I wasn't even sure where to put this, because it blends the debate about Amanda Knox with the "how-to's" of fiction writing, and the question that I've seen repeatedly here -- that is, about writing non-fiction versus fiction, and being inspired by real life events. This article was written by a woman who has written a novel about the Amanda Knox case. She initially wanted to write a nonfiction account, but after assessing everything, ultimately decided fiction was a better avenue. http://www.salon.com/2014/02/09/amanda_knox_what_really_happened_writing_toward_the_actual_story/ I thought this was an interesting read.