Book about sensational Mark Twitchell murder case wins national crime- writing award
Ex-journal reporter Steve Lillebuen wins Arthur Ellis prize
A former Edmonton Journal reporter who wrote a book on the sensational Edmonton Internet-luring case of Mark Twitchell has won the Arthur Ellis Award for best non-fiction crime writing in Canada.
Steve Lillebuen won the best nonfiction book prize for The Devil’s Cinema: The Untold Story Behind Mark Twitchell’s Kill Room. The prizes were announced Thursday night at a gala in Toronto.
“Sadly, I wasn’t able to make it to Toronto,” said Lillebuen in an interview, “but my editor was there, and so was my agent, and they emailed me on their phones the second they found out.
“There was lots of emails back and forth, and lots of jubilation and excitement.”
Twitchell was convicted of the first-degree murder of Johnny Altinger on April 12, 2011, after a threeweek trial that attracted widespread media coverage, including a featurelength U.S. news segment. Altinger, 38, a quiet oilfield industry worker, was lured to his death by Twitchell when he posed as a woman on a dating website. Another man, Gilles Tetreault, barely escaped with his life when he was attacked in a separate incident.
Over roughly three years, Lillebuen worked to weave together interviews and research into the book. He said he had to immerse himself in the “darkness” of the bizarre case to be able to tell the story, a process that included a year spent interviewing the killer via correspondence.
“I come from a breaking news background,” said Lillebuen, “so getting the chance to write a non-fiction book was like jumping off the treadmill and straight into a marathon. To have my first attempt at running this race recognized is an incredible honour.
“I feel a real mix of luck and total gratitude to have been able to tell a pretty chilling story that has resonated with so many readers. I hope (the award) prompts another round of readers to dive into the book.”
In the end, says Lillebuen, he came to believe that what happened with Twitchell wasn’t just about murder, but also about the sometimes dangerous consequences of living in a digital age.
He said the book provides a lot of answers about how and why Twitchell, a seemingly normal man, could morph into a monstrous would-be serial killer, and how everything from Facebook to television played a role.
Lillebuen now lives now in Melbourne, Australia with his wife Sarah, a veterinarian, and works for Australian Associated Press, the country’s national news agency.
Meanwhile, Giles Blunt’s thriller Until the Night has claimed the best novel prize at the Arthur Ellis Awards. Blunt, born in Windsor, Ont., won the same prize for his 2002 book The Delicate Storm.
The Arthur Ellis Awards for excellence in Canadian crime writing, presented by the Crime Writers of Canada, have been handed out since 1984.