Fashion inspiration can be found anywhere, and books are incredible sources for style innovation. Book-Inspired Fashion explores these treasure troves, and brings them them to you in looks inspired by vibrant characters, far away lands, brilliantly woven plotlines, and more.

This week, I’m heading into darker territory (yes, darker than the Heart of Darkness) while also transitioning to nonfiction with the groundbreaking new genre of true crime that blossomed in the 20th century.

Please note: These outfits are NOT meant to draw inspiration from acts of murder – on the contrary, the looks are inspired by the detective work, journalist effort, and media reaction that developed in the aftermath of the crime.

Table of Contents

Reading Between the Lines

In Cold Blood was published in 1966 by American author Truman Capote, who was perhaps best known at the time for his bestselling work of fiction, Breakfast at Tiffany’s (which was adapted into an award-winning film starring Audrey Hepburn in 1961).

If it seems like a huge shift in genre, that’s because it was, but Capote’s skill as a fiction writer gave In Cold Blood the tense, chilling narrative edge it needed to really launch the genre to a wide, general audience.

Appealing to nonfiction and fiction lovers alike, the book was an immediate success and cemented Capote as a writer of great dedication, skill, and versatility. Interestingly enough, author Harper Lee assisted Capote in the hands-on research of the Clutter family murder, and was already a respected author in her own right for To Kill a Mockingbird.

Capote spent several years researching the events of this book, and managed to capture miniscule details, from the buried childhood of the two criminals – Richard Hickock and Perry Smith – to their long-awaited execution by hanging. His attention to detail enables the reader to be fully immersed in the tension, fear, and anxiety surrounding the murders, and Capote went to such lengths as interviewing the two men in prison daily before their execution.