Diane Fanning (born June 21, 1950) is an American crime writer and author who writes nonfiction and mystery novels.
Diane Fanning | |
|---|---|
| Born | Diane Lynn Butcher June 21, 1950 Baltimore, Maryland, U.S. |
| Occupation | Crime writer; mystery novelist |
| Alma mater | Perry Hall High School Lynchburg College |
| Period | 2000–present |
| Genre | Crime fiction |
| Subject | True crime |
| Notable works | Mommy's Little Girl |
| Notable awards | Edgar Award nomination |
| Website | |
| www | |
Biography
editFanning was born Diane Lynn Butcher in Baltimore, Maryland. She graduated from Perry Hall High School, and then Lynchburg College in Virginia, where she majored in chemistry.[1] She and her husband live in Bedford, Virginia.[1]
Career
editAfter college, she wrote for the advertising field, earning more than 70 Addy Awards for her work. During that time, she wrote as a freelance writer.
Her career shifted into nonprofit work with a move to New Braunfels, Texas. Fanning worked for fundraising groups, including Another Way Texas Shares[2] and the National Association for Choice in Giving. She began her first book while living in Texas. She is co-founder of Women in Crime Ink,[3] described by The Wall Street Journal as "a blog worth reading."[4]
In 2002, Fanning corresponded with serial killer Tommy Lynn Sells, who, in a letter to her, confessed to murdering 10-year-old Joel Kirkpatrick, whose mother had been convicted of killing her son. According to the Innocence Project, Fanning's testimony before a prison review board about the letter and her book Through the Window, which details Sells' crime spree, were said to help prove Harper's innocence.[5] In 2011, Fanning was given the Defenders of the Innocent Award by the Illinois Innocence Project for getting the confession from Sells.[6]
In 2006, her book Written in Blood received an Edgar Award nomination.[7]
Fanning has been interviewed for CBS's "48 Hours Mystery" in November 2009 and Investigation Discovery in 2010 and 2011.[8] CBS's "Crimesider" column featured her in a story about the Casey Anthony case.[9]
Awards
editBooks
editThis article lacks ISBNs for the books listed. (August 2020) |
Fiction
edit- Bite the Moon (Molly Mullet mystery; Five Star, 2007)
- The Trophy Exchange (2008)
- Punish the Deed (2009)
- Mistaken Identity (2010)
- Twisted Reason (2010)[12]
- False Front (2012)
- Wrong Turn (2013)
- Chain Reaction (2014)
Libby Clark series (Severn House)
edit- Scandal in the Secret City (2014)
- Treason in the Secret City (2016
- Sabotage in the Secret City (2018)
Nonfiction
edit- Red Boots & Attitude with Susie Kelly Flatau (Eakin Press, 2002)
- Through the Window (serial killer Tommy Lynn Sells, St. Martin's Press, 2003)
- Into the Water (serial killer Richard Evonitz, St. Martin's Press, 2004)
- Written in Blood (Kathleen Peterson murder, St. Martin's Press, 2005)
- Baby Be Mine (Bobbie Jo Stinnett murder, St. Martin's Press, 2006)
- Gone Forever (Susan McFarland murder, St. Martin's Press, 2006)
- Under the Knife (Dean Faiello case, St. Martin's Press, 2007)
- Out There (Lisa Nowak case, St. Martin's Press, 2007)
- The Pastor's Wife (Matthew Winkler murder, St. Martin's Press, 2008)
- A Poisoned Passion (Wendi Mae Davidson case, St. Martin's Press, 2009)
- Mommy's Little Girl (Casey Anthony case, St. Martin's Press, 2009)
- Her Deadly Web (Raynella Dossett Leath case, St. Martin's Press, 2012)
- Sleep My Darlings (Schenecker double homicide, St. Martin's Press, 2013)
- Bitter Remains (Laura Ackerson murder, Berkley Books, 2016)
- Death on the River (Angelika Graswald case, St Martin's Press, 2019)
References
edit- ^ a b "About the Author". Retrieved October 8, 2018.
- ^ Ball, Andrea (2005-10-16). "Charity workers also adventurers, athletes, writers". Austin American-Statesman.
Diane Fanning, who works with the nonprofit fundraising group Another Way Texas Shares, spends her time writing true crime books.
- ^ Contributor, Women in Crime Ink
- ^ The Wall Street Journal article featuring Women in Crime Ink
- ^ "Illinois Times, "Who Killed Joel?" October 2003". Archived from the original on 2012-05-18. Retrieved 2010-09-22.
- ^ Downstate Illinois Innocence Project site, "Events," April 25, 2011
- ^ "Edgar Award nomination". Archived from the original on 2014-01-06. Retrieved 2014-03-04.
- ^ "Book 'Em: Mommy's Little Girl -- Casey Anthony and her Daughter Caylee's Tragic Fate," "48 Hours Mystery," November 9, 2009
- ^ 48 Hours' "Crimesiders," "Book 'Em: Mommy's Little Girl -- Casey Anthony and her Daughter Caylee's Tragic Fate," Nov. 9, 2009
- ^ Award listing, National Alliance for Choice in Giving, Austin Chronicle
- ^ The State Journal-Register, "3 honored by Downstate Innocence Project," May 16, 2011
- ^ Twisted Reason (Lucinda Pierce Mystery), September 2010