SOURCE: "Marketing America's Psychos," in Publishers Weekly, Vol. 240, April 12, 1993, pp. 38-41.

[In the following essay, Weyr provides an overview of the publishing industry's views on why people read true crime, the characteristics of the market, and what components publishers look for in true-crime books.]

What's the fatal attraction in true crime that draws so many millions to the genre? Surprisingly few sociological studies have probed the nature of American society for clues. For some of publishing's most distinguished editors, however, the roots of true crime go back a long way—and dig deep into the human psyche.

The consensus seems to be that readers relish the shudder of horror and relief. They buy books that mirror situations that could happen to them, on their block, in their town or their school. "The horror is that it could be anyone," says St. Martin's associate publisher Sally Richardson. "When I'm...