Investigation, Interview, & Interrogation: Information for Writers

____________________________________________

EXCERPT FROM CHAIN LYNX

    “T-bone don’t matter none. He in for assault. He a gang banger. No one believe nothing he’d say. He want to tell? Go ahead. He just trying to trade me in for a free walk, man.” Hector rested his eyes on his knees.
     “You told T-bone your story.”
     Hector looked up at Axel and back down with a scornful huff.
     “And now T-bone is dead,” Axel said.

     Hector all but threw his body out of his chair. He moved back in the tiny interrogation room, away from Axel, to stand in the corner. He was cornered.
     “What you mean T-bone dead?”
     Axel said nothing.
     "He was alive this morning when I got moved.”
     Axel gave a slight nod.
     Hector stalked back to his chair, sat down, and leaned
forward, tightly wound, focused. “T-bone dead?”
     “This is bigger than you could ever imagine.” Axel’s voice was quiet. Eerily free of emotion. “You are smaller than you could ever imagine. You, Hector, are a bug under someone’s shoe, and you are about to get squashed. I want to know why.”

(Photo credit: Wikipedia)

While intelligence gathering happens prior to a crime, an investigation happens as a reaction to a crime.
It is important for a writer to understand the different roles that are played by investigative professionals.
A forensic scientist processes evidence. Unlike what we see on TV, forensic scientists usually DO NOT conduct interviews or interrogations. Typically interviews and interrogation are considered police science rather than forensic science.

An interview is conducted with a witness and an interrogation is conducted with a suspect.

*Police interviews happen anywhere - on the street or in the station.
*It is important to note that people can reply or not.
*In an interrogation, suspects have the right to protect themselves from self-incrimination.
*Witnesses have the choice whether to cooperate or not.
*Even though witnesses can refuse to talk, they can be compelled to disclose their information in front of a
  grand jury and other court hearings. If an investigator is talking to someone who is refusing information, they
  can be threatened with a subpoena.

As a writer, you'll want to consider:

*Does the investigator have jurisdiction?
  Lee Loftland's blog about which agencies conduct which kinds of investigations
*What if several agencies can claim jurisdiction? Typically the location with the most significant crime
  and the best case will take the lead. This can cause problems and might help with your plot twists.

(Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Investigations begin once it has been determined that a crime has taken place by one of the following:

*Police
*Prosecuters Office
*Grand Jury

Investigations can be broken down into three types:

1. Administrative - These are fact finding inquiries within an agency or business
*Professional Misconduct
*Safety Violations
*Employee background checks

(Photo credit: Wikipedia)

*Harassment
*Discrimination
Video Quick Study - Investigators' Reports (4:21 Industry Investigator)

2. Criminal Investigation - conducted by an agency

3. Private Investigation - Professionals hired from
    outside of agencies to counter what the agencies
    produce for evidence

Once an agency decides that a criminal act has taken place two things must occur:

1 - Find the suspect
2 - Connect the suspect to the victim and the crime. This includes forensics, interrogation, and interviews

 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Study Links to Related Blog Posts :
Fingerprints
Footwear
Blood Spatter
CSI Light


To reach the goal of arrest and conviction, investigators use:
* Search Warrants
* Arrest Warrants
* Forensic science applications
* Interviews
    Study Link: How a Police Sketch Artist Works
* Interrogations
   Study Link: Body Language of Liars
 
An interviewer will ask the same questions that your readers want to unravel as they read your story. Just remember Kiplings "Six Honest Men." Who? What? Where? When? Why? and How?

Some things for a writer to consider about their witness:

* What was the motive for coming forward?

At the Writers' Police Academy. I confess!

* What was their vantage point?
* What is their emotional state?
* What was their physical state?
* Were they injured? In shock?
* Were they under the influence of drugs or
   alcohol?
* Are they very old, or known to have impaired
   memory?
* Are they very young?
   Video of a child being interrogated. (8:00)
* Does the witness have limited intelligence.
* How long ago did the crime happen?
* Are the witnesses afraid to offer their
   information? - Perhaps your witness is afraid of
   the police
   because of something that has happened in the past. (Blog link showing this concept in action),
   or they are afraid of what might happen to themselves or their family and property if they step-forward
   with information.
   As a writer, if you have a character who is a reluctant witness, you might choose for them to use
   an anonymous tip line to get the information to the investigators.
* Perhaps your witness just doesn't want to get involved - they think that it would take time away from work
   or they would have to go to trial etc.

The investigator will use standardized forms to document the information. These may include:

* Witness Investigation Reports
* Missing, Damaged, or Stolen Property Reports

The Interview and/or Interrogation

Psychological studies have been conducted to try to get the optimal amount of information from a witness. To this end police might choose different locations for their interview. The police may walk the witness through the crime scene. They might conduct the interview at the home. Or possibly bring them in for formal interviewing at the police station.

Video Quick Study
First Jodi Arias Interrogation go to mark 3:00 to see her commenting on the temperature and watch the friendly, helpful tone of the investigator.
Training an Investigator (21:06) Talks about all of the things that impact and develop in an interview or interrogation (this focuses on child interviews) very interesting what technology has been developed for training purposes and beyond.

A writer must decide how this is documented either on camera or just voice recorded. Typically the investigator will put the recording device on the table in front of the witness. Being voice recorded is by consent-only in most states. A video tape, however, does not need to be disclosed if it is visual only. Often it is NOT disclosed that video is being taken because this has proven to impede the interview. Perhaps you want the witness to have this added intimidation factor? Perhaps you choose not to include video and something important is missed and the suspect is set free?

Sometimes a witness interview changes into an interrogation. If this happens, the subject will need to be apprised of their rights to not implicate themselves in a crime. Custodial Interrogations - the suspect is arrested then interrogated this is done AFTER their Miranda Rights are read to them.

*Typically only one person conducts the interview or interrogation.
*Forensic scientists DO NOT conduct interviews or interrogations.
*Investigators are trained to use a soft, normal tone and have a friendly demeanor.
*Typically at the beginning of an interrogation, time is spent just getting to know the person, figuring out the
  subject's capacity intellectually, and psychologically - how competent are they?

VIDEO QUICK STUDY
Effective Interrogation Prt 1 (14:53) Includes body language
Effective Interrogation Prt 2 (14:52) Minimization technique,
                                           (9:00 mark) aggressive techniques that do not work, denial interruption
Effective Interrogation Prt 3 (13:02) move to 3:00 mark.

See how this article influenced my plot lines in my novella MINE and my novel CHAOS IS COME AGAIN.

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Human Memory and Eye Witness Accounts - Information for Writers

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Excerpt from WEAKEST LYNX -

     “Wilson’s stable. In police custody at Suburban. He’s being charged with breaking and entering with intent to harm, and possession.”

     I waited for the rest of the charges.

     Striker pursed his lips.

     “Wait. What about six murders and an attempted murder?” My voice squeaked.

     “The D.A. is having trouble putting together a case. The original six were linked to you by the MO. We have no evidence. None. Though they’ve been working on developing the case since your attack.”

     “But what about me? I saw him. The neighbors saw him. We confirmed the police sketch. Surely…”

     “Subsequent to seeing him, you sustained a traumatic brain injury. The defense can shred your eye-witness report on the witness stand. Same with the neighbors. They were running in the dark. Could be a look alike. There were no prints, no DNA, no motive linking you two. They need something more or they can’t make the case.”

THE INNOCENCE PROJECT "Many wrongful convictions overturned with DNA testing involve multiple causes: 75% involve eyewitness misidentification... Prosecutorial misconduct, ineffective defense, police misconduct and racism are harder to quantify but were also factors in many of the wrongful convictions that have been overturned with DNA testing." 

75% of wrongful convictions involved eyewitness misidentification? How is this possible?

The first thing that needs to be understood about memory is that humans do not process events like a video recorder. We process information based on focus, intensity, and past experiences. 

All of our individual past experiences form "schema" in our memory banks. As we encounter information our brain looks into its schema-files and develops an understanding based on what it has experienced before.

(LINK to a guest blog demonstrating the impact of past schema on present situation) 

When one remembers an incident the various past schema can overlap and mingle. The witness memory can be crystal clear - but it might not be the reality of what took place.

 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The Four Types of Memory

* Cognitive - These are sequences and patterns.
* Motor Vestibular -Body memories such as
   playing a instrument or driving a car
* Emotional/Affective - These are memories of
   feelings like grief and fear.
* State - These are memories from the senses. State
   memories seem to be the most helpful in developing
   a  clear picture of what occurred. PTSD plays from
   this memory - a certain smell or noise can trigger a
   physical reaction. Auditory memories are less reliable than visual
   memory. But  as a plot twist, an author should understand that
   witnesses are more confident in what they hear than what they
   see.

The Stages of Memory 

 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

* Short Term - Unimportant data that is processed in the now. If
   the brain deems something to be important it moves the
    information into long term memory.        

* Long Term - Can be retrieved from past events. One's ability to
   recall depends on how information was processed. Processing
   depends on which of the four types of memories or which
   combination were used to interpret and "cluster" (this is basically
   a filing system).

The more significance-in-the-moment and the more types of memories involved create the clearest and most accurate memory picture. As a writer, think about your character. As she remembers something, which of her memory types is she using? For example, does she cognitively recall the fear that slowed her sequence of her actions when she smelled the smoke? Could she be making a profound mistake because she clustered the schema and now has a faulty memory? Did she remember the man saying, "I will kill you!" when she was really merging the event with a nightmare she had had just the night before?  

Remember that no two people could ever remember an event from the same perspective. It's just not possible. What if your characters had completely different memory schemas of an event? Wow - all hell could break loose!

VIDEO QUICK STUDY - (9:02) FALSE MEMORY AND EYEWITNESS TESTIMONY                                             interactive, very interesting!

So we know that people will perceive with four different kinds of memory. They will either store in their long term memory, or not. They will develop a schema based on their past experiences and cluster these in their memory banks. But what are some of the components that might interfere in a clear and accurate memory? 

A list of possibilities:

* Beliefs

Animation of the structure of a section of DNA. The bases lie horizontally between the two spiraling strands. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

* Stress levels

* Cross Racial Identification Bias
   Brains are wired to identify distinctions in our own
   race but NOT other  races. 

* Distinctive Aspects - People will remember
   particularly attractive or especially unattractive
   physicality better than "average" looks.

* Age of Witness - Children and elderly are less
  accurate and their descriptors might be different as
  well. Example: to a five year old "really old" could
  mean someone who is in their thirties.

* Gender - Men and women remember different
   aspects because of how their brains are wired. A
   man, for example, might remember the make and
   year of a car while a woman might remember that

   it was blue.

* Profession - Ex. an artist might have a better ability
   to recall the face structure while a physical
   therapist might notice a posture or unusual gait.    

* Drug or Alcohol Use

* Head Trauma - As in the excerpt from Weakest
   Lynx

* Weapons Focus Effect-If there is a weapon present
   the witness focus remains on the weapon (duh) and
   not on anything else in the environment.
   (LINK - Blog about my experience as a eye witness
     in a simulation)

* Attention - A victim or bystander will pay more
   attention to details if they are aware of what is happening
   than someone who is not aware that something is going on. Even
   if the witnesses are very attentive and good with faces, it is hard
   to find the words to describe a person. Try this experiment - think
   of someone you know very well, now try to describe out loud
   their features so that someone could draw them
   (Witness recall and Police Sketch Artists)

* Setting - Full day light, face full on, length of time of incident
   and time when recalled. 20 min can cause a sharp decrease in the
   number things that can be remembered.

* System Variables - These are police and legal procedures that
   can introduce bias.

In the 1977 Supreme Court decision in Manson v Brathwaite (Information Link)  - It was determined that eyewitnesses are allowed to testify if they are very sure of testimony. If they are unsure it is up to the judge in the case whether to allow or not. Psychological studies have shown that the degree of certainty does not correlate with accuracy. 

Many countries realized that innocent people were going to jail based on false witness memory - remember the witnesses can be 100% sure of themselves. They are not in any way "bad"; it is the way that memory works that makes eye witness testimony so very difficult. In 1999, Janet Reno was tasked with trying to develop procedures to help prevent some of these false-memory reports.

If your book takes place AFTER 1999, it should reflect these changes:

* Police ask open ended questions. Instead of asking, "Did he have
   a gun?" thus planting the memory of a gun, the police should ask,
   "Do you remember a weapon of any kind?"

VIDEO QUICK STUDY - Elizabeth Loftus - Planting False 
Memory (4:20)
VIDEO QUICK STUDY Misinformation Effect (3:46) How questions effect recall

* Police should pause before asking another question, giving the
   witness a chance to think about a situation and perhaps remember
   another detail - This is one I used a lot in my counseling practice:
   Ask. Answer. Wait.

* The police should inform the witness that they can say, "I don't
   know." This helps to prevent the witness from trying to fill in the
   blank with information that is being pulled from a different
   schema.

* The police, when possible, should physically walk the witness
   through the crime scene. This might trigger memories from the 
   "state" memory bank.

* Careful use of Police Lineups - A line up, either in person or with
   photos, should be done in a double-blind scenario. The officers 
   who are conducting the lineup should not know who the suspect
   is. This stops the voice inflection and body language tells that are
   picked up by the brain of the witness ex. "Are you sure that's the 
   right guy?

  VIDEO QUICK STUDY of Line Up Experiment (1:45)

         spoiler - none of the photos were of the criminal

  VIDEO QUICK STUDY - Line Up and False Memory (4:35) The
         students were extremely sure of

         themselves and would have, under the Supreme Court ruling, 
         been allowed to testify. Watch their faces

         as every single one of them realizes that they were wrong.

Relative Judgement - when a witness tries to pick the person who most closely aligns with the memory of that person. To prevent the witness from feeling that they HAVE to make an identification the officers should say that the subject MAY or MAY NOT be in the lineup. Also, the members in the lineup should be presented sequentially one after the other and one at a time. Witness will compare the suspect to the mental picture and not use relative judgement.

         VIDEO QUICK STUDY - Ronald Cotton Exoneration  (4:07)

        

Fillers - the other people in the line-up should look similar. If         the suspect had dreadlocks then the fillers should have dreadlocks. If the witness picks a filler, then it should be noted that their recall

might be questionable. 

         VIDEO QUICK STUDY Comparing with Filler (3:00)
         Shown through an experiment and description

How can your heroine help?

During a crime the heroine could look for anything that is unique and difficult to shed or change such as:

        * Body-type (height, weight), tattoos, scars, focus on ears and
           nose.

        * Movement - limps, postures

        * Voice - lisps, unusual accents or speech patterns

As soon as possible - and without talking to ANYONE ELSE the heroine should sit down and write down all of  the details that she can recall - She could write them, sketch them, or even call and leave a message recording so she can retrieve the information later.

Try this mini-experiment:  Eye Witness - How Do You Stack Up?

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TROUBLE! Body Language 101 for Writers Writing Aggression

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. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Is your character a police officer? Or maybe your character is the criminal? Here are some of the key "tells" that trouble is brewing.

Remember in your writing that a mind and therefore a body does not go from 0-60 in 1.3 seconds. Unless the person is a victim of a sudden attack, the body will follow the mind's processing and ramp up in aggressive signaling.

KEY BODY LANGUAGE INDICATORS:

In a traffic stop:

 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

1. The suspect keeps looking in the rearview mirror
2. The suspect moves their hands a lot. They should
    be still. This is a cautionary sign to which officers
    should pay close attention.
3. The suspect exits their vehicle - this can be
    interpreted in 2 ways
    a. This is part of a lier's body language
        LINK TO LYING 101 and the suspect is
        trying to distance themselves from some
       evidence.
    b. This is an act of aggression.
4. Either in or out of the vehicle: If the officer makes a
    request and there is a hesitation or non-compliance,
    the suspect has a plan in his mind.
5. Watch the hands. Does the suspect close off by
    pulling clothes tighter to the body or put their hands in pockets?
    a. This is a lier's body language that they are concealing something, either the truth or an actual object
    b. This is an act of nervousness
    c. The suspect is reaching for a weapon

Compliance is a key indicator.

Is the subject dancing around? Showing that s/he won't be following requests? Are they oppositional? Then look for these further signs that aggression will follow:

1 Defensive Barrier - arms folded across the chest

(Photo credit: Wikipedia)

2 Avoiding eye contact and/or averting the face
3 Rocking motions
4 Clenching fists and/or teeth

5 Target Glance - such as at your weapon or the
   point where they mean to make contact
6 Facial wipe

Further Signs of aggression
1 Squinting
2 Lowering and spreading (opening the chest and
   arms) the body for stability. This happens from a
   standing or sitting position.
3 Redness in the face
4 Exaggerated gestures including shaking fingers,
   fists
5 Forward head butts is a sign of imminent physical aggression


Clapping the hands is one of the last indicators used prior to a fight. A clap of the hands is the MAJOR tell. Violence happens immediately afterwards.

Body Language tells and concealed carry of ANY weapon

1 Belt adjustment - especially if getting up.
2 Blading - if the suspect is carrying concealed and they know an officer is on one side they will shift their
  bodies slightly away from the officer hiding any bulges from the officer.
3 Billowing - where the suspect takes their clothing and pulls it away and loosens it to hide the weapon.
4 Thumb - prior to reaching for a concealed weapon the brain will process through the action. Getting the
   thumb to clear the weapon is key. The brain practices the event prior to execution, so the thumb will often
   twitch just prior to pulling the weapon.
5 "C" hands in to the front sides of the body at the edge of the shirt hem happens prior to pulling a weapon.
6 Holding on to the bottom of the shirt with one hand in preparation for pulling it out of the way to grab a
   weapon.

VIDEO QUICK STUDY

Video 1 (4:24) Concealed Carry Body Language
Video 2 (1:26) Avoiding Violence
Video 3 (2:10) Pre-attack Indicators - real crime with tutorial

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Related articles

• Body Language Intoduction
• Truth In Body Language

Self Defense - Electric Weapons: Stun Guns v. Tasers - Information for Writers

Tasers? yep.. (Photo credit: number657)

DISCLAIMER - This is a non-political site that is geared to help writers write it right. I am presenting information to help develop fictional characters and fictional scenes. In no way am I advocating any position or personal decision.

In the beginning there was a Taser and a stun gun. And while they come from the same family of electric self defense weapons they are not at all alike.

Many writers will use the terms interchangeably.

Who would carry and electric self defense weapon?

This weapon can fit with any character over the age of 18.

Is it even legal to carry this type of weapon?

For the most part the answer is yes. Though check your characters' state codes. This link takes you to a state by state review of applicable laws.

So what is the difference between the two weapons?

The Stun Gun 

 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

*A stun gun is a brute force weapon. You must make personal contact with

  your assailant.

* Though the prongs DO NOT need to make direct skin contact.

* The contact that is required is LONG 2-3 seconds
   to be precise. While this doesn't sound too bad.
   Think about the last time you were waiting for your
    microwave to ding. I know! 

   Now imagine those 2-3 seconds while someone is
   stabbing you or even punching you. 

*  2 seconds can cause muscle spasms and a state
    of shock lasting up to fifteen minutes - enough to
    get away. 5 seconds is best.

* The current will not transfer to you even if you are
   grabbing at each other

* Water is not a problem even if you are standing in water.

                                                      How does it work?

On the packaging, the manufacturer will indicate the voltage. It is not the voltage though that makes the difference it is the pulse rate frequency.

Yes, the more volts the better, but the pulse rate determines the gun's power to put an attacker down. You see, it's the frequency rate that disrupts the neural pathways in the body - and believe it or not it's a sugar thing. As the electricity pulses the muscles, they produce lactic acid and consume the glucose causing the loss of muscle control (like a Type1Diabetic seizure). Your character should look for at least 100k volts to ensure enough pulse power to be effective.

The Taser 

English: Police issue X26 TASER (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

*A Taser is a distance weapon.

*You can use this weapon from fifteen feet (5 meters)

* The Taser works by shooting out tiny metal probes that embed
   in the flesh. These probes are attached to wires that connect to
   the Taser unit.

* A Taser is HIGHLY RELIABLE and HIGHLY EFFICIENT 

* It works by interrupting the communication between the muscles
  and the brain, effectively attacking the central nervous system.
  This interruption continues as long as the electricity is
  administered.

Unlike Stephanie Plum in the Janet Evanovich novels, electrical weaponry no longer depends on batteries but is plugged into the wall to charge overnight like a phone.

Also, if you are looking for plot twists - some of the stun guns have a probe in the bottom that attaches to the lanyard around the wrist. If the attacker tries to take the weapon, as it is pulled away from the victim, the pin releases and the weapon is no longer operational. But some do not have this safety.

Electric weapons are effective on sub-creatures including Vampire, Werewolves, and Zombies - but do not have an effect on phantoms or ghosts.

Perhaps your heroine wants to be clever and arm herself with a camouflaged electric weapon - try these on and see if they serve:

       Cell Phone Stun Gun (1:48)

. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

      Lipstick Stun Gun (1:49) 

Electric weapon (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Tampon Taser (3:47) No, I'm not kidding

Telescopic stun baton (3:33) similar to asp    

Advanced M26 TASER Stun Pistol - The United States military version of commercial TASERs for non-lethal detainment. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

VIDEO QUICK STUDY

Video - Taser v. Knife (1:05)
The Taser Explained (7:05) Shows an experiment where a man was able to overcome the Taser showing
                                           that it is not fail safe.
Female review and demonstration of flashlight/stun gun (3:42)
Why a stun gun isn't fabo. (8:19) Excellent descriptions and explanations.

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Surviving Human Trafficking - Prt 3 Information for Writers

A white ribbon to commemorate the National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women. Right-to-life Awareness. White Ribbon. Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Today, I welcome back to my blog, Brynn, LMSW. This is the third installment in her series of blogs written to help writers to understand the perspective of the victim. In this blog she is writing from her position as a professional who deals with other victims. Brynn is happy to answer any of your questions. Please leave questions and comments for her below.

***

In December 2012, I earned my Master’s Degree in Social Work. One of the requirements for my degree was an eight-hundred hours internship in a single setting. I chose to work in the local police department where I interned as a Victim’s Advocate. I worked predominately with survivors of domestic violence, but I also worked with victims of other crimes: robberies, child abuse, sexual assault, and so forth.

During my training, I received a manual (of sorts) that explained the different types of crimes I might encounter. To my surprise, they listed kidnapping! I am a survivor of a human trafficking ring. Strangers kidnapped me and subjected to atrocities. And in a weird way, I was excited to see that the police manual included at least a paragraph devoted to this horrific crime.

However, when I asked my social work supervisor how I could best respond to an abduction victim, (I never mentioned to her that I was a survivor) her response was that I should simply not worry about it - kidnappings “never” happened.

Once I heard that, I knew immediately what I wanted to do with my social work degree. I would focus on survivors of violent crimes, especially victims of human trafficking. 

Office on Violence Against Women logo (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Surprisingly, now that I am a LMSW working in the field, I rarely, if EVER, come across another professional who has anything beyond basic knowledge of abduction and trafficking.

I wrote about what it was like be a survivor in past articles for Fiona Quinn’s blog, now I want to write this:

I despise it when people tell me, “I understand.”  I think, “Do you? Can you really tell me you understand? If we reversed our positions -- you having gone through the same thing that I did and me playing the role of inviolate listener -- could you truly understand my feelings?” I hope your answer is no.

I hope it was no because even standing side by side throughout the entire ordeal, you and I would still have experienced this through different eyes, ears, mental filters, and emotions. Even when meeting another victim of human trafficking, I cannot understand his or her experience simply because I am not that other person. Each individual (and in the same vein each fictional character) will experience a crime in a unique way.

I frequently hear people say, “Wow! How did you survive that?”  To me, this phrase invalidates my experience. It’s almost as if the questioner is daring me to prove that my crime actually occurred. If you are writing a fictional response to a victim’s disclosure (or you are expressing a personal response to a real-life victim), I suggest thinking about ways to validate the crime victim’s experience. As writers, after all, you are teaching your readers how to respond if they encounter this experience in their own lives.

So perhaps, instead of having your characters ask, “How did you survive?” try changing the wording around so that at the same time as getting your question answered you are validating the experience of the survivor (fictional or not). “It must have been difficult to go through that experience. Can you tell me what you think helped during that ordeal?” Or simply say, “How horrific. I’m so sorry. How can I help?”

Personally, the fact that someone can validate my thoughts and feelings about my experience has helped tremendously. Validation is key. I cannot stress enough how important this is! I have been able to begin opening up because I feel as though people believe me.

In writing, please take a moment to consider the character not just as a victim but as a survivor. Validating the feelings of that character/survivor (their anger, denial, and depression) can help to portray adequate therapeutic relationships that can help the victim move forward. Or alternatively, with an invalidating response, you can harm the victim's progress.

Let me offer an example for how you might accomplish a validation in your fictional piece:

During my ordeal, one of the ways my kidnappers punished me was by burying me alive. I distinctly remember the dirt, the smell, the worms…  all of it. I have never been able to talk about that aspect of my abduction. It is simply too painful.

One night, I ended up in the ICU. I was unable to breathe. My condition mystified the doctors. Finally, a lung specialist came in and asked a series of questions.  One of the questions was, “Have you ever been exposed to large quantities of dirt?” I hesitated for a moment before telling him about the time that the kidnappers had buried me alive. The lung specialist did not pause. He did not question me. The results of my medical tests validated my experience. The doctor was able to tell me that my story corroborated my medical test results, and his diagnosis made sense.

Even if your character survives something that reads as crazy or unbelievable, understand that people survive the crazy and unbelievable every day. After all, I survived -- anything is possible.

Fiona Quinn adds: If you want to read a series that includes the survivors of sexual abuse and the appropriate way to hear/validate their experiences, I suggest Sylvia Day’s books Bared to You and Reflected in You. (Heads up - both have an erotic component) Sylvia Day does an excellent job of dealing with her characters in a sound psychological way, and she presents an excellent template for other authors to follow. As an MS in Counseling, I highly suggest these books. As a counselor, I sincerely hope that authors can help to teach appropriate victim response through their carefully crafted writing. And as an author dealing with characters, just as in real life, I understand that sometimes this is a tight-rope walk.

Reflected in You on Amazon
Bared to You on Amazon

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