✍️ What Inspired Novel Noir: The Real Origins of the Story
Lewis Faulkner
May 30, 2026
Intro
This post explores the layered inspirations, artistic influences, research, and unexpected discoveries that shaped the creation of 'Novel Noir.'
Also, through the lens of Agency Focus, this post reflects on the decisions behind writing this novel, asking how choice operates during the act of creation itself.
Key Takeaways
- How the original idea for Novel Noir emerged
- Why noir storytelling became essential
- The artistic and historical influences behind the novel
- How research shaped realism and atmosphere
- What changed during the writing process
- Why creative discovery mattered more than rigid planning
Table of Contents
Definitions
Audience
This post is written primarily for:
→ Behind the Scenes - Novel Noir
Primary Focus
The main conceptual focus of this post is:
→ Agency
Secondary Focus
The secondary focus of this post is:
→ Perception
Systems Focus
Posts under Systems explore institutions, technologies, structures, and incentives that shape human behavior and outcomes.
Perception Focus
Posts under Perception examine interpretation, belief, bias, and the stories we tell ourselves about the world.
Agency Focus
Posts under Agency investigate choice, responsibility, autonomy, and the power to act within real constraints.
👉 Still from the Movie: Double Indemnity (1944)
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1️⃣ Where the Story First Appeared
If my memory’s trustworthy, I’m pretty sure the inspiration for Novel Noir arrived while I was eating breakfast at McDonald’s.
My wife and I had only one car, and each morning, she dropped me off at the McDonald's near where I worked.
The trouble was, she had to be at work earlier than me, so she had to drop me off, and because the store where I worked didn’t open until an hour later, I had to wait inside the McDonald’s, because it was too cold to sit outside.
I was honing my writing notes each morning.
Thinking of possible plot twists, going deeper into my character.
Eventually, I remember noticing that the main character was constantly thinking about food, or smelling food, or eating food, or describing food. This was because I could smell the food being cooked in McDonald’s, but I didn’t have the extra money to buy anything.
I removed all the food references in the notes and the writing and got down to serious business.
By then, I knew the main character pretty well, and some of the minor characters.
But I couldn’t find a perfect location.
I’d also watched a few black-and-white movies because I wanted a noir atmosphere for the novel.
But if everything in the novel wasn’t conveying a black-and-white world to the reader, how could I convey that atmosphere in a modern setting, so that the reader would recognize the 1940s parallels I would be making underneath it all?
These challenging questions helped me avoid the smell of the fast food.
Was I destitute?
No.
But my wife and I were saving what little money we could come up with for a cruise.
📌 What is it?
Most novels begin long before the plot takes shape.
The earliest version of Novel Noir existed first as tone, image, atmosphere, and emotional tension before becoming a structured narrative.
What first inspired Novel Noir?
The novel began through layered artistic influences, visual atmosphere, and emotional ideas rather than a single isolated concept.
🎯 Why it matters
Some writers try to keep a lot of the backstory for their novels private.
They believe it takes away from the story.
But in today's world, if you're like me, you become more emotionally invested in a story when you understand where the story emotionally originated.
Plus, it's kind of fun stuff to know.
🧪 Example
I was taking lots of notes, and thinking a lot about the plot and the characters.
But, at this time, there were lots of unknowns.
💡 How to Apply It
Everyone should trust any small, creative sparks that comes your way.
Especially if you're a Creative!
You have to trust that the spark could be leading you to a much bigger world where you'd enjoy spending time.
Whether you're a Creative or not, pay attention to those small, creative sparks.
They may lead you to something wonderful.
💬 Memorable Line
Stories often arrive long before they explain themselves.
👉 Montage Image by: Lewis Faulkner
👉 FaulknerFiction takes pride in supporting other Creatives!
2️⃣ Why Noir Was the Only Language for This Story
I wanted the readers to enter a world that was dark, corrupt, and selfish. And I felt like there was a parallel with many of the 1940s, noir movies. Noir seemed like the perfect language for that story.
Why did this story become noir?
Because noir allowed emotional ambiguity, atmosphere, and psychological tension to become central to the storytelling itself.
📌 What is it?
Noir (French for "black") is a stylistic movement that originated in 1940s and 1950s Hollywood crime dramas. It is characterized by stark, shadow-heavy visuals, cynical characters, and morally ambiguous narratives.
The style typically explores the bleak, corrupted underbelly of society through an existentialist lens. - Wikipedia
This genre perfectly matched the story I wanted to tell and carried the emotional logic and style I wanted to convey.
🎯 Why it matters
The genre itself became a strong part of the novel’s emotional architecture.
By now, I had a lot of coordinating to work out before I started writing, I busied myself with
⏩ Reading nonfiction books on noir
⏩ Watching old black-and-white movies
⏩ Researching at the local library
⏩ Taking lots of notes
Sometimes, inspiration is a byproduct of the synergy coming from the combination of various materials and ingredients.
By this point, the creative volcano was rumbling.
I could feel it.
Huffs of steam were escaping, occasionally, and there was a lot of red-hot magma churning around inside me.
But I was overwhelmed. I just couldn't find a way to coordinate it all into one central story.
Then, I got the idea that my main character might be color-blind.
But even color-blind people can see some colors.
So just color-blind wouldn't cut it.
Eventually, my color-blindness research took me to an even more rare eye disease.
🧪 Example
Scenes in Novel Noir become more powerful because the noir atmosphere helped shape the reader's interpretation.
💡 How to Understand It
If atmosphere and mood are important, first choose the genre you want to write in, based on emotional logic, not what's trendy.
💬 Memorable Line
Genre isn’t decoration. It’s architecture.
👉 Montage Image by: Lewis Faulkner
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3️⃣ The Research, Films, and Influences Behind the Novel
📌 What is it?
That rare eye disease?
Achromatopsia.
Achromatopsia is a rare, bilateral inherited retinal degeneration affecting all three types of cone photoreceptor cells that results in reduced visual acuity, photophobia, hemeralopia, and severe loss of color discrimination.
Yeah, I know.
Me, too.
Very academic.
Slightly boring.
But hidden within that boredom, there was a secret door that showed me how to create a main character who could only see things in black-and-white!
Now, I was getting somewhere.
I had the point of view for a black-and-white story.
Now, I needed to refine my main character.
How much research influenced Novel Noir?
Quite a lot!
Research became part of the atmosphere, realism, and emotional texture of the novel rather than simply background information.
🎯 Why it matters
William Raven.
Yes, ravens are black-feathered.
Corny, I know.
But it was my first novel.
What about a love interest?
In most old, black-and-white movies, you'll find a femme fatale.
Then, I stumbled on maybe the best noir movie ever.
Double Indemnity.
If you only watch one black-and-white movie, this is the one.
I locked in on the then-popular Sharon Stone, and studied her characterization in the movies Diabolique, Sliver, and, of course, Basic Instinct.
I was starting to get the full vibe on my femme fatale!
🧠 Some of the Things I Researched (and Why They Matter)
Readers often underestimate how many unrelated influences merge together inside a finished novel.
Most novels emerge from overlapping influences rather than a single source of inspiration.
| Influence Source | Category | Key Influence |
|---|---|---|
| James M. Cain Novels | Literary Influence | Moral tension, fatalism, noir psychology |
| Raymond Carver Stories | Literary Influence | Minimalism, emotional realism, silence |
| 1940s Black & White Films | Visual Atmosphere | Lighting, shadow, tension, framing |
| Books on Film Editing | Structural Influence | Scene rhythm and pacing |
| Directors of Noir Films | Cinematic Influence | Visual storytelling and mood |
| Research on Eye Diseases | Medical Research | Realism and character detail |
| Research on Plastic Surgery | Technical Research | Authenticity and narrative plausibility |
| Cruise Photography and Research | Location Research | Visual texture and realism |
| Downtown Raleigh Restaurants | Environmental Detail | Authentic setting and atmosphere |
| History of Weimar Germany | Historical Influence | Cultural mood and thematic resonance |
| Character Studies | Psychological Development | Behavior, contradiction, motivation |
| Research on Marilyn Manson | Cultural Influence | Persona construction and public identity |
🧪 Example
Rather than set the scene in 1940s, or try to translate it into modern times, the visual influence from classic noir cinema combined with historical research to create a strong, emotional atmosphere.
💡 How to Apply It
Creative work strengthens when multiple influences are recombined, rather than copied.
💬 Memorable Line
A novel becomes richer when unrelated influences begin speaking to each other.
👉 Montage Image by: Lewis Faulkner
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4️⃣ What Changed While Writing the Novel
I got my final inspiration for Novel Noir's location from the cruise my wife and I took.
I simply translated everything I took a picture of, as well as the general mood and atmosphere on the cruise ship, into a spaceship that took people around the moon and back.
I also changed all my cruise photos to black-and-white.
The visuals kept me motivated for the entire time I was writing the novel.
📌 What is it?
In so many ways, the final version of Novel Noir was significantly different from early assumptions and plans.
How much did the novel change during writing?
Major emotional, structural, and thematic discoveries often emerged only during the drafting process itself.
🎯 Why it matters
Readers can gain insight into how novels evolve organically over the course of their creation.
🧪 Example
Secondary subplots showed up, once the main story was locked in.
💡 How to Understand It
As a writer, I learned to allow stories to evolve instead of protecting early assumptions.
💬 Memorable Line
A novel reveals itself by resisting your first version of it.
👉 Montage Image by: Lewis Faulkner
👉 FaulknerFiction takes pride in supporting other Creatives!
5️⃣ What This Story Ultimately Became
📌 What is it?
Finished novels often become reflections of themes, questions, and emotional ideas deeper than the writer originally intended.
I did get a fan letter from someone who read Novel Noir and complained that a character who appeared in the early chapters was never heard from again.
After a little reflection, I decided that that was a lesson I needed to carry forward in my other novels.
I had thought the character was minor, but evidently, some people expected to see him again.
What does Novel Noir ultimately mean to you now?
The novel became an exploration of identity, atmosphere, consequence, perception, and emotional ambiguity.
🎯 Why it matters
I think in the research and writing of my first novel, Novel Noir, learned how hard it is to come up with creative work.
After completing the novel, I remember being so proud of it.
And that happiness moved me to continue writing even more novels.
As a new writer, I was shocked to learn that so much editing and rewriting was just part of the job!
🧪 Example
Some of the novel’s themes only became fully visible after completion.
💡 How to Understand It
I also learned to allow my stories to communicate meanings beyond my original intention.
💬 Memorable Line
Sometimes a finished novel explains the person who wrote it.
👉 Montage Image by: Lewis Faulkner
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🎉 Where It All Comes Together
For me, personally, Novel Noir was a fun project, a true accomplishment, and a reward for the hard work that I enjoyed doing.
It encouraged me on to write more novels.
Next Steps
Have you ever followed a creative spark that turned out to be a wonderful project or experience? Why not tell us about it!
FAQs
...about 'Novel Noir.'
What inspired Novel Noir?
The novel emerged through layered artistic, cinematic, and emotional influences rather than a single idea.
Why was noir the right genre for this story?
Noir allowed ambiguity, atmosphere, and psychological tension to become central to the storytelling.
How much research went into Novel Noir?
Research shaped the realism, atmosphere, and emotional texture of the novel.
Did the story change while writing it?
Yes. Many major thematic and structural discoveries emerged during the drafting process.
What does Novel Noir ultimately explore?
Identity, perception, consequence, atmosphere, and emotional ambiguity.
Explore More
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Author Bio
Lewis Faulkner is the author of six novels and a creative educator with over 40 years of experience studying story structure, narrative craft, and the creative process.
His work often explores how systems shape perception and how individuals respond.
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