WHY WRITERS NEED THIS BOOK

Much of what the public believes it understands about espionage in general and the CIA in particular, and anything in between, comes from spy fiction (spy-fi): novels, television series, and movies. Sometimes the writers get it right. More often, they do not, to the detriment of the public's understanding of what intelligence officers do for our country, the development of misimpressions at home and overseas of the missions and operations of these organizations, and a winnowing of the number of talented people who would otherwise consider a career in intelligence. Intelligence is one of the world's oldest professions, and possibly the most misunderstood.

This book will give you tips on how intelligence officers go about their work, what some of our arcane language means, and what they are like. It will point out common myths, and suggest how you can avoid perpetuating their more deleterious effects on your credibility and their public images. This book covers the types of material that the author and his colleagues frequently see in fictional writing about espionage, and will lead you away from some of the more common glaring errors. It will give you just what you need to provide an accurate flavor of where intel officers work, what they do, how they sound, how they think, and what motivates them. You can improve the accuracy of your writing and eliminate unintentionally irritating slurs against American patriots by paying careful attention to these observations.