On Keeping It Real
As an author of crime/suspense books, one thing I strive to do is make the story realistic. I'm sure that some readers would like to see less in the way of the background and training activities my elite team engage in, but the reality is that this is the life for those in law enforcement who are part of an elite team. The FBI's elite Hostage and Rescue Team spends the vast majority of their time training, with very little time spent on actual missions.
Blood and gore seem to be the hallmarks of many books out there, even ones by such notable authors as Tom Clancy. I cringed while reading his Rainbow Six, however. The tactics and rules of engagement for a law enforcement team are vastly different than the same rules for military actions. One just doesn't go around shooting people if they're a part of a law enforcement team. Nor do those who are in law enforcement relish the idea of having to shoot someone. The typical end result for the officer/agent involved in the shooting can span everything from the "thousand mile stare" to quitting, with crying and vomiting being common.
There are a lot of misrepresentations in popular media about how law enforcement operates as well. I also used to cringe while watching the various iterations of Law and Order, where it seemed officers were drawing their weapons a half dozen times apiece during every episode. In fact, only about one quarter of those in law enforcement have ever fired their gun in earnest while "on the job." That's for their entire career, which will typically span 20 years or more.
And then there's the funny stuff you see all the time. A favorite of mine—one which you see all the time—is the officer/agent searching through a dark area aided only by the rail-mounted light on their weapon. Why don't they just flip that light switch on the wall? It's a house, for heaven's sake! The dead person on the floor hardly had time to ask the electric company for a disconnect! This is one I might just use in one of my books. Let my most inexperienced person head down the basement stairs totally in the dark, slip, land on his butt—followed by a more experienced one asking him, "Why didn't you just turn on the light?" as they flip the switch at the top of the stairs.
If you're looking for lots of blood and gore, the constant firing of weapons, agents who think nothing of having had to shoot someone, and jumping into a case with no preparation, then my books aren't for you. I focus on the human side, trying my best to show you how an elite law enforcement agent thinks about their duties, from boring intelligence briefings to reconciling having had to shoot someone and even occasionally showing admiration for the perpetrator.
Blood and gore seem to be the hallmarks of many books out there, even ones by such notable authors as Tom Clancy. I cringed while reading his Rainbow Six, however. The tactics and rules of engagement for a law enforcement team are vastly different than the same rules for military actions. One just doesn't go around shooting people if they're a part of a law enforcement team. Nor do those who are in law enforcement relish the idea of having to shoot someone. The typical end result for the officer/agent involved in the shooting can span everything from the "thousand mile stare" to quitting, with crying and vomiting being common.
There are a lot of misrepresentations in popular media about how law enforcement operates as well. I also used to cringe while watching the various iterations of Law and Order, where it seemed officers were drawing their weapons a half dozen times apiece during every episode. In fact, only about one quarter of those in law enforcement have ever fired their gun in earnest while "on the job." That's for their entire career, which will typically span 20 years or more.
And then there's the funny stuff you see all the time. A favorite of mine—one which you see all the time—is the officer/agent searching through a dark area aided only by the rail-mounted light on their weapon. Why don't they just flip that light switch on the wall? It's a house, for heaven's sake! The dead person on the floor hardly had time to ask the electric company for a disconnect! This is one I might just use in one of my books. Let my most inexperienced person head down the basement stairs totally in the dark, slip, land on his butt—followed by a more experienced one asking him, "Why didn't you just turn on the light?" as they flip the switch at the top of the stairs.
If you're looking for lots of blood and gore, the constant firing of weapons, agents who think nothing of having had to shoot someone, and jumping into a case with no preparation, then my books aren't for you. I focus on the human side, trying my best to show you how an elite law enforcement agent thinks about their duties, from boring intelligence briefings to reconciling having had to shoot someone and even occasionally showing admiration for the perpetrator.
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