tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-993649290245605005.post8573182353637942580..comments2024-03-29T10:59:34.918-04:00Comments on Writers Who Kill: WRITING ABOUT DEATHJim Jacksonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15090252530437277145noreply@blogger.comBlogger17125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-993649290245605005.post-415494341982786432013-04-28T14:59:27.668-04:002013-04-28T14:59:27.668-04:00Marilyn, I haven't tried those three ways you&...Marilyn, I haven't tried those three ways you've mentioned yet. Of course, in N.E. Ohio where I live and my murders take place, there are no real cliffs of any size. :-) I find real-life murders disturbing, too, although I don't lie awake worrying about it.Gloria Aldenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13581719606924364447noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-993649290245605005.post-14664750419120421872013-04-28T12:11:28.886-04:002013-04-28T12:11:28.886-04:00Gloria,
First let me commend you for being such a ...Gloria,<br />First let me commend you for being such a versatile murderer on "paper." I, too, have come up with various ways to kill off my victims, from drugging and throwing one off a cliff to running a few off the road. I think we compartmentalize and separate the murders in our books from those in real life. I read and write mysteries because I love the puzzle of it all: who is the murderer? Why did he do it? Also, when a mystery ends, order is once again established, and order is something we sorely need in our lives. Real-life murder is very disturbing. It reminds us it can happen to us. <br />Marilyn Levinsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10424778692932139865noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-993649290245605005.post-68567269829984087832013-04-26T22:26:01.879-04:002013-04-26T22:26:01.879-04:00I think one of the reasons I like writing crime no...I think one of the reasons I like writing crime novels is because it puts me in control, rather than seeing it just happen.<br /><br />When I worked in a state prison, I usually had a few murders on my work crew, and some of them worked for me for a few years. You get to know people you work with that much, and usually like them. How does it feel to know you've killed a person and there's no way to take it back? Strangulation was the most common method I encountered.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-993649290245605005.post-79951684703459628532013-04-26T19:18:03.109-04:002013-04-26T19:18:03.109-04:00So true,Carla, although since I wrote this more an...So true,Carla, although since I wrote this more and more is coming out.Gloria Aldenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13581719606924364447noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-993649290245605005.post-6528884529827817372013-04-25T21:43:57.964-04:002013-04-25T21:43:57.964-04:00your comments about the Boston bomber rang true. W...your comments about the Boston bomber rang true. We may never know why he did it. At least when we write mysteries, we KNOW the why.carlahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15985823239660829148noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-993649290245605005.post-34672724826473633582013-04-25T21:08:18.421-04:002013-04-25T21:08:18.421-04:00Wow, Linda! You've got a lot of different ways...Wow, Linda! You've got a lot of different ways of killing people. :-)<br />I not only like to solve the puzzle, but I also find it interesting to discover the motivations leading up to it. It's one of the reasons I like Elizabeth George so much along with other writers who create complex characters.Gloria Aldenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13581719606924364447noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-993649290245605005.post-34206855260596513532013-04-25T16:39:45.686-04:002013-04-25T16:39:45.686-04:00Gloria, I've killed characters by bashing in t...Gloria, I've killed characters by bashing in their heads with a rock, by shooting them, by stabbing them with long, sharp wool combs, by battering them with a weighted golf club, by cutting their throats with a knife, and in one case, by telephoning a complaint to the city about a broken step and unlicensed car.<br /><br />I don't write or read mysteries for the puzzle but because of the repercussions of the crime and the hidden undercurrents between people that led up to it. Characters and relationships and motivations are what matter to me.Linda Rodriguezhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11913741596693442469noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-993649290245605005.post-36785122285492616442013-04-25T14:56:54.835-04:002013-04-25T14:56:54.835-04:00That whole Boston bombing has preyed on my mind so...That whole Boston bombing has preyed on my mind so much, Kara, and much of that is because of the younger brother and how well-liked he was. I do want to know what changed him, and yes, I think it was the older brother. I feel the younger brother is one of the tragedies of that day. I guess it's the first time I've looked that much at the human side of a killer. I think a little of it might have to do because of his picture. His curly brown hair and brown eyes remind me of my oldest son, who died of cancer. I imagine his parents are now wishing both sons had died rather than do the things they did. Gloria Aldenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13581719606924364447noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-993649290245605005.post-72999553493854527172013-04-25T14:23:48.805-04:002013-04-25T14:23:48.805-04:00I also read for the "why.” However, shortly a...I also read for the "why.” However, shortly after the Boston bombings, I had an "aha" moment after watching a reporter interview a detective. He asked why someone would commit this type of act. The detective replied something like, "We don't care why. We want to know who because when we know who, we'll find out why." I made a mental note that to a detective “why” isn’t the most important question when solving a crime.Kara Cerisehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16484336785514235707noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-993649290245605005.post-56793116475053199242013-04-25T13:21:14.096-04:002013-04-25T13:21:14.096-04:00You're not tough enough yet, Shari. :-) Poison...You're not tough enough yet, Shari. :-) Poison in he leftovers is a good one. Sometimes that comes naturally, of course, if it's left long enough in the fridge so that it gathers green mold. I like solving the puzzle and trying to figure out which character has the best motive to commit a murder. Of course, we usually don't find that out until the end.Gloria Aldenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13581719606924364447noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-993649290245605005.post-68530506282882912842013-04-25T13:18:20.972-04:002013-04-25T13:18:20.972-04:00Aerosol spray!!!! That's a new one, but you so...Aerosol spray!!!! That's a new one, but you so add unusual twists to your work, Warren. Shakespeare did write some gruesome deaths, didn't he.Gloria Aldenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13581719606924364447noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-993649290245605005.post-16038392548500088652013-04-25T13:06:15.769-04:002013-04-25T13:06:15.769-04:00Since I am a newbie I've only committed one mu...Since I am a newbie I've only committed one murder (on paper, of course) by poison in the leftovers. Not giving anything away, since the method is not the point in that story, it's the capture. That's what I like in a mystery, solving the puzzle and peeling away the masks that characters wear to hide their dark hearts.<br />PS Aerosol? Warren, that's creative!Shari Randallhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16425493627354028820noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-993649290245605005.post-27516775073800009182013-04-25T11:13:59.371-04:002013-04-25T11:13:59.371-04:00Murder, betrayal, gore innocents threatened. That...Murder, betrayal, gore innocents threatened. That could be mystery or it could be Shakespeare. I wrote about one murder by aerosol spray. The Bard missed that one. I like the human interactions and the puzzles.Warren Bullhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07789270258599769915noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-993649290245605005.post-84935082056085623352013-04-25T09:36:32.164-04:002013-04-25T09:36:32.164-04:00I agree, Rhonda. My actual life is rather boring s...I agree, Rhonda. My actual life is rather boring since I've lived in the same place my whole life. Mysteries spice up my life and take me to new places.Gloria Aldenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13581719606924364447noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-993649290245605005.post-87387752007031745712013-04-25T08:16:42.331-04:002013-04-25T08:16:42.331-04:00I'm another one who reads for the "why?&q...I'm another one who reads for the "why?" Mysteries also immerse us in different worlds.Rhonda Lanehttp://www.thehorseyset.netnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-993649290245605005.post-32139425706222100002013-04-25T06:21:24.134-04:002013-04-25T06:21:24.134-04:00Jim, that's why I write mysteries, too. I'...Jim, that's why I write mysteries, too. I'm curious about why people turn to crime. Also, when I read mysteries it's because I like to try to solve the mystery before the writer exposes the murderer.<br /><br />I wonder if there's a gender aspect on how murder is committed, too, both in the writer of mysteries and the murderer. I'm thinking guns would more often be used by a man, but that may be changing.Gloria Aldenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13581719606924364447noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-993649290245605005.post-56898670026871943902013-04-25T05:43:30.958-04:002013-04-25T05:43:30.958-04:00Death by bullet has been my most popular methodolo...Death by bullet has been my most popular methodology, although I have used various toxins and diseases when some baddy is going for larger groups of people – although often those are spoiled by the hero.<br /><br />I don’t write or read mysteries for the crime, but for the human interactions: those that lead to the crime or those resulting from the crime.<br /><br />~ Jim<br />Jim Jacksonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15090252530437277145noreply@blogger.com