True crime modified or invented?

[Angela]

I have an idea for a story. I'm just starting out and wondering if I should attempt to build my crime from scratch, or loosely base it off of an actual event? I'd say the story leans more toward romantic suspense than actual mystery or crime.

[Burl Barer]

yes, the cadence of real life dialog, or lack of it, can make or break the shock absorbers in the readers' suspension of disbelief.