Candice Fox’s Crime Writing Crash Course | Online 2025

Learn to write great crime with Ned Kelly Award-winning, bestselling author Candice Fox.

This course is a distilled, fortified look at the resources available to aspiring authors who want to write in the crime fiction genre. With a keen eye for inspiration in the world of true crime, and an award-winning ability to fashion characters who compel readers, Candice Fox takes students through the current market, the genre’s history, and what makes crime books work. With a no-sugar-coating approach to making money in a writing career, Candice is ready to hear ideas, lift spirits out of the rejection doldrums, and give you what you need to get your fingers racing across the keyboard. 

Course Outline

Inspiration – We get creative and explore what good ideas are available, and how to pick from the masses of criminal information to find the stories that compel readers. A discussion of trends in crime fiction publishing, what’s new and noteworthy, and inspiration-gathering exercises get participants challenging themselves. 

Danger zones – Don't make others' mistakes! What makes a great idea flop? Is it terrible execution, or trends in the market? We poke holes in some of the world’s biggest crime books, and discuss how to hook readers from the get-go. The post-#metoo minefield is a consideration, but just as dangerous to a book’s success is an author’s inability to edit their own work objectively. Candice helps you navigate the murky waters after your book is written.

Launch pad – Why this book, why now, and why you? From agents to publishers and then out into the market, your book is on a long and treacherous journey to find success. Candice answers any and all questions about finding representation, marketing yourself as an author, and getting your writing career off the ground. 

When: Saturday 14 June

Time: 10am - 1pm AEST

Cost: General price $120.00 +$3.50BF (AUD) / Festival Friend price $100 + $3.00BF (AUD)

Where: Online via Zoom only

Event link:  You will be emailed a Zoom link a week prior to the online workshop, and again on the morning of the workshop.

Who is it for:  This course suits aspiring authors who have had a good go at writing, maybe completed a manuscript or written a substantial piece. Beginner to intermediate.

Limited Places: Workshop limited to 40, so be quick to secure your place.

About Candice

Candice Fox is the author of eleven solo novels, three of which have won Australia's prestigious Ned Kelly Award. She has multiple TV and film adaptations currently in production, with the adaptation of her bestselling Crimson Lake hitting screens as Troppo starring Thomas Jane and Nicole Chamoun in 2022. A third season of the hit show is currently in production.

​In 2015, Candice began collaborating with James Patterson. Every one of their seven novels together have been New York Times best sellers. 

​Candice lives in Sydney with her family and is a volunteer rescuer of injured wildlife.