The Introverted Detective

Last blog I talked about PTSD, which is sometimes caused by Survivor's Guilt. According to Google, the definition of survivor's guilt is a condition of persistent mental and emotional stress experienced by someone who survived an event where others died. In short, one might feel guilty about surviving. For example, a bombing may take place and one of the few survivors may suffer from this condition. It is often connected with grieving someone's death. Not surprisingly, it has some of the same symptoms as PTSD and contributes to PTSD. Symptoms include flashbacks, irritability, difficulty sleeping, feeling numb or disconnected, being unmotivated, feeling helpless, fear, physical distress (headaches, heart issues, stomach issues),  and suicidal feelings. Curiously, it is often spotted through exploring dreams. Dream journals are a good source of coping. People who have depression and low self-esteem, especially past victims of childhood abuse, are more likely to get this...

PTSD is an unfortunate side effect of trauma, specifically combat, severe abuse, and rape. When it comes to writing characters that are afflicted with PTSD here is what you need to know. The basic definition of PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder) is a mental condition caused by traumatic events. The symptoms of this disorder are similar in men and women, but not quite the same. More women soldiers are seeing combat and going into the military as a career. They face the same challenges in some ways, but not in every way. The basic symptoms of PTSD include flashbacks, nightmares, mental health issues, panic attacks, and hallucinations. These are the traits that men and women share within this disorder. People also have trouble sleeping, eating, dealing with memory triggers, and dealing with other people within these symptoms. Some turn to drugs and alcohol. Changes in personality and moodiness are common. A once loving spouse may beat their spouse and suddenly hate them. W...

These are Ohio self defense laws, so if you are looking for other states consult an attorney or the internet, then double check your facts.  So, your detective, victim, or even murderer is going to claim self defense in Ohio. Here's what you need to know about Ohio legal self defense. In general, it's easier to give your character a lawyer, and even then you still have to know the laws. Always get a lawyer, in real life. In public places The thing to remember is that if you are in public places you have a duty to retreat, which means it is only legal if you couldn't retreat/avoid the danger and you believed fully that you were in danger  (whether you actually were or not). If you believed you would be bodily harmed and couldn't escape, you have a right to self defense. That said, a jury still has to believe you. You are supposed to find a peace officer, if you can retreat. Also, if you caused the fight to begin with, you have no legal right to self defense.  ...

Writers and readers are thrilled by serial killers from the past and present. They fill fiction novels in the mystery and suspense genre and readers eat it up with a spoon. I'm going to provide you examples of real crimes you may or may not have heard of, as well as give you the basics on serial killers. Serial killers are defined as committing a series of murders, sometimes with no apparent motive, in a pattern or specific way. They are often made famous (or rather infamous) in the process because the press and general population become alarmed and focus on them. They appear on the news when news of a serial killer is leaked out or is released to the press by law enforcement. It would be great if serial killers were all fictional and created only on pages of thrillers, but that isn't true. We all know about Jack the Ripper, H. H. Holmes, Jeffery Dahmer, Ted Bundy, and the Zodiak Killer, but there are current day killers you may not know about. Some of them aren't caugh...

Gun laws are different for every state. I am only talking about Ohio in this post, but it's easy to find the open carry and concealed carry laws online. Keep that in mind, writers. Your character may be breaking the law if you don't know these laws. Heck, you may break the law if you don't know your gun laws. Open Carry Laws                             Open carry is a new law that some law enforcement aren't familiar with, thus your character that open carries may be approached by law enforcement and jumpy people alike. The best option for a reaction, in the situation of a law officer approaching, is to be calm, keep your hands away from your weapon, and comply. In the words of an FBI agent I once met, you can fight for your rights in court later. Also, you may want to get a lawyer if your approaching officer is one who doesn't understand the open carry law and you get arrested. Open carry is generally n...

Characters, like people, have personality types, thus they must be introverts, extroverts, or ambiverts (meaning can be both at different comfort levels). As writers, we have to know what our characters are to make them realistic, and doing so can make a more dynamic social scene in your writing. For example, having an extrovert (Person A) and an introvert (Person B) clash due to Person A having a need to fill the comfortable silence Person B enjoys will create a conflict that can drive conversation and character development. Conflict furthers your story and, in this scene, can spur colorful words from Person B, while Person A may not understand why the other character is so irritated. This is why introverted or extroverted matters; we interact based on being an introvert or extrovert all the time. It influences us far more than we think because it influences where we get our energy from and what exhausts us. Since I've now said the words introvert and extrovert without definit...

Tailing and surveillance are essential to private investigators. Your fictional private investigator will need to know how to do this well, or if you want them to fail, what not to do. Tailing, to be clear, is following someone in a car or on foot. Surveillance is watching someone from a distance. You'll have to know the difference for this to make sense. First, let's start with the pre-surveillance work. It only takes one stroll through the internet channels, public records, and social media to find one's habits and usual places to visit. There are whole websites dedicated to helping people do this. One hour or less and someone can know you hang out at the public library every Friday and you went to a Nancy Drew Convention in New Orleans last year (just a fictional example, but you get the idea). It's not that hard to do this. If you check your friends' Facebook events and pictures, you already have a lot of information. Your fictional PI, if they are on the le...