There is no denying that contemporary audiences have an insatiable appetite for killers: myth, legend, and reality. The soaring success, and continued demand, for fictions and nonfictions that document the dealings of serial killers and murders provide ample evidence for this. We are fascinated by their narratives and by their psychologies, and it is perhaps this need or want to understand the killer’s thinking that, in part, makes them so attractive to read and view. However, delineation between fiction and nonfiction continues to be a greyscale area. There are no longer certainties in crime fiction, nor in true crime writing, when it comes to the factual and the fictive. Instead, there is a space in which violent offenders can be both real and imagined at once, creating ambiguities around their crimes and, indeed, around our appetites for them. This edited collection will explore the areas of fact, fiction, and “inspired by”, with specific consideration to (fictional) serial killers, mass murderers, and their real-life counterparts.

We are welcoming abstracts around, but not limited to, the following areas of discussion:

• K-Drama, including but not limited to critical considerations of Memorist (2020), Tunnel (2017), Voice (2017-2021), and Mouse (2021).
• In conjunction with the above, abstracts that consider a greater collapse of genre boundaries – serial killer narratives with a fantasy element being one pronounced example – are also encouraged.
• Audience participation in serial killer narratives, particularly narratives branded “unsolved” or so-called cold cases. Lee Chun-jae/the Hwaseong murders (solved after thirty-three years) being one such example. Additional examples of this will also be considered, with a preference given to non-Western narratives.
• The apparent influx and increased interest in Nordic Noir productions, both in visual and written format.
• The collapse of the real and imagined in Nordic Noir, including but not limited to productions such as The Hunt for a Killer (2020), The Valhalla Murders (2019), The Lørenskog Disappearance (2022), and Barracuda Queens (2023).
• Serial killer soundtracks and the ways in which music is utilised throughout productions that narrate stories of serial murder. Does music play a supporting role in the serial killer narrative?
• The utilisation of real-life serial killers in music productions. How are serial killers “name-dropped” and how are their names used throughout existing song publications? Examples include Alkaline Trio’s ‘Sadie’, Jane’s Addiction’s ‘Ted, Just Admit It’, Sex Pistols’s ‘No One Is Innocent’, and Melvins’s ‘Zodiac’.

In the first instance we invite abstracts of 250 words to be received by December 18th 2024, along with a short biographical note, which should be emailed to Dr Charlotte Barnes: c.barnes@worc.ac.uk. Please use the subject heading “Serial Killers: Fact into fiction”. Essays of approximately 4,500 words will be required by early 2026. The proposed volume will be part of the Genre, Fiction and Film Series at Peter Lang, Oxford.