an accident either. It was a domestic violence situation.
It is not easy to remain objective when you cannot detach from your own opinion of a case. The family of Diane Downs and a few others are to this day, very upset at the damage caused by her books. In my opinion, a trial is plenty without adding fantasy to the mix for the whole mighty buck. Inmates should have a right to be rehabilitated without a mob waiting for them with pitchforks.
I agree that true crime, at least about the high profile cases out there, are very often based on a lot of fiction or at the very least, on allegations. They have a lot of grey areas, but it seems easier to present them black and white to appeal to the readers. People like stories of good, bad and evil. The other ones are too complicated.
We are lucky that Liysa did her homework to expose this book and that it was checked by serious sources afterwards. Many books that could not pass the sniff test are not the object of this scrutiny.
Thanks again, for your interesting input about this case. I will let you handle Phelps.
Did u ever talk n verify facts with Chris’s family? N if u never met someone in person how can u just go by letters that she is a wonderful person and Chris the monster? N again, Ann Rule was an amazing and talented woman and writer to most people. Minus the people who she wrote about like Liysa and Diane Downs. U sound just as one sided as the people u r claiming were. Liysa pleaded guilty to killing her husband and did a little bit of time for that. Chris is not here thanks to Liysa to defend his name. She should not be able to tell her son by Chris what she wants him to think anymore than Chris’s supporters should say things about his mother. Ann Rule did not hurt this family. Liysa did that on her own.
Tracy, the wonderful Sister Morphine who was an attorney has passed. She will be missed. She knew the case very well.
Lise: Liysa’s lawyers threatened to quit on her, virtually on the eve of trial, if she did not not take the 12 1/2 year plea-bargain they were offering. It turns out much of the money she had paid them was misspent, for which they rec’d a slap on the wrist from the state bar. They also implied to her that “damaging evidence” had been found on one of her computers, and though she knew no such evidence existed, she was pretty much trapped by that point.
Here’s something interesting: She did a fantastic job representing HERSELF at her custody hearing–although Ann Rule made it sound in the book as if she were snippy & unprofessional for bringing up Chris’s “family issues.” Never mind that those were very relevant to the questions of custody & visitation and any family lawyer worth their JD would have asked them. Let me just say this re: Liysa’s self-representation: In most states, you automatically lose your parental rights if you are incarcerated for a certain amount of time. In the states I have practiced, it varies from 48 months–very common–to even less, although some states are more lenient than others about reinstatement.
I believe in OR at the time it was 46 months, or something similar. Liysa kept her parental rights and also managed to get most of what she was requesting (right to be consulted on matters of education, visitation, etc.) Makes me wonder if she wouldn’t have had more luck representing herself at trial, something no attorney would normally ever recommend! But she is an extremely smart woman. It was a true gift to get to know her, especially at that time in my life.
So much of what she wrote in “Heart Full of Lies” made little sense, which is why, I say, I felt it didn’t pass the sniff test. I felt similarly about another book of hers about another so-called “female sociopath,” Debora Green (“Bitter Harvest.”) In an almost identical fashion to “Heart Full of Lies,” she turned the husband into a hero and neglected some very basic information. I’d ask you to write a post about it, but I applaud you for tackling TWO of her books. Given that I’ve read more lyrical prose in the phone book, asking you to write on a third would be cruel & unusual 🙂
As for Phelps–I’d love to, but I’m not the writer you are. And that’s not empty flattery, just that I’m certainly not the writer you are!
So many lawyers take that road if they feel that they cannot win the case. In this situation, they would have had to build a defense around what happened between them, instead of only the day of his death.
I did not really touch on that in the blog. It is more about the fact that she has done her time and Rule made it a double sentence for her.
She is a fighter and I am not surprised that she managed to retain her rights. In my opinion, even if you are very smart, it is never a good idea to represent yourself.
Several people were upset at Rule’s representation of their case, and they felt she had all the power. She was a good writer and it’s too bad that she chose money over writing an honest story. She chased the pot of gold and now her reputation is not stellar, even if she still has many happy readers.
When it comes down to it, she knew what she was doing and decided to proceed anyway. You can never write a story without injecting your own bias, may it be willingly or subconsciously. She was blatant about it. It almost rises to the level of white collar crime.
I never read any of Phelps’s books. My intention was not to attack Rule, but the stories I came across reminded me that we cannot remain silent when half of a story has been left behind.
As you can look up I virtually blogged about this case alone for a year or so before Swart exposed this. You can look it up on “Murder and Mayhem” site. However Rule also wrote other books that are greatly fabricated. The Ron Reynolds non case comes to mind. I tried to expose that. However the blog operated was tiring of me … Though did assure people I was indeed not Rick Swart. I was hoping Swart or someone would look into other Rule books… Someday they will!
Hi Brett, I will have to look it up and check out your site. The Downs’family was none too pleased with Rule’s book. In fact the prosecutor was not happy about it either.
This is a link of another family affected by Rule’s book https://polishingyourprose.wordpress.com/2013/11/16/36-years-ago-today-our-final-good-bye/
They said “Three decades later, a dispute over how to respond to the publication of an inaccurate account of the deaths in a true-crime book written by Ann Rule ripped my tattered family even farther apart.”
I don’t know that Rick Swart will get into other cases. They had their hands full with their own story and fighting Rule in court. Swart and the Seattle paper won, and the author has now passed.
It is up to the subject of a book to speak up and gather enough information to debunk a book written about his or her case. But it is not an easy feat. It involves time and money that most people do not have. They do not want to stir up the case either.
My daughter was in a very dangerous relationship for years. She stayed because she could not get the protection she needed from the police. Restraining orders are no good. They don’t work. She finally left and relocated to another city and tricked him into thinking she was somewhere else. So yes she told people about it and law enforcement did not protect her!
It is so unfortunate Bev that your daughter did not get the protection she needed from law enforcement. I am glad she left and could relocate far away. Women with children are in double jeopardy because they need to protect their children also and judges are not always understanding of the danger the kids face if custody is shared.
It is never easy to walk away, and there is often a conspiracy of silence between the abuser and family and friends. They do not want their loved one to get in trouble because violent partners can have great qualities and the abuse is not always constant. Not as easy as it sounds to speak up and get the necessary support.
Thank you for sharing.
Uh… excuse me, but there is no such thing as a “nonfiction novel.” A novel, by definition, is FICTION.
Nonfiction novel, story of actual people and actual events told with the dramatic techniques of a novel. The American writer Truman Capote claimed to have invented this genre with his book In Cold Blood (1965).
I too have been victimized by Ann Rule. My story will be coming out soon. Ann Rule claimed to be truthful and honest and factual but in my case, she put me in [in a foreword of another book she was writing] and claimed that she had my permission which she did not [and I have an email from her in which she tells me she put me in and “no one will ever know it is you” – that is not permission nor was the writeup flattering nor was it accurate. I recently in an effort to undo the damage of a case that is nationally known and which I was a victim, received the records and I put them into a collection just published “Reflections on Green River.” These documents show that Ann Rule’s comments about the Green River Killer interview with Ted Bundy in prison are not accurate. These documents also show that Robert Keppel’s book, “Riverman” also stated some comments that are not true quotes of the conversation exchanges. Much was taken out of context. The documents were received FOIA legally and they reveal several areas of concern. Ann Rule may have passed and we need to respect that but at the same time, she has done some damage to others. Hopefully, time and truth will balance it all out.
I am sorry to hear that you have also been victimized by her writing. I hope the truth comes out and that they are forced to withdraw some of her books and publish retractions. I realize that it is hard to attack the reputation of a writer no longer with us, but her legacy needs to bee real. The good, the bad and the ugly.
Thank you for stopping by and for sharing the information on Reflections on Green River. We are interested in facts, whichever way they fall.
You all should be ashamed of yourselves insinuating Rule is some kind of con artist and mental manipulator of millions of her fans. One lawsuit came from one case. Where are all the defamed and injured parties lawsuits if her books are full of so many untruths? And now you want to take on Phelps in the same manner? You are dangerously close to libeling him in your comments. Let’s see what he thinks because I am going to email this link with all your comments.
Free speech Bonnie. If you do not appreciate the article, move on. I have never heard of Phelps so you can send him whatever you want. Readers who comment on my blogs also have the right to express their opinion freely.
If you aspire to “write the truth” get it right.
You say “Liysa pled guilty to Felony Murder: The plea bargain was for Manslaughter with Extreme Emotional disturbance.”
In Oregon Murder committed under extreme emotional disturbance IS First Degree Manslaughter.
So she is a legally convicted, self-admitted killer.
http://www.criminaldefenselawyer.com/resources/felony-murder.htm#
Oregon law: http://www.oregonlaws.org/ors/163.115
It can be first and second degree manslaughter. The term is manslaughter with extreme emotional disturbance and not felony murder, which is different.
I am not contesting the fact that Liysa pleaded guilty and did her time. The blog is not about her punishment but true crime writing. Ann wrote Felony murder in her book.
Wow, if only the first 3 chapters are true, she’s crazy. I’ve been a victim of abuse and there is NO way I’d ever have left my children alone with him. Case closed for me. It’s all about Liysa
Donna, your comment is very confusing. If there is one thing that Rule emphasized in her book it’s that Northon was a great mother. According to her defense, she ended up in prison for trying to protect her children. How can you not let your children alone with their father? The law forces you to share custody, even when there is alleged abuse.
So sorry Liysa, I believe it all now. Thanks for pointing that out. Silly me
So you do know how to be sarcastic. Bravo!
Read “Dead by Sunset”. There’s a real tragedy. But it’s by Anne Rule so obviously fake. Brad Cunningham (aka Liysa) is totally innocent
Hey Donna, now you are the one making general statements. I never said Rule was not a good writer and I never read Dead by Sunset. Mind you, I heard it was a bit boring. Even if she took liberties with the subject matter, nobody is saying every subject is innocent. Saying that she was not truthful about people accused of murder in some of her books is not claiming their innocence.
For me, the test of a true crime book is how accurately it presents the forensic evidence and if you check this against the evidence presented in court, there are no discrepancies.
Whatever your opinion of Rule’s book, for me the defining point of Chris Northon’s death was that he was unconscious for a considerable amount of time before he was killed. He went on a camping trip to a secluded place, with his wife who happened to take along enough paraphernalia to kill him at her leisure; he was tightly bound in a sleeping bag and had been heavily unconscious long enough for a large amount of urine to accumulate in his bladder while his muscles were paralyzed. And then he was killed. This was all corroborated by physical evidence in court and directly contradicted Liysa’s account of how he died.
I don’t see what quibbling over Liysa’s childhood or academic qualifications achieves.
She didn’t go to trial for any of that, she went to trial for killing a man. She staged the crime scene by leaving bottles of alcohol strewn around, when forensic tests showed that he had minimal alcohol in his system. She lied about what happened, so I’m prepared to believe that she lied about other things as well.
I’m shocked and disgusted that she received such a short sentence, and I’m also disgusted that people are using petty arguments to justify a cold-blooded crime.
My article is not about rehashing the circumstances of the death of her husband or the length or fairness of her sentence. It happened and cannot be undone. The lady did her time as prescribed by the court. I do not even go there.
It is about true crime writing and the discrepancies found in Rule’s books. You might consider her character assassination and lack of accuracy as petty details, but I don’t, and many people she wrote about could not afford to take on this 800 pound gorilla because of her clout (analogy from Swart). I know she passed away but it was written beforehand. Her books are her legacy so it is important to keep it real.
In reply to Francesca
I agree hundred percent with you, Francesca. Very well summarized. That murder was planned. It was not self-defence.
I read about 11 of Anne Rules books and she is an excellent writer of the facts that I can see. I agree this was murder and planned and not self- defense.
Regarding writers and cases. Any thoughts on Dr Jeffery MacDonald? Just saw an article that he is withdrawing request for appeal. Also, he sued the writer at his trial and I think he was awarded damages.
I grew up and went to school in Central Oregon with Chris Northon, and we were close friends throughout the years. I knew his parents, Dick and Jeannie, and his sisters, Mary and Sally well. I met Lyssa on several occasions after they married. Initially she seemed cool but, she deteriorated into jealousy and paranoia regarding Chris in a few years. No way did Chris abuse or batter her. Even my ex-wife, noticed how weird Lyssa was on visits and had expressed sadness for Chris as she knew him as a kind/gentle person. I have not read Ann Rules book as the subject is too close for me. But I can tell you if Lyssa were in front of me there are questions I could ask, look into her eyes, and she simply would lie if she even responded. There is nothing about that woman that deserves anyones sympathy.
The blog is not aboout Lyssa or her crime. She was convicted and did her time. It is about the lies in Anne Rule’s book.