Meta: Plot, Woe, Plot: Faking Forensics and Conjuring Crimes for Investigative Fandoms

[catwalksalone]

MJ Panel Mod: shihadachick

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[emily_shore]

A great topic. I will be very interested to see what people have to contribute.

I can recommend an excellent book that I stumbled across in the Bodleian Library while researching an X-Files fanfic. It is called "Illustrated Guide to Crime Scene Investigation," is by Nicholas Petraco and Hal Sherman, and offers an exhaustively-detailed and copiously-illustrated resource for exactly what it is that investigators do at crime scenes. You could never in a million years use all of these details in your stories.

http://www.amazon.com/Illustrated-Guide-Crime-Scene-Investigation/dp/0849322634

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[astridv]

Thanks for the tip! I'm toying with the thought of writing Bones/NCIS of all things, and would like to avoid messing up the forensic facts and procedures (about which I know nothing). This book sounds useful.

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[the_antichris]

Ooh, randomly dropping in to say that a Bones/NCIS crossover would be awesome. Zack and Abby *need* to interact.

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[astridv]

Let alone what will happen if you put Gibbs and Booth in the same room...

Though I try not to speculate too much yet about how the characters will interact, before I got the setup all ready. I'll want their reactions to be fresh and spontaneous, if that makes any sense.

Of course the setup, in this genre, is the tricky part. I admire those writers who can write a plausible casefile. Much easier in fandoms like Buffy or Supernatural, where you can create some demon or prophecy or whatnot, and you got the setup for a plot.

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[the_antichris]

It's so hard - I have a story I want to write, and the emotional plot worked itself out long before I managed to think of a plausible case, and I'm still trying to figure out how to weave the details in. I mean, even deciding what the crime *is* is only the start of it. Bring on the demons!

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[amonitrate]

I'm having the same problem with an Original fic novel I'm writing. Just don't know why the (possible) crime happened - grr. Hoping it will come in time.

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[emily_shore]

There were a couple more, but unfortunately I didn't write the titles down. Would you like more if I do end up going back for another look?

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[astridv]

Actually, yeah, I would much appreciate it. The 'Illustrated Guide' you mention above isn't exactly cheap but it sounds just like what I was looking for... comprehensive. And, even more important, illustrated. So I'm pretty determined to buy it. But can't hurt to look into some other titles, too.

Re: Here via Metafandom

[emily_shore]

I'll see what I can do. I should say that I wouldn't recommend spending any serious amount of money for the Illustrated Guide unless you've taken a look at it first. It is certainly comprehensive, but comes close to crossing the line from exhaustive to exhausting. As in, it's the book for you if you need to know exactly how to lift prints using tape (including photos) and what depth of field to use when photographing small pieces of evidence next to a ruler (make sure it's the evidence that's in focus and not the ruler)... but if not, not. When I read it myself, I really wanted to absorb all the details, but ended up discovering that I really didn't care quite that much.

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[astridv]

I'll see what I can do. I should say that I wouldn't recommend spending any serious amount of money for the Illustrated Guide unless you've taken a look at it first.

Yeah, I want to see if they can order it at the bookstore to preview. They usually do that, just don't know if they do it for foreign titles. Though that book should be tax-deductable for me, which makes the price a lot less prohibitive.

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[emily_shore]

Right, after a bit more time in the Bodleian Law Library, I'd like to retract my recommendation for the Illustrated Guide and instead draw your attention to "Techniques of Crime Scene Investigation" by Barry Fisher. While it is still copiously illustrated, it also has a lot of narrative giving the sort of background information that writers need. It has some fascinating case studies and it gives information about what happens in the lab as well as at the crime scene.

Another really good book that I found at the same time, although it might not be quite what you're looking for, is "Cold Case Homicides: Practical Investigative Techniques" by Richard Walton. It seems to me to be of wider relevance than the title suggests; I could feel myself putting together story scenarios while just looking through it...

Do let me know what you end up buying. I'm curious!

Thank you!

[astridv]

This helps a lot. I'll let you know which I'll go for. :o)
I also looked into the 'Howdunit' series mentioned above, but it appears that those books in a lower price range aren't quite up-to-date.