The Waiting Game

Check out this blog post from Writer Unboxed by Allison Winn Scotch about the dreaded Waiting Game. I'm in a similar position right now, waiting on a agent to read my manuscript and decide if she wants to represent me. I took Allison's advice - I'm starting a new project. That way, if Agent likes my book, I've got a second one on the way that she can work on selling. If Agent doesn't like my book, I'm in the midst of a project and won't have time to grieve over missing that first opportunity.

How about you? What do you do during the Waiting Game? Crying, coffee, and chocolates are a given, but what else?

-Sonja

Two Firearms Errors to Avoid

To write a great murder mystery, you have to know all the components of solving the crime. I'm basing this series of posts on the book Murder one: A Writer's Guide to Homicide by Mauro V. Corvasce and Joseph R. Paglino. I'm in chapter 2, which covers the weapons of murder.

This chapter only covers three areas: firearms, knives, and unusual weapons. There's a ton of great information on guns, and while I'm tempted to lay it all out for you, I'm going to point you in other directions, instead. There's not enough information in the book to make you an expert in firearms, so you'll have to do more research. There are great videos at the library on how to fire a gun, and of course there are loads of books on guns and how they work, what the parts are called, and all the great stuff you need to know. The Internet also contains a wealth of information. In addition to book and video knowledge, if you're going to use a gun in your book, you really ought to know how it feels to fire one. Find a firing range and shell out some cash to get a personal feel for guns. Revolvers, semi-automatics, shot-guns, and rifles all feel different when you pull the trigger, and the more you know, the more realistic your book will be. (If you don't know the difference between a revolver and a semi-automatic, PLEASE do the research or pick a different murder weapon. The fastest way to lose readers is to make mistakes about this stuff.)

Now that I've pushed you in a different direction for your information, there were two special tips that were brought up in the book that I feel should be mentioned. First, the writers state that the most common mistake they've seen authors make is using the word "clip" to describe the holder that contains bullets in an automatic or semi-automatic weapon. There is no such thing as a clip in automatics or semi-automatics. It's called a magazine. Don't rely on CSI to teach you the proper terms, or you'll make errors that could cost you readers.

The second tip I wanted to share from the book is about spent shell casings. A shell casing is the outside of a bullet. Before a bullet is fired, the shell casing contains an explosive charger, a primer, and the bullet (or shot, if you're using a shotgun). The casing can be made of brass alloys, or in the case of shotguns, plastic or heavy cardboard. Here's the tip: with most semiautomatic weapons, spent shell casings are ejected to the right of the shooter. Keep this in mind when the detective finds the brass: the location of the brass means the shooter was two to three feet to the left of the shells. Again, having an error about this type of stuff will turn readers away. I can't stress enough how important it is that you thoroughly know your gun stuff before you begin writing. Please note that the tip said "most" semiautomatic weapons eject to the right. If you chose a gun that ejects to the left, you'd better know about it and make it right in the book.

That's it for guns and other murder weapons. We're moving on to the next chapter in the next post.

-Sonja

Killing Outside the Box

I'm doing a series based on Murder one: A Writer's Guide to Homicide by Mauro V. Corvasce and Joseph R. Paglino in an effort to pass along pertinent information needed to write a believable murder mystery. I'm in chapter 2, which covers murder weapons. Today's topic is unusual weapons.

I brought up a statistic several posts ago that said 71% of all murder weapons are firearms or knives (the division is 50% firearms, 21% knives). If my math is right, that leaves 29% of all murders using something other than a firearm or knife. Hmmm, what could we use to kill off our unwanted character?

Corvasce and Paglino suggest that common household items (weapons of opportunity) make up some of that extra 29%. You've got two characters arguing, one of them goes a bit crazy and grabs the nearest weapon: a fireplace poker, a baseball bat, a floor lamp, a small TV, a frying pan, a cinder block, or a two-by-four. 

The thing to remember is that each of these items don't really need to be described to the reader, as the reader already knows what they are, BUT each one leaves trace evidence at the scene to be collected by crime fighters. Then they can trace it back to the murder weapon, which might contain evidence of the murderer (DNA, fingerprints, hair, trace evidence, etc). Cases where a weapon of opportunity was used are usually not premeditated, meaning they weren't planned before-hand. Because of that, the cover-up will be sloppy or even non-existent, and many times the weapon will be left at the scene of the crime. That's good news for your crime fighter hero. 

The authors bring up an interesting case: a kitchen knife was brought to the scene by the murderer. He killed his victim, rinsed off the knife, and slipped it into a knife block on the kitchen counter thinking he'd throw off the detectives. The detectives found the knife, found trace amounts of DNA on it, and therefore determined it was the murder weapon. They then discovered that it didn't belong to the set on the kitchen counter and was therefore brought to the scene by the killer. Once they had their suspect in custody, they matched the knife to a set in his own kitchen. This contradicted his statement that he'd grabbed a knife from the vic's kitchen in self-defense. He'd stupidly kept his knife set, thinking the murder weapon would never be traced back to him. Therein lies the beauty of criminals: they think they're so smart, but they always make mistakes. It's those mistakes that get them caught, so come up with some clever ones for your book and your reader will be pleased.

That concludes the chapter on murder weapons. They didn't delve into poisons, drugs, or kills involving body parts (strangulation, drowning, judo kick to the head), but we can delve into those at a later date, if pertinent.

-Sonja

The Joy of Knives

If you're writing a murder mystery, you'd better know something about your murder weapon, or your book won't be believable. I'm knee-deep in a series based on the book Murder one: A Writer's Guide to Homicide by Mauro V. Corvasce and Joseph R. Paglino. I'm in chapter 2, which covers the weapons of murder. My last post covered firearms (kind of). Today's is all about knives.

The most common knife used to commit homicide is the standard kitchen knife. It's handy, it's easy to use, and everybody has one. Don't be swayed by the glamor of a switchblade--a simple steak knife will do the job admirably.

Just like firearms, it's important to know the names/terms of the parts of a knife because there's more to a knife than the blade and the handle. For instance, the place where the handle meets the blade is called the hilt. "If a person is stabbed with the hilt pressing up against the skin, there is a distinct discoloration of the skin, proving that the person who did the attacking was not simply defending himself but purposely pushing the knife blade in as far as it could go in an attempt to kill someone." Also, it's highly probable that the person wielding the knife will accidentally cut himself, so he could leave blood/DNA on the knife. Even if he washes the knife, liquids like blood tend to run into the hilt and get caught under the handle. We've seen this on CSI, where the crime tech takes the knife apart and swabs for DNA. It happens in real life, too.

Double-edged knifes have a blade on two sides, so it's double-deadly, but are usually only used by professionals or contract murderers. Your average housewife doesn't have access to this one, so if you give her one, make sure it's believable. And again, the wielder might end up cutting himself, so the whole blood/DNA thing is also in effect for this knife.

A ninja knife has a small curved blade, about three or four inches long. It's held in a closed fist, with the blade protruding between a couple of fingers. Punching a victim with this knife in hand will leave nasty wounds. Again, this knife isn't readily available to housewives, but if you've got gang members or rebellious teens or wanna-be ninja's, this could be a great knife for your story.

The book doesn't go into other bladed objects, like scissors, ice picks, metal combs, pitchforks, or fireplace pokers, but you can use your imagination to come up with some believable scenarios involving these pokey items. In my next post, I'll cover some other unusual weapons the authors decided to include in their book.

-Sonja

Controversial Murder Statistics

To write a great murder mystery, you have to know how to solve a murder. This series is based on Murder one: A Writer's Guide to Homicide by Mauro V. Corvasce and Joseph R. Paglino, and we're only a month or so into it, so there's plenty of time to catch up if you're just joining me. Today I want to share with you some statistics about murder in the USA that might surprise you. Knowing these statistics can help you write a realistic murder mystery. These numbers come from a special report from the Bureau of Justice Statistics--US Department of Justice, written by John M. Dawson. I'll copy them straight out of the book for you, followed up by my own commentary.

1. More than half of all murder victims in large cities are young black males--who are killed by other young black males. The vast majority of the murderers, and even a large percentage of their victims, have had previous trouble with the law.

I'll admit, this statistic sounds extremely racist, but it's true. To figure out WHY it's true, you'd have to dig into a bunch of other background materials, like socio-economic status, drug involvement (or lack thereof), gang affiliation, single- or two-parent households, education levels, and a host of other factors that would be too hard to dig into in this post. The easiest part of this statistic to agree with is the fact that most murderers and victims have had previous trouble with the law. Not all, but most. Keep that in mind when you're creating a victim for your story.

2. While 48 percent of the general population is between the ages of fifteen and forty-five, 75 percent of the murder victims and 91 percent of defendants are in that age range.

I think it's pretty clear: children and the elderly are in the minority, when it comes to being a victim or a perpetrator, but they're still in the numbers. Want to create a bad guy who's a seven-year-old female? Go for it - just remember that she's going to be an oddity, which will definitely make it harder for the hero to catch her. 

3. Seventy-five percent of murder victims and 90 percent of defendants are male.

I love to play with this one, making my perpetrator female. Females kill for entirely different reasons than males, and if you mess that part up, your story won't be believable. And while having a female victim is totally believable, having a male victim is so much more fun to write, especially if the killer is female. Figuring out WHY she kills and HOW she kills is almost as much fun as figuring out how the hero will catch her.

4. In large urban counties, circumstances involving illegal drugs account for 18 percent of the defendants and 16 percent of the victims.

That means there's a one-in-five chance your bad guy is involved in drugs, either dealing or abusing. As Chief Tom Casady of Lincoln Nebraska often says: if you don't want to be the victim of a violent crime, don't do drugs.

5. In large urban counties, handguns are used in 50 percent of the murders; knives are used in 21 percent of the murders.

Yep, we've seen this on CSI all the time. But feel free to shake things up. Females like poisons (they're a lot less messy than guns or knives. I mean, come on. Who's going to clean up all that blood?) so do some research on poisonous plants that grow in your area (check out some of my previous blog posts if you're interested). Or how about a drug overdose? Or a garrote? Or a candlestick? Be inventive. Readers love to discover new or interesting ways to polish off unwanted characters.

6. While 52 percent of the general population is female, only one in ten murder defendants and just over two in ten murder victims is female.

It caught my eye that this statistic includes murder defendants, not perpetrators. Does that mean female killers don't always get caught and go to trial? Just a thought... What I really love about this statistic is that female perps are rare, so they're much more fun to use in a story. Most detectives automatically think "male perp" when viewing a murder scene, especially if the murder was messy (gun, knife, blow torch). Writers can really have a ton of fun with this one.

7. A third of the female victims, but only one in ten male victims, are killed by their spouses or romantic partners.

This is the main reason detectives ALWAYS look at the husband/boyfriend first. Again, writer's can really play with this statistic and use it for some fun twists. Why not frame the hubby/boyfriend, since that's who the police will look at first? Or go ahead and make the killer the hubby/boyfriend, but he thinks he's so blooming brilliant, he's committed the perfect crime. Of course, the perfect crime doesn't exist, so he'll always make mistakes, and it's those mistakes that lead the detective right to the perp.

8. Six of every ten arrests for murder result in a murder conviction.

This stat bugs me, unfortunately. Only 60% of the bad guys go to prison for their actions? I sincerely hope this isn't a reflection of a poor job on the detective's end, rather more a problem of attorneys and loopholes in the law that disallows evidence. This could be a great twist in your story if the lead detective has an over-inflated desire for justice, and the perp walks on a technicality. What happens then? The story doesn't have to be over when the trial is over...

9. More than 99 percent of defendants in capital offense cases--those with a murder charge that could result in a death penalty--are convicted of some charge.

I like the odds on this one, but I'm not sure I understand it completely. It's the "are convicted of some charge" that throws me. Is it saying that "murder one" isn't necessary the charge that sticks? Either way, the statistic is clear--most murderers are caught and go to trial. 

Any thoughts? Comments? Disagreements or rants regarding the numbers? I'd love to hear them.

-Sonja

Removing a Body

Wow, I really dropped the ball this week on posting. A thousand pardons to my three loyal readers. Let me pick up where I left off, and that's the steps your crime fighter will go through at the crime scene. Today's step is the last one, removing the body. I'm taking my info from Murder one: A Writer's Guide to Homicide by Mauro V. Corvasce and Joseph R. Paglino. It's part of the Howdunit series by Writer's Digest, and it's worth having on your resource shelf.

By the time your detective gets to this step in the investigation process, the coroner or medical examiner has arrived. Research this carefully! There's either a coroner or a medical examiner, but not both, and if the town you set your story in is small enough, there might not be either. Anyway, back to the point. The coroner (or ME) will examine several key issues:

• the temperature of the room (or air, if it's outdoors)
• the humidity of the room (or air)
• the weather in the area (not applicable if the body's indoors)

These items are vital for establishing an accurate time of death. So many factors go into this, and sometimes it's downright impossible to be completely accurate, but the closer the better. Then the body is taken to the morgue (again, research this to make sure your town has a morgue. Sometimes bodies have to be transported to the nearest morgue, which could be quite a distance away). An autopsy will usually reveal the cause of death and hopefully offer some additional clues to the killer's identity. 

Determining cause of death is a whole different can of worms, and there's an entire book in the Howdunit Series devoted to that subject: Cause of Death by Dr. Keith Wilson. (I own that one, too - awesome book).

That wraps up the steps involved at the initial crime scene. There's a whole lot left to cover, but I'm wondering if this subject is applicable to my faithful viewers. If you're finding useful information in this series, leave me a comment that says you like it. If you're bored out of your mind and wish I'd move on to something else, please say so. This blog is meant to be relevant and helpful, not boring and useless, and I aim to please. Thanks!

-Sonja

Gathering Homicide Evidence

If you're writing a murder mystery, you need to know how your investigator will go about solving the crime. I've already covered steps one through four. Today's post is on step five, the gathering of evidence. I'm taking this information from the Whodunit book called Murder one: A Writer's Guide to Homicide by Mauro V. Corvasce and Joseph R. Paglino.

A bunch of this you already know from watching CSI or other cop shows. Detectives are looking for any detail that might help them solve the crime, including footprints, clothing fibers, strands of hair, blood samples, paint chips, substances transferred from the perps clothing to the scene, etc. Sometimes the detective can analyze the evidence himself (like footprints or tire impressions). Other evidence needs to be analyzed in a forensics lab.

Whether you're using an officer, a detective, or a crime tech in your book, they need to wear gloves and paper booties over their shoes so they don't contaminate the scene by adding their own footprints and fingerprints. Any evidence gathered is placed in paper bags, plastic bags, Ziplock bags, plastic bottles, jars,  anything that can be sealed and documented with the name of the person who collected it, where they collected it from, and the date it's collected. It's transported to the police station, where another officer signs for it and puts it into the evidence locker or sends it off to the crime lab. This is called the chain of evidence, and anyone who handles the evidence has to sign that he/she has done so. It's used to ensure the reliability of evidence if it's ever used in a trial.

On CSI, every piece of evidence they collect is useful in solving the crime. That's not the case in real-life situations, and you shouldn't make it the case in your book. In an enclosed crime scene, like a house or apartment, evidence will be collected that has nothing to do with the crime, but it has to be analyzed anyway. Dirt just inside the front door might be transfer from a perp, or could be what the dog tracked in earlier. Fingerprints on the window lock could be the perps, or could be the bedroom's resident who likes to sleep with the window open every night. Cigarette butts in an ash tray could belong to a stupid criminal, or could be Grandpa Joe's from his visit yesterday. 

If the crime scene is outdoors, evidence gathering gets exponentially more difficult. Is that soda can just a piece of garbage from a passing litterbug, or did the perp toss it there? Was that spot of dog doodie transferred from the perps shoes, or the vics shoes, or from the shoes of a witness? Did that bit of bloody gauze come from the killer or from the paramedic who tried to save the victim's life? 

The hard part for the writer is knowing how much useless stuff to toss into the book. Too little, and it's unbelievable. Too much, and you bore the reader. I brought up something two paragraphs before that should also be dealt with here. Most murderers think they are too smart to get caught. They've covered every base, gotten rid of every bit of evidence, lined up the perfect alibi... but in reality, criminals are fairly stupid people. And they make mistakes. It's usually these mistakes that lead to their arrest, so make use of that in your book. That cigarette in the ash tray? The killer saw a tray full of cigarettes, figured the police wouldn't check them all, so he lit up to relax after all that hard work of killing his cousin's wife, snuffed it out in the ashtray, and takes off thinking he's in the clear. You can have quite a bit of fun with this, so use your imagination to come up with some ways your killer could accidentally implicate himself after he's supposedly sanitized the scene.

My next post is removal of the body. You won't want to miss that.

-Sonja