 Tart Noir was labeled and effectively created as a genre by four writers during the 1990s, Sparkle Hayter, Lauren Henderson, Katy Munger, and Stella Duffy.Some of these writers have since collaborated on book signings and other events in order to promote the genre, along with creating a website called Tartcity.com.The storylines and characters described in a Tart Noir novel includes the necessity of a heroine who is "tough enough to take on criminals and cops" and yet still have the personality of being able to be "tender enough to love a man with rough edges".