Asking Sensitive Questions from Experts

Dhewco · Sep 4, 2006

Hi,

I abandoned the idea I'm going to refer to, because of the reaction of the experts. I was going to write a kidnap story from the mind of the kidnapper...probably not an original idea, but I thought it could be cool and a challenge.

The kidnapper didn't have sexual reasons for kidnapping the kid . . . he simply wanted a son/daughter (didn't really work that out at the time). I wanted to know the effects of certain drugs on a kid (wanted something more current than ether/alcohol/ or drugs commonly used to knock out a kid in literature).

Heh, I tried to use the docs at www.experts.com to give me some advice. I got a 'third degree'. I thought those guys would be used to unusual questions, but I guess where children are involved . . . those guys have to be hypersensitive. (I understand that, I do)

Here's a question...how does an unpublished author ask experts sensitive questions without arousing some sort of suspicion that you might have nefarious purposes in mind?

Is being there in person a better way than email? (if I could find some local experts in my rural area)

David

LeeFlower · Sep 4, 2006

If you can't meet people face to face, I'd suggest providing your full name and address in the email. People might be more likely to help if you're not annonymous. The phraze "I'm Writing A Novel" generally helps too, but you've probably thought of that.

Have you considered calling a college or university that has a good criminology department? Speaking to local police or emergency rescuers?

Good luck.

Dhewco · Sep 4, 2006

Heh, go to the police? Um, after the grilling email I received from the Docs, I'm not sure I want to do that. LOL, trust me, the Doc wasn't very polite with the way he phrased his questions.

Anyway, I always tell the doctor my purpose in gathering info and always give my name and phone number...sometimes my address too. Those things can be faked in email though, and I get the feeling it doesn't always put an expert at ease. (unless they call me, of course...but I hate talking on the phone, lol)

Anyway, thanks for your response.

Perks · Sep 4, 2006

I spoke to the police, in fact do regularly for my WIP. Best to meet face-to-face. This will put everyone at ease.

SpookyWriter · Sep 4, 2006

Perks said:
I spoke to the police, in fact do regularly for my WIP. Best to meet face-to-face. This will put everyone at ease.

I needed material for my current wip which involved someone inside a jail cell. It's possible to get a tour, if you register and ask politely, but I was fortunate enough to have an outstanding ticket so I got to spend the night in jail and learned quite a bit of the process. Nothing like a little reality to make the story seem believable.

Perks · Sep 4, 2006

I heard you was a peepin' tom.

James D. Macdonald · Sep 4, 2006

I can't think of a lot of reasons why you'd want to put the exact names of drugs, dosages, and routes of administration into a novel. (You might just have to take 'em out again anyway -- "no harmful formulas" is a pretty frequent contract clause.)

Do you really want to get sued by the grieving parent of a kid whose kidnapper followed the instructions in your book?

Use public sources. Be vague. Handwave it. Unless this particular detail moves the plot forward in ways no other could you're going to cut it in the second draft anyway.

veinglory · Sep 4, 2006

I would suggest using a few to 10 mils of a plausible fake drug name.

Dhewco · Sep 4, 2006

No, No, No...I wasn't talking dosages...I was talking about physical effects of the drug on the body. I wanted to know what the kid would be feeling so I can be accurate and realistic.

I didn't want anything resembling a 'blueprint'. I didn't need to know HOW, for cripes sake.

I would have wrote a part of the story in the victim's pov. Sorry I didn't mention that.

David

SpookyWriter · Sep 4, 2006

Perks said:
I heard you was a peepin' tom.

Got milk?

emeraldcite · Sep 4, 2006

wanted to know what the kid would be feeling so I can be accurate and realistic.

Take liberties, that what writers do. For the most part, people won't have a clue as to what a certain dosage of a med feels like. They'll take your word for it. With enough suspension of disbelief, you can convince the audience that aspirin is a concoction of the government in order to control peoples' minds.

Just like fluoride.

Tish Davidson · Sep 4, 2006

If you're going to write it from the kidnappers POV, then you won't be telling readers how the kid feels, only the kidnapper's perception of what is happening.

RG570 · Sep 4, 2006

I can't remember the site at the moment, but there's a great site run by recreational drug users where they post their experiences with various drugs, many of them medications with sedative effects. They even had a few accounts of a trip on obscene amounts of gravol, which was pretty interesting. I think that could be useful if you could find it.

On the other hand, most things that knock you out pretty much...just knock you out. You feel tired, heavy, sometimes nice and warm, and then you lose consciousness.

And on the third hand, maybe it's not THAT important of a detail. But I guess it's good to have all your bases covered sometimes.

Dhewco · Sep 5, 2006

Tish Davidson said:
If you're going to write it from the kidnappers POV, then you won't be telling readers how the kid feels, only the kidnapper's perception of what is happening.

LOL, as I said in a subsequent (sp?) post, I planned on part of the story to be also in the kid's POV. My apologies for not mentioning that in the original post. I'm brain dead some times, heh.

BTW, I didn't want to 'take liberties', I wanted as much realism as possible. I've never taken any 'recreational' drugs...I don't even drink, although I did a little as a teenager. I didn't think I could do it good enough to 'suspend belief'.

Thanks for all the responses,

David

PS, if I ever decide to resurrect this story idea . . . I'll have this to look back on for ideas on how to do it right. Thanks.

Asking Sensitive Questions from Experts

Dhewco

LeeFlower

Lurker Extraordinaire

Dhewco

Perks

delicate #!&@*#! flower

SpookyWriter

Perks

delicate #!&@*#! flower

James D. Macdonald

Your Genial Uncle

veinglory

volitare nequeo

Dhewco

SpookyWriter

emeraldcite

Art is Resistance

Tish Davidson

RG570

Dhewco