Brief bio: Ann Rule
Published: October 18, 2001
In the course of writing 20 books, Ann Rule has established herself as a dean of true-crime writing, but a novelist couldn't have created a better twist for her debut title, The Stranger Beside Me (1980). It was to be a book about an unknown serial killer then murdering women in the Seattle area. At the time, Rule was working nights alone at a suicide hotline with a handsome young student. The two had become close friends. The serial killer and her colleague turned out to be the same man: Ted Bundy. Since then, Rule has developed a loyal following. A former Seattle policewoman and a mother of five, she earned a degree in creative writing and extensively studied criminology, police and forensic procedures. Her expertise qualifies her to teach seminars to law enforcement groups. She lives near Seattle.
Credits: 1,400 articles; other books (20 million in print) include Every Breath You Take, due out this month, and And Never Let Her Go, A Rage to Kill, Empty Promises, Bitter Harvest and Small Sacrifices.
Why: I can remember when I was 9 thinking, one thing I never want to do is be a writer, because it would be too hard. And yet I found myself in junior high involved in school newspapers and writing at home. It was such a wonderful way of expressing how I see life, and the things that interest me that I want to share with others.
(To read the complete interview, see the December 2001 issue.) |