Of all my published works, I think Sole Survivor has probably been redone the most. It's tricky getting the first book in a series right. Not to mention the dual storylines.
There's Lisa and Jackson. A marriage on the rocks. Deadly secrets.
Then there's Kat. A college student on a mission to solve a cold case that started as an assignment and became an obsession.
It's time for a revamp. Maybe even a face-lift for the cover. Either way, it's a perk and a problem for me.
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Showing posts with label Sole Survivor. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Sole Survivor. Show all posts
Friday, February 16, 2018
Monday, November 18, 2013
Mini-Blogs: Catch-up!
Since the last mini-blog, I took a full-time job and was later let go (too many people, not enough work), FATAL TARGET hit eReaders, and I've been working on a limited series. Here's the latest!
FATAL TARGET Release
After numerous setbacks, FATAL TARGET, the second book in the J. Carter & Associates series, was released over the summer. The print edition is being formatted and should release later this month (original release was scheduled for September, but computers caught fire, files got eaten, and so on).
The very end is one big clue as to what's going to happen in the sequel, BREAKING POINT.
BREAKING Up is Hard to Do
Book three is all about Aidan. So far, we know pretty much everything about Katherine. But Aidan's a mystery. Anyone who's read FATAL TARGET has gotten a glimpse of his past. But in BREAKING POINT, we get to see why he's more than happy to forget the past.
Meet Elektra DeFlair. Not so affectionately known as the Black Widow, she's in charge of a ruthless group that's had a bunch of unpleasant run-ins with Jackson and J. Carter & Associates. She's also a mother of five kids--four sons and a daughter. She shows no compassion or mercy toward her enemies or her children.
Elektra isn't just a rival--she's Aidan's mother. And she has nothing but hatred for Katherine.
BREAKING POINT will be out in early 2014. Cover art will be released soon as well as a brief first look.
Limited Edition
I was very mum about Duality prior to the release of the first novella. I wasn't sure I could pull off another series, especially one in fan fiction universe with such a loyal fan base I'd never written for. I gathered my nerves and embarked on one hell of a journey.
Duality is the story of two sisters who share a face. They're not identical, but their similarities pull them both into a dangerous world filled with supernatural creatures. Elena is a doppelganger--a dead ringer for a woman named Katherine Pierce who lived five hundred years previous. Doppelganger blood is the only cure for a curse placed on an Original vampire.
Then comes Joanna. Raised by her mother with infrequent visits from her absentee father, she knows the truth about vampires. She also knows what her half-sister is. What she doesn't know is how much they look alike.
When John Gilbert disappears, Jo travels to his home town of Mystic Falls to track him down. Instead of finding her father, she finds her mirror image and catches the attention of the Original hybrid Klaus. And that all happens within the first few pages of BROKEN MIRROR.
Jo's story continues in SHATTERED TRUST, which just came out about two weeks ago, and concludes in FINAL SACRIFICE, which is due to come out early December 2013. All three books are part of the Kindle Worlds program and are Kindle-exclusive novellas.
I love Jo and I'm having a blast playing around in Mystic Falls, but I can't wait to get back to the gang of J. Carter & Associates with several new releases in 2014.
Extras
~ If you haven't already, take a peek at the new site dedicated to the JCA series over at http://www.jcarterassociates.webs.com
~ AGAINST THE CLOCK is getting a sequel! BLOWN AWAY will pick up Lara and Neil's story with an explosion at the office that threatens the lives of everyone and brings back an old enemy bent on destroying Aidan Murphy. The eBook novella will be $0.99 and details are to come. I'm aiming for a January 2014 release.
~ An updated paperback version of SOLE SURVIVOR is now available! It includes the timeline, excerpts, and the new cover. Plus, page numbers! It's on CreateSpace and will be available on Amazon and through other outlets in the coming weeks.
FATAL TARGET Release
After numerous setbacks, FATAL TARGET, the second book in the J. Carter & Associates series, was released over the summer. The print edition is being formatted and should release later this month (original release was scheduled for September, but computers caught fire, files got eaten, and so on).
The very end is one big clue as to what's going to happen in the sequel, BREAKING POINT.
BREAKING Up is Hard to Do
Book three is all about Aidan. So far, we know pretty much everything about Katherine. But Aidan's a mystery. Anyone who's read FATAL TARGET has gotten a glimpse of his past. But in BREAKING POINT, we get to see why he's more than happy to forget the past.
Meet Elektra DeFlair. Not so affectionately known as the Black Widow, she's in charge of a ruthless group that's had a bunch of unpleasant run-ins with Jackson and J. Carter & Associates. She's also a mother of five kids--four sons and a daughter. She shows no compassion or mercy toward her enemies or her children.
Elektra isn't just a rival--she's Aidan's mother. And she has nothing but hatred for Katherine.
BREAKING POINT will be out in early 2014. Cover art will be released soon as well as a brief first look.
Limited Edition
I was very mum about Duality prior to the release of the first novella. I wasn't sure I could pull off another series, especially one in fan fiction universe with such a loyal fan base I'd never written for. I gathered my nerves and embarked on one hell of a journey.
Duality is the story of two sisters who share a face. They're not identical, but their similarities pull them both into a dangerous world filled with supernatural creatures. Elena is a doppelganger--a dead ringer for a woman named Katherine Pierce who lived five hundred years previous. Doppelganger blood is the only cure for a curse placed on an Original vampire.
Then comes Joanna. Raised by her mother with infrequent visits from her absentee father, she knows the truth about vampires. She also knows what her half-sister is. What she doesn't know is how much they look alike.
When John Gilbert disappears, Jo travels to his home town of Mystic Falls to track him down. Instead of finding her father, she finds her mirror image and catches the attention of the Original hybrid Klaus. And that all happens within the first few pages of BROKEN MIRROR.
Jo's story continues in SHATTERED TRUST, which just came out about two weeks ago, and concludes in FINAL SACRIFICE, which is due to come out early December 2013. All three books are part of the Kindle Worlds program and are Kindle-exclusive novellas.
I love Jo and I'm having a blast playing around in Mystic Falls, but I can't wait to get back to the gang of J. Carter & Associates with several new releases in 2014.
Extras
~ If you haven't already, take a peek at the new site dedicated to the JCA series over at http://www.jcarterassociates.webs.com
~ AGAINST THE CLOCK is getting a sequel! BLOWN AWAY will pick up Lara and Neil's story with an explosion at the office that threatens the lives of everyone and brings back an old enemy bent on destroying Aidan Murphy. The eBook novella will be $0.99 and details are to come. I'm aiming for a January 2014 release.
~ An updated paperback version of SOLE SURVIVOR is now available! It includes the timeline, excerpts, and the new cover. Plus, page numbers! It's on CreateSpace and will be available on Amazon and through other outlets in the coming weeks.
Friday, November 9, 2012
Behind the Screen
Part of my reason for starting this blog was to talk about my inspirations behind the stories. Since I've already discussed SOLE SURVIVOR, today I'm going to hit on some other works that are upcoming.
First up, STEAL YOU AWAY.
Based loosely on a fan fiction I wrote back in... 2005, SYA is about a young woman who becomes entangled with a killer. The first half of the story bares little resemblance to the fan fiction and the characters have new names and backgrounds. Cassandra Sidell works in a hotel and meets a charming guy in a bar - who later steals her access card. After swapping cell phones, she interrupts a murder and ends up going lamp-to-face with him.
Garrett Ramsey is a trained killer. He's done his best to shut off his humanity in order to do his job. But Cass gets under his skin. Before long, he's dragging her along in an attempt to save her life against his better judgment.
The banter between them and the chemistry was all inspired by the 2005 thriller "RED EYE" directed by Wes Craven. The fan fiction that served as my jumping off point for SYA followed Lisa and Jackson as he plotted his revenge on her for transgressions made during the film. The unlikely duo end up working together to take down his bosses and survive, all while falling for each other.
Wanna see some differences?
The original scene in the fanfiction.
Lisa entered her bathroom and washed her face with cold water to wake herself up. After drying her face she looked in the mirror and jumped backwards. Written in soap was a message, clearly for her.
I MAY HAVE TO STEAL YOU
Lisa started shaking. Jackson had said those very words on the plane.
"When this is over, I may have to steal you," he said, icy blue eyes locking on her.
She knew it was only a matter of time. Jackson would come for her soon and there was nothing she could do about it. Jackson never broke his promises.
A scene from STEAL YOU AWAY.
Cassandra blew her bangs out of her eyes, standing up. She faced herself in the mirror, dark-circled eyes and all, only to find her image obscured.
Blood red lipstick covered the glass. I MAY HAVE TO STEAL YOU it screamed in bold writing. It was a man’s handwriting – all angles and straight strokes. No curves or silly dots. Plain and to the point.
Just like the man responsible for the garish graffiti.
Garrett Ramsey. He’d been in her room for sure this time.
Except, there was a line through STEAL. Above it, he’d scrawled KILL. I MAY HAVE TO KILL YOU.
She shivered, chills moving through her body.
Okay, FATAL TARGET.
The original idea was of a shooting on campus. These were in the days before the VA Tech shooting and other high-profile incidents of violence on college campuses across the US. The shooting was a distraction to kidnap Kat.
Also, FT was meant to be Aidan's introduction to readers. But, he got a larger role in SOLE SURVIVOR and wasn't an unknown in FT.
Here's an example of the differences, using two different scenes focusing on Kat's training.
From an old draft in 2008:
"Do it again, Kat! Faster!"
Her chest was heaving. She could barely catch her breath. Kat wiped the sweat from her forehead with a white towel and whirled around to attack the punching bag. The weighted bag swung on the chain in the workout room she had fashioned with her father. Her mother was upstairs organizing boxes as they ran through the motions of a workout.
She swung out her right leg, striking the bag, before following with a left-handed punch. The chain creaked and her father shouted directions. Kat punched, feinted, and kicked through a series of combinations, a pulse-pounding beat in her mind as she fought the bag.
"Good, good!" Jackson praised, clapping his hands as she finished the set. "Now let's go for a run."
"You've… got… to… be… kidding…" Kat gasped, bent over and doing her best not to vomit. She'd pushed herself hard—she always did.
He cocked his dark-haired head in her direction. "No, Kat, I'm not. Get some water, and we're going. You need to build up your endurance levels."
"Why? I'm going to college in a few days."
From the new version:
“Breathe. Focus. In and out.”
He stood behind her, his breath hot on her bare neck. His hands steadied her, helping to adjust her position. Katherine loved being close to her boyfriend, even when he barely touched her.
“You can do this. Remember the recoil. No, don’t tense up. That’s a good way to get smacked in the face,” he urged, soothing her muscles with a gentle touch. “You’ve got this. You’ll be fine.”
“Okay,” she said.
Katherine Carter-Robertson took a deep breath and squeezed the trigger. In her hand, the gun leapt, barking out as the bullet left the barrel and soared across the room to cut through a paper target. Her shoulders absorbed the recoil and she held her ground.
“Again,” Aidan urged.
Crack. Crack. Crack. Crack.
Each bullet ripped through the paper. One. Two. Three. Four. Five holes. Two in the head and three center mass.
“That’s my girl!” Aidan Murphy whooped, kissing her cheek. “Great job, babe!”
It's amazing what can happen between drafts. While the core of the story is the same - Kat being a target for a ruthless killer, her allies have changed, her solid relationship with Aidan is tested, and some subplots are removed.
Based loosely on a fan fiction I wrote back in... 2005, SYA is about a young woman who becomes entangled with a killer. The first half of the story bares little resemblance to the fan fiction and the characters have new names and backgrounds. Cassandra Sidell works in a hotel and meets a charming guy in a bar - who later steals her access card. After swapping cell phones, she interrupts a murder and ends up going lamp-to-face with him.
Garrett Ramsey is a trained killer. He's done his best to shut off his humanity in order to do his job. But Cass gets under his skin. Before long, he's dragging her along in an attempt to save her life against his better judgment.
The banter between them and the chemistry was all inspired by the 2005 thriller "RED EYE" directed by Wes Craven. The fan fiction that served as my jumping off point for SYA followed Lisa and Jackson as he plotted his revenge on her for transgressions made during the film. The unlikely duo end up working together to take down his bosses and survive, all while falling for each other.
Wanna see some differences?
The original scene in the fanfiction.
Lisa entered her bathroom and washed her face with cold water to wake herself up. After drying her face she looked in the mirror and jumped backwards. Written in soap was a message, clearly for her.
I MAY HAVE TO STEAL YOU
Lisa started shaking. Jackson had said those very words on the plane.
"When this is over, I may have to steal you," he said, icy blue eyes locking on her.
She knew it was only a matter of time. Jackson would come for her soon and there was nothing she could do about it. Jackson never broke his promises.
A scene from STEAL YOU AWAY.
Cassandra blew her bangs out of her eyes, standing up. She faced herself in the mirror, dark-circled eyes and all, only to find her image obscured.
Blood red lipstick covered the glass. I MAY HAVE TO STEAL YOU it screamed in bold writing. It was a man’s handwriting – all angles and straight strokes. No curves or silly dots. Plain and to the point.
Just like the man responsible for the garish graffiti.
Garrett Ramsey. He’d been in her room for sure this time.
Except, there was a line through STEAL. Above it, he’d scrawled KILL. I MAY HAVE TO KILL YOU.
She shivered, chills moving through her body.
The original idea was of a shooting on campus. These were in the days before the VA Tech shooting and other high-profile incidents of violence on college campuses across the US. The shooting was a distraction to kidnap Kat.
Also, FT was meant to be Aidan's introduction to readers. But, he got a larger role in SOLE SURVIVOR and wasn't an unknown in FT.
Here's an example of the differences, using two different scenes focusing on Kat's training.
From an old draft in 2008:
"Do it again, Kat! Faster!"
Her chest was heaving. She could barely catch her breath. Kat wiped the sweat from her forehead with a white towel and whirled around to attack the punching bag. The weighted bag swung on the chain in the workout room she had fashioned with her father. Her mother was upstairs organizing boxes as they ran through the motions of a workout.
She swung out her right leg, striking the bag, before following with a left-handed punch. The chain creaked and her father shouted directions. Kat punched, feinted, and kicked through a series of combinations, a pulse-pounding beat in her mind as she fought the bag.
"Good, good!" Jackson praised, clapping his hands as she finished the set. "Now let's go for a run."
"You've… got… to… be… kidding…" Kat gasped, bent over and doing her best not to vomit. She'd pushed herself hard—she always did.
He cocked his dark-haired head in her direction. "No, Kat, I'm not. Get some water, and we're going. You need to build up your endurance levels."
"Why? I'm going to college in a few days."
From the new version:
“Breathe. Focus. In and out.”
He stood behind her, his breath hot on her bare neck. His hands steadied her, helping to adjust her position. Katherine loved being close to her boyfriend, even when he barely touched her.
“You can do this. Remember the recoil. No, don’t tense up. That’s a good way to get smacked in the face,” he urged, soothing her muscles with a gentle touch. “You’ve got this. You’ll be fine.”
“Okay,” she said.
Katherine Carter-Robertson took a deep breath and squeezed the trigger. In her hand, the gun leapt, barking out as the bullet left the barrel and soared across the room to cut through a paper target. Her shoulders absorbed the recoil and she held her ground.
“Again,” Aidan urged.
Crack. Crack. Crack. Crack.
Each bullet ripped through the paper. One. Two. Three. Four. Five holes. Two in the head and three center mass.
“That’s my girl!” Aidan Murphy whooped, kissing her cheek. “Great job, babe!”
It's amazing what can happen between drafts. While the core of the story is the same - Kat being a target for a ruthless killer, her allies have changed, her solid relationship with Aidan is tested, and some subplots are removed.
Tuesday, June 19, 2012
Updates!
It's been a busy week for updates. Writing is a bit slow - first 1/4 of STEAL YOU AWAY is done with the main draft and some editing. Developing Cass and Ramsey's relationship is what takes time and thinking and planning.
Unlike many of the other J. Carter & Associates books, SYA features a cold-hearted killer as the hero. Ramsey knows he does bad things, but he doesn't care. At the start, he's a remorseless killing machine more worried about his next paycheck than the effects of his killing.
Cass changes that for him. She goes from a target to an equal after she uncovers a murder plot. The resulting brawl leaves them both injured and Ramsey's pride wounded.
They have to learn to trust each other if they want to survive, especially as he is added to the kill list for helping her. But Ramsey isn't above betraying her in return for his thriving career.
Between them both, Ramsey has the best one-liners. Some of my favorites are over on the website on the Extras page.
Unlike Kat, Cass isn't much of a fighter--she's a scrapper. In a fight between them, Cass would probably lose. Do I love Cass any less? No, she's strong, like Kat, only in a different way. She hasn't experienced loss in the same way as Kat. She's led a very normal life. That's part of the fun.
All the links for AGAINST THE CLOCK have been updated on the site as well. It's now on Sony, Barnes & Noble, and more. Don't forget that the free PDF script is also on the site. At the moment, I have no plans to also do a paperback copy unless I can also get the script to fit.
The first book trailer is also up on YouTube and the Facebook page. It's a short one for SOLE SURVIVOR. Enjoy!
|
| Cover art for STEAL YOU AWAY |
Cass changes that for him. She goes from a target to an equal after she uncovers a murder plot. The resulting brawl leaves them both injured and Ramsey's pride wounded.
They have to learn to trust each other if they want to survive, especially as he is added to the kill list for helping her. But Ramsey isn't above betraying her in return for his thriving career.
Between them both, Ramsey has the best one-liners. Some of my favorites are over on the website on the Extras page.
Unlike Kat, Cass isn't much of a fighter--she's a scrapper. In a fight between them, Cass would probably lose. Do I love Cass any less? No, she's strong, like Kat, only in a different way. She hasn't experienced loss in the same way as Kat. She's led a very normal life. That's part of the fun.
All the links for AGAINST THE CLOCK have been updated on the site as well. It's now on Sony, Barnes & Noble, and more. Don't forget that the free PDF script is also on the site. At the moment, I have no plans to also do a paperback copy unless I can also get the script to fit.
The first book trailer is also up on YouTube and the Facebook page. It's a short one for SOLE SURVIVOR. Enjoy!
Sunday, May 27, 2012
SOLE SURVIVOR Paperback Release & Other Works
 |
| Paperback cover |
The sequel, FATAL TARGET, is in progress and should be available either in August or early fall at the latest.
Hopefully, this will keep readers busy while I work on STEAL YOU AWAY (cover art coming soon!) and TRUST NO ONE.
And here's an exclusive excerpt from FATAL TARGET:
May 5th,
2007
“..Happy
birthday to you!” sang the gathered group. There were a dozen people crowded
into the small apartment’s living room. At the center of the commotion, her
face flushed red from embarrassment, sat Katherine. Beside her, his crooked
smile wide, sat her boyfriend and confidante.
Candles
glowed in the darkened room. She took a deep breath and blew. The flames
flickered out, smoke trailing, as their friends clapped.
“I’m
gonna kill you for this,” she hissed through clenched teeth at Aidan.
“You
know you love it.”
An
ear-piercing whistle cut through the noise. “Stop making faces, Kat, and let’s
cut that damn cake. I’m starving.”
The overhead
lights flipped on with a buzz. She rolled her ice blue eyes at the voice. Marc
Pearson leaned against a wall, quite at home, with a beer in his hand. As
usual, he wore all black, the shirt tight-fitted over well-defined muscles.
“Just
for that, you don’t get a piece.”
He
pouted. “That’s harsh.”
“Suck
it up, Pearson.”
Katherine
stood up, her legs draped in dark denim. Aidan followed her lead, a hand
resting against her waist, as he guided her through the small crowd.
In the
kitchen, her cake waited, devoid of candles, with a knife. A stack of small
paper plates and forks lay beside it on the countertop. Aidan took up the
knife, cutting deftly through the sheet cake.
“Which
piece do you want, babe?” he asked.
“Give
me a flower.”
He
nodded, cutting out a large blue flower on a corner for her. With the birthday
girl’s piece secured, he sliced a neat grid through the cake, methodically
cutting pieces. Kat helped transfer the cake to plates, passing them and forks
around their friends.
Once
the majority of the cake was gone, Kat took her piece. She devoured the frosted
flower first, blue icing tinting her lips. She didn’t care as she munched on
the moist yellow cake. Aidan leaned against the counter beside her, a narrow
slice in his hands.
“Good
cake?”
“Delicious,”
she mumbled, her mouth full.
Aidan
grinned. “Happy Birthday, Katy. I love you.”
“Love
you too.”
Monday, February 27, 2012
A Hop, A Skip, and A Jump...
I love working with series characters. I do. It's great to know a lot of background, history, and information about your chracters. I enjoy it. I know their childhoods, their fears, their future plans, and even the names of their children.
Because of this, I like to bounce around on the timeline and write out of order. I've probably got about a dozen different stories I've started ranging from the immediate follow-up to SOLE SURVIVOR to ten or more years in the future.
My latest proejct, in addition to polishing and revising FATAL TARGET, is a novella. The interesting part about this novella is that it takes place about 20-some years past the events of SOLE SURVIVOR in the future, where characters are older, have children, and are more secondary to the main story.
The main premise is that a young woman wakes up to find herself buried alive. Her captor is playing a game of wits with her sort-of boyfriend/childhood best friend. She has to help herself survive while he tries to unravel the riddles left by her kidnapper. The main problem is that the bad guy doesn't play fair and has rigged his game in such a way that they are sure to lose.
The hero and heroine are the children of some series favorites. In particular, one is the daughter of Katherine and Aidan, and the other is Marc's son.
It's fun to dabble in the future and to have a basic trajectory for your characters. I love all of my characters and I enjoy knowing so much about their lives. It's a bit like coming home after a long trip when I get to work with most of the crew at J. Carter & Associates. Working with their families and so on is an added perk.
I look forward to sharing more adventures in the future. For now, I'm going back to writing.
Because of this, I like to bounce around on the timeline and write out of order. I've probably got about a dozen different stories I've started ranging from the immediate follow-up to SOLE SURVIVOR to ten or more years in the future.
My latest proejct, in addition to polishing and revising FATAL TARGET, is a novella. The interesting part about this novella is that it takes place about 20-some years past the events of SOLE SURVIVOR in the future, where characters are older, have children, and are more secondary to the main story.
The main premise is that a young woman wakes up to find herself buried alive. Her captor is playing a game of wits with her sort-of boyfriend/childhood best friend. She has to help herself survive while he tries to unravel the riddles left by her kidnapper. The main problem is that the bad guy doesn't play fair and has rigged his game in such a way that they are sure to lose.
The hero and heroine are the children of some series favorites. In particular, one is the daughter of Katherine and Aidan, and the other is Marc's son.
It's fun to dabble in the future and to have a basic trajectory for your characters. I love all of my characters and I enjoy knowing so much about their lives. It's a bit like coming home after a long trip when I get to work with most of the crew at J. Carter & Associates. Working with their families and so on is an added perk.
I look forward to sharing more adventures in the future. For now, I'm going back to writing.
Friday, January 6, 2012
Why an e-book?
That's a question I get a lot after I announced that I was eschewing traditional print publishing for digital publishing.
I love holding a printed book in my hand. I do. I'm a regular at the library and the bookstore and new release Tuesdays are the highlight of my week. But I'm selling my work exclusively as digital editions.
Why? Simply put, I can reach a greater audience at a lower cost. I can publish books more often, make them easily available through major outlets for download, and I must sadly admit the field of publishing seems to be heading down a digital road.
The costs of producing a paper book are high. Sales are down. Publishers aren't going to make risks on new authors -- at least, not as often as ten years ago -- unless they are a sure-fire hit.
I'm not in it for the money. As much as I want to see my own novels on shelves, right now, I'm just happy that they can be read. I write for the fans and have for years.
So take a chance. Embrace the digital platform. And check out Sole Survivor, my labor of love that I started work on back in high school.
I love holding a printed book in my hand. I do. I'm a regular at the library and the bookstore and new release Tuesdays are the highlight of my week. But I'm selling my work exclusively as digital editions.
Why? Simply put, I can reach a greater audience at a lower cost. I can publish books more often, make them easily available through major outlets for download, and I must sadly admit the field of publishing seems to be heading down a digital road.
The costs of producing a paper book are high. Sales are down. Publishers aren't going to make risks on new authors -- at least, not as often as ten years ago -- unless they are a sure-fire hit.
I'm not in it for the money. As much as I want to see my own novels on shelves, right now, I'm just happy that they can be read. I write for the fans and have for years.
So take a chance. Embrace the digital platform. And check out Sole Survivor, my labor of love that I started work on back in high school.
Wednesday, November 16, 2011
Reinvestigation
Sometimes crimes go unsolved or "cold". Other times, like in Sole Survivor, a reinvestigation or a "follow-up" takes place. Here's a basic idea of the steps involved in a reinvestigation.
- Step One: review all case files and reports generated. This includes interviews, statements, and reports typed by by officers and examiners - i.e. autopsy, ballistic reports, etc.
- Step Two: review the crime scene photos, diagrams, maps, and, if possible, view the scene. Make note of possible witnesses or discrepancies.
- Step Three: re-interview witnesses as needed or as available. Also re-interview suspects.
- Step Four: look at the evidence if possible. Determine what, if any, follow-up tests might be useful, especially with a cold case.
- Step Five: consider a reconstruction of the crime scene.
- Step Six: check databases for similar crimes or information on suspects.
- Step Seven: proceed as necessary - maybe arrest or have search warrants for suspects' homes.
Again, this varies depending on the crime, the circumstances, and the outcome of the case -- solved versus unsolved, etc.
I've found that it helps to have crime scene sketches and "reports" of various incidents for the J. Carter & Associates series. They don't have to be pretty - just functional. I tend to put my locations in or around real locations. Sometimes the buildings are real (the library in Sole Survivor is located in Edgewater and has a road beside it and a small patch of trees) and others are placed where some buildings already exist - the house on the cliffside for example - or the Robertson mansion.
Friday, September 16, 2011
True Crime - Newspaper Mining
One of my favorite things in life is to read the crime report or as my local paper calls it the "Police Beat". Thankfully, with modern technology, I can read my little bits of crime online and jot down interesting stories. The main uptick lately is robbery.
Almost every story reported in the local paper is a robbery or attempted robbery. It can be a bank, a 7-11, or--believe it or not--a Taco Bell. There's muggings as well.
Why do real crimes matter?
They form a pattern. In those tiny snippets, you can learn about your area, what happens, and also, real crime. Like house fires. How many trucks come? How long does it take? What about the damage?
Now, house fires are interesting things. They are most common in the summertime (grills, old wiring, matches... you name it) and are often deadly. My neighborhood, which has a lot of older homes, suffered a rash of fires this year. One or two I actually witnessed. Another one, a few years back, I actually followed in the paper and went to the scene in person to view the damage.
While on the subject of house fires, I originally staged a car bombing to kill off a major character. After dismissing the implausible, I was left with creating a scenario that could feasibly be an accident--when it was actually murder.
One way to find newspaper articles is to Google search various topics such as "house fire" in a certain city or town or even state.
Here's a few examples using a city in my novels, Edgewater, MD. These are all articles from tv news stations. To actually find older newspaper articles in your area, visit your local library. Many have online subscriptions to newspaper archives or microfiche machines in main branches. But start your search online.
This the fire that occured around the time I was plotting "Sole Survivor". It also includes a video of the scene: http://www.wbaltv.com/news/23739451/detail.html
This is a different fire: http://www.wusa9.com/news/article/157241/373/One-Person-Reported-Dead-In-Edgewater-House-Fire
Go do some research. Read some newspapers (fun fact, in today's Washington Post, there was an article on a stolen horse near my old college which surprised me that it made a large paper) online or in print. Or watch the news. See what's happening in your community or in your novel's settings.
Almost every story reported in the local paper is a robbery or attempted robbery. It can be a bank, a 7-11, or--believe it or not--a Taco Bell. There's muggings as well.
Why do real crimes matter?
They form a pattern. In those tiny snippets, you can learn about your area, what happens, and also, real crime. Like house fires. How many trucks come? How long does it take? What about the damage?
Now, house fires are interesting things. They are most common in the summertime (grills, old wiring, matches... you name it) and are often deadly. My neighborhood, which has a lot of older homes, suffered a rash of fires this year. One or two I actually witnessed. Another one, a few years back, I actually followed in the paper and went to the scene in person to view the damage.
While on the subject of house fires, I originally staged a car bombing to kill off a major character. After dismissing the implausible, I was left with creating a scenario that could feasibly be an accident--when it was actually murder.
One way to find newspaper articles is to Google search various topics such as "house fire" in a certain city or town or even state.
Here's a few examples using a city in my novels, Edgewater, MD. These are all articles from tv news stations. To actually find older newspaper articles in your area, visit your local library. Many have online subscriptions to newspaper archives or microfiche machines in main branches. But start your search online.
This the fire that occured around the time I was plotting "Sole Survivor". It also includes a video of the scene: http://www.wbaltv.com/news/23739451/detail.html
This is a different fire: http://www.wusa9.com/news/article/157241/373/One-Person-Reported-Dead-In-Edgewater-House-Fire
Go do some research. Read some newspapers (fun fact, in today's Washington Post, there was an article on a stolen horse near my old college which surprised me that it made a large paper) online or in print. Or watch the news. See what's happening in your community or in your novel's settings.
Friday, July 8, 2011
Bloody Inspiration - Behind the Scenes of "Sole Survivor"
I've always been interested in crime. Shows like CSI have popularized crime, making it glamorous, but I got started with a childhood fascination with Nancy Drew.
Fast-forward a good dozen years. I'm working on revisions for an original thriller, called Coldest Degree, which I based on the idea of a pregnant woman's murder. The plot was too messy and over-populated with random characters and plot threads.
During revisions, I decided to start over.
At the time I was taking a class on criminalistics at community college. My professor, an ex-State Police Officer, assigned an unusual project. As groups, we had to reinvestigate a closed case in the method a real police detective would. With a checklist in hand, each group picked a type of crime.
My group chose homicide. We ended up working on a carjacking from the mid-1990s. During the reinvestigation, I visited the county's CID or Criminal Investigation Divison and spoke with real homicide detectives. I read the reports, the interview transcripts, the autopsy file, and studied the crime scene photographs.
This project hit me with an idea--what better way to get a character involved in a crime than through a reinvestigation?
My main character, Katherine, went from a 17 year old who stumbled onto a dead body to a 19 year old college student who uncovered the truth about a solved crime. Her reinvestigation attracts the interest of the men behind a deadly fire and puts both her life and the life of the only witness to the original crime in danger.
Of course, the crime itself changed from a car bombing to a fire. The fire was also inspired by a true local case. Two people died when a house fire triggered the collapse of the upper levels. I went by the actual scene and read news reports on it.
One simple class helped me get back on track on the first novel of my series. Sole Survivor is the introduction of series characters Katherine, Jackson, Aidan, and Marc. Katherine went from an angry teen to a damaged young woman. Jackson's past was fleshed out. Aidan went from being invisible to a large part of the action along with his partner, Aidan.
More to come on the art of reinvestigation and creating crimes in the next one.
Fast-forward a good dozen years. I'm working on revisions for an original thriller, called Coldest Degree, which I based on the idea of a pregnant woman's murder. The plot was too messy and over-populated with random characters and plot threads.
During revisions, I decided to start over.
At the time I was taking a class on criminalistics at community college. My professor, an ex-State Police Officer, assigned an unusual project. As groups, we had to reinvestigate a closed case in the method a real police detective would. With a checklist in hand, each group picked a type of crime.
My group chose homicide. We ended up working on a carjacking from the mid-1990s. During the reinvestigation, I visited the county's CID or Criminal Investigation Divison and spoke with real homicide detectives. I read the reports, the interview transcripts, the autopsy file, and studied the crime scene photographs.
This project hit me with an idea--what better way to get a character involved in a crime than through a reinvestigation?
My main character, Katherine, went from a 17 year old who stumbled onto a dead body to a 19 year old college student who uncovered the truth about a solved crime. Her reinvestigation attracts the interest of the men behind a deadly fire and puts both her life and the life of the only witness to the original crime in danger.
Of course, the crime itself changed from a car bombing to a fire. The fire was also inspired by a true local case. Two people died when a house fire triggered the collapse of the upper levels. I went by the actual scene and read news reports on it.
One simple class helped me get back on track on the first novel of my series. Sole Survivor is the introduction of series characters Katherine, Jackson, Aidan, and Marc. Katherine went from an angry teen to a damaged young woman. Jackson's past was fleshed out. Aidan went from being invisible to a large part of the action along with his partner, Aidan.
More to come on the art of reinvestigation and creating crimes in the next one.
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