Five *New* TV Crime Show Cliché I'm Already Tired Of (And I Bet You Are Too!)

Does not play well with others

Like all genre fiction, crime fiction is riddled with clichés, some of which are fun and generally beloved (by writers, anyway) and some of which are just...overused.

For example, one of the most treasured (i.e. dusty) old school crime fiction clichés is that anyone--but particularly law enforcement personnel--due to retire in the foreseeable future is doomed. As in probably deader than a door nail before the end of their next shift.  Or--this was enormously popular for a while--the coroner who eats lunch in the morgue. Who cares about forensic evidence; I'm hungry!!

Anyway, here are my current all-right-all-ready!! crime show eye rolls:

1 - The Detective Chats With the Corpse - And I quote: "I'm really sorry this happened to you." Yeah, I realize that steely internal resolve is perhaps not cinematic, but what is with these Q&A sessions between detectives and victims? It's just...embarrassing to all concerned.

Uncle Sam wants YOU!

2 - The FBI Takes Over the Case - And naturally everyone hates them for it. Not least because these FBI agents are such total stone-face assholes and clearly up to no good. But come on! The FBI isn't working for a foreign power (so far) and they don't just swoop in and take over an investigation except in very--VERY--rare circumstances. Plus FBI resources are actually a really useful thing to have for your task force!

3 - This Time it's Personal - Okay, this is not new, which is probably one reason I'm so tired of it. For the love of God, can someone just work a case that doesn't directly tie back to their own misspent past? I mean, what happened to making a crime interesting and involving without it having to be personal?  IT'S NOT PERSONAL. Or shouldn't be.

Jeez, dude, she was on stakeout all night! 

4 - The Detective Has a Horrible, Terrible, No Good, Very Bad Home Life - In fairness, working in law enforcement does put strain on a marriage, but come on. You'd think detectives would be better at noticing psychotic behaviors in a potential mate. Does he never wonder about that cache of explosives in the back of the closet? And even if the boyfriend/girlfriend is not a terrorist, and it's just the normal run-of-the-mill horrible TV/film marriage, do the problems have to be SO dramatic? How about the more normal stuff that happens? People grow apart and move on. Does it always have to lead to an affair with the protag's partner followed by descent into alcoholism and someone having a tragic car crash?  Can't anybody just...you know...act like a grown-up?

5 - Terrorists - Yes, they're a real and present danger, yes they're out there, yes terrorism is the new arsenic, but sometimes it's nice just to have a simple murder with no world wide implications. Sometimes murder is not part of a vast global conspiracy--in fact, mostly murder is not part of a vast global conspiracy--and that's OK.

Serial Killer: On Ending a Series

 

It’s been a long time since I wrapped up a series--2011’s The Dark Tide, to be precise--but I’m currently writing the final book in the All’s Fair series and I’m daily reminded of just how tricky it is to pen that final chapter.

Part of the challenge in writing a series is remembering everything that came before. Not just the obvious stuff like the protagonist’s age and eye color and job title and best friend’s name (I think most writers remember to note that stuff down). Not only the more complicated stuff like every single character dynamic, every single character’s evolving relationship with the main character. Oh, and all the legal stuff (wait, how long did I sentence him to prison for…?!) No, the real challenge is keeping track of the main character’s arc through each part of the series, making sure that the growth of the previous books is not lost or forgotten in the next episode. Making sure that when the final chapter comes, the reader feels satisfied and content to arrive at journey’s end.

Of course, some readers don’t care about the character arc--they don’t want the adventure to ever end, period. And, as much as we love those readers, we have to ignore them because every story ultimately comes to an end. It’s better to end on a high note than a death bed (be it ours or the characters’).

But delivering that emotional payoff depends on the particular character and their unique journey.

In Fair Game, the first book of the trilogy, Elliot Mills is a former FBI agent who has been sidelined by a serious injury.

A crippling knee injury forced Elliot Mills to trade in his FBI badge for dusty chalkboards and bored college students. Now a history professor at Puget Sound University, the former agent has put his old life behind him -- but it seems his old life isn't finished with him.

A young man has gone missing from campus -- and as a favor to a family friend, Elliot agrees to do a little sniffing around. His investigations bring him face-to-face with his former lover, Tucker Lance, the special agent handling the case.  

At the end of the book, Elliot has made peace with his choices and settled down to a life in academia and a new relationship with Tucker. That should not come as a surprise to anyone, this being genre fiction.

However, it’s a series so…Elliot has to believably get involved in another investigation without reversing the progress achieved in the first book. And because these books are M/M romance, there has to be believable conflict and strain between Elliot and Tucker--again without manufacturing some artificial drama that will only irritate readers.

This is where that extended cast of characters every series needs becomes invaluable.

Setting up house with his new lover was tricky before arson landed his former radical father in the guest bedroom. Now ex-FBI agent Elliot Mills has to figure out who is willing to kill to keep Roland's memoirs from being published.

All’s well that ends well in Fair Play. Or close enough. Elliot and Tucker are still alive and still in love.

But now we come to the third and final installment and all the loose threads of the first two books have to be woven into this final tapestry. The story needs to come full circle--without actually going in circles. That means shaking up some expectations. Maybe even my own!

The basic premise of Fair Chance:

In an effort to bring closure to grieving families and loved ones, former FBI agent Elliot Mills allows himself to be drawn into a final game of cat and mouse with the dangerous psychopath known as the Sculptor. But when the lead agent on the case, Elliot’s partner Tucker, suddenly disappears without a trace, the only person with the answers is Elliot’s most dangerous enemy.

This is the book where every choice Elliot has previously made comes up for reevaluation and where everything he holds dears is on the line. This book has to be the payoff book for fans of the series--while still being involving and interesting to those readers coming in on the final installment (it’s surprising how many readers jump in any old where in a series).

While I know what I think readers will be looking for in this final book, I’m always surprised to hear the little things readers are hoping to find. That’s where the pressure comes in. This is it. If I fail to deliver, there’s no do-over in the next book. Elliot’s life will go on (OR WILL IT??!!) but we will not be peeking through that particular keyhole anymore.

So while I'd love to hear from my fellow writers on the challenges of winding up a series, I think I’ll throw this post open to readers of the series as well.

If you’re a reader of the All’s Fair series, what are you hoping to find in this final book?

Sex and Politics

Like a lot of writers, I write with an agenda.


Because I write about gay men falling in love, my agenda might appear more transparent than most. When I first began writing gay fiction, my focus was simply on showing how absolutely UNextraordinary such relationships were. Normal was my catchword. Because when I first found a publisher for these stories, most of my mainstream readers and writing friends still found gay mysteries unusual, surprising, and occasionally uncomfortable. They were most certainly -- and correctly at that time -- viewed as non-commercial.


Aside from the sexual orientation of my characters, I've mostly tried to avoid getting political in books. I don't like to be preached to, and neither do readers. This isn't to say that my characters don't have political or religious affiliations. They do. The things that we believe in, trust in, have faith in, think are worth fighting for define us. So a well-drawn character should have views on religion and politics and, yes, sex. Because it is rare to find a human who doesn't.


Fair Play is the first really political story I've written. It's difficult to write about a former radical on the run from his past -- or to discuss the 1960s -- without getting somewhat political. The story is a mystery-romance, so politics aren't the focus, but it's still feels a lot more political -- and personal -- to me. Just the mention of Vietnam riles up people in my family, so I imagine it will rile up a few readers.


Or maybe not. It was a long time ago, after all. I'll be interested to see if there is a reaction or not. Anyway, Fair Play comes out November 10th, but you can preorder it now through Amazon, Kobo, and Barnes and Noble.

So what do you think? Do you write with an agenda? Or if you're a reader, do you find a noticeable agenda off-putting?


Fifty years ago, Roland Mills belonged to a violent activist group. Now, someone is willing to kill to prevent him from publishing his memoirs.


When ex-FBI agent Elliot Mills is called out to examine the charred ruins of his childhood home, he quickly identifies the fire for what it is—arson. A knee injury may have forced Elliot out of the Bureau, but it’s not going to stop him from bringing the man who wants his father dead to justice.
Agent Tucker Lance is still working to find the serial killer who’s obsessed with Elliot and can’t bear the thought of his lover putting himself in additional danger. Straightlaced Tucker has never agreed with radical Roland on much—“opposing political viewpoints” is an understatement—but they’re united on this: Elliot needs to leave the case alone. Now.


Tucker would do nearly anything for the man he loves, but he won’t be used to gain Elliot access to the FBI’s resources. When the past comes back to play and everything both men had known to be true is questioned, their fragile relationship is left hanging in the balance.

Starting in the middle?

I recently read about a method for writing a novel that involves starting in the middle, at the "mirror moment," when the hero or heroine is deciding who they are and what they have to do. Ms. Skeptical here thought that sounded like a strange way to go about starting a novel, so I decided to see what was right smack in the middle of one of my books. As it happens, the trade paper version of Son of the Enemy was released today, so I grabbed it out my box of author copies and turned to the very middle of the book. 

(This is a teaser, but not really a spoiler…)

John is an FBI agent on leave, spending time with Hannah, the daughter of the woman his father was convicted of murdering twenty-three years ago. He received an anonymous note, telling him 6-year-old Hannah was the only witness to the crime, and the only one who can possibly lead him to the real killer. John lies to Hannah about who he is, hoping she'll let him get close enough to probe her earliest, most horrific memories. 

Before John came along, Hannah had been dating Bradshaw, a wealthy businessman with mob connections. Unbeknownst to John, the FBI sent an agent to recruit Hannah's help in taking down her former lover. The agent spotted John, and now his boss, Walter, has called him away for an urgent meeting.

Walter has kept John waiting more than two hours, and is suspiciously understanding about the fact that John has been keeping company with Hannah. John learns about the Bradshaw investigation and asks Walter what the FBI wants from her.

"So what is it exactly that you want her to do?”

“Drop in unannounced during a meeting he’s having with some persons of interest and place a bug on him.”

John froze. “A bug?” He knew how hard it was to get a judge to agree to let them bug a residence or a person. They had some serious s**t on Bradshaw, then.

“It’s a nanotech device. Tiny. Won’t activate until she leaves, so there’s very little risk.”

Like hell. “I’ve never heard of a device like that.”

Walter shrugged. “It’s brand new.” He sipped his coffee. “So, what would you have done if she’d told you about it? Would you have played the protective boyfriend?”

“If you’re asking if I would stand in the way of a bureau investigation the answer is of—” Suddenly Walter’s words sank in. “What did you say?”

“I said—” Walter hesitated for a fraction of a second, and John knew. “What would you do if she told you—?”

Son of a bitch.

“No,” John said. “That’s not what you said. You said, ‘What would you have done if she had told you.’” He leaned forward, careful to keep his hands under the table so he wouldn’t be tempted to put them around Walter’s neck. “That means it’s a done deal. She agreed to do it, didn’t she? Is that what you wanted to tell me? Are you ordering me to back off?”

Walter laid his forearms on the table and leaned toward John. “You still haven’t answered my question. I think I know the answer, though. I think you would have tried to talk her out of it because you’re involved with her and you’ve lost your objectivity.” He stared hard at John. “I’m right, aren’t I?”

“I haven’t lost my objectivity,” John said in the calmest voice he could muster. “But maybe the FBI has. What if she succeeds? You don’t think Bradshaw’s going to realize it was Hannah who brought the bug in?”

Walter sat back. “Bradshaw cares about her. He wouldn’t hurt her.”

John was incredulous. “You don’t know that. And what about all the other guys in that meeting? Organized crime doesn’t like witnesses, Walter. They hunt down witnesses and kill them. Sometimes they torture them first. You think it’s objective, not to mention ethical, to put an innocent woman in that position?”

“[We] explained it to her. She went in with her eyes open. If there’s a problem, we can put her in the witness-protection program.”

John nearly lost it then. “Oh, that’s just great. She gets to give up her life, her family, all her friends, and start over somewhere else. And you—” He stopped and gripped the edge of the table. “What do you mean, ‘She went in with her eyes open’? Went in? Are you saying—”

It all fell into place in that instant.

“Holy f**k. You kept me here waiting for you so I’d be out of her way. Jesus Christ. She’s there right now, isn’t she?” When Walter didn’t answer, John stood and leaned all the way across the table so he was in the SAC’s face. “Isn’t she?”

“It was the best way,” Walter said.

John is a devoted FBI agent, even though he's hidden some things from the bureau in his efforts to free his father. Now he's at a crossroads: Does he interfere with an ongoing FBI operation or leave Hannah to take her chances in a house full of dangerous men? If he interferes, he'll forfeit his career and blow his cover with Hannah, his only lead in solving the crime that put his father in prison. If he doesn't interfere, Hannah could be hurt—or possibly killed.

I'm fascinated that this moment happened right smack in the middle of my book. It's the right place for it, and it's a game-changer. Maybe I'll take a stab at plotting my next book starting in the middle. How about you? Have you ever started a project in the middle?

—Ana Barrons

Ana loves to hear from readers! Visit her at:

www.anabarrons.com

Facebook: ana.barrons

Twitter: @ana_barrons

Release Day!

by Janis Patterson

I don’t care how many books you have out, release day is still a thrill. The thought that all the writing, all the revisions and editing and pre-release PR I’ve done has finally culminated with a book still sends a tingle through my heart and a giggle into my throat.

My story is going to be read. The story that has been in my mind and my computer, the story that is mine alone, is going out into the big wide world where anybody who wants can pick it up.

This is all so different from when I sold my first half-dozen books. In those antique days (pre-computer, pre-internet) everything was done on paper by snail-mail. The books themselves were paper. I still remember the excitement of receiving my author’s copies. There would be this big box that came to the front door, and once I opened it I could actually hold my new book in my hands. There were no surprises – I had seen the galleys and the cover art weeks, even months ago, but this was the first time in book form. I always felt as proud as a new parent.

It’s all different nowadays – still very good and full of satisfaction, but different. There’s no box of books to open and coo over, no knowledge that boxes of my books are in trucks going across the country en route to a legion of bookstores… there’s just an electronic file from the publisher. The cover isn’t a stiff paper work of art suitable for framing, only a spray of brilliantly colored electrons across my computer screen.

But my story is still there. The characters I have lived with for months are now on their own, ready to meet new people. Now on release day my book spreads across the world, available in places my paper books would never have reached.

And it’s still great.

On Monday, the first of October, I woke with a thrill of excitement because it was release day for BEADED TO DEATH, my new cozy mystery from Carina Press. (http://bit.ly/SjFrXM)

Written almost a year before, worked on for weeks with my editor, sighed over as we tried to get just the right cover art, it was now going to fly on its own. Lilias Ruiz and Thomas O’Connell and Annie Monroe and Toby Applegate and Patches were no longer my special, private family – they were going out to face the world on their own.

On this release day there was no skywriting, no blare of trumpets, but I knew that my story was Out There. Other people could follow the tale of Lillias’ finding a dead body in her living room, of her entanglement with an FBI agent who may or may not be rogue, and her perplexity in dealing with a 7’3” nephew who is on the run from an unwanted basketball scholarship. After all that, being accused of being a drug smuggler is just icing on the cake!

The thing about release day is that it is just part of a logical progression – write, sell, revise, edit, edit again, and release. Another thing is that it comes late. The book is finished and done with, the cover art and edits approved, and (hopefully!) you’re working on another book. Then, like a revenant from the past, it is there once more, officially leaving your life and going on to a life of its own.

I love release days. No matter how the book is delivered – electronic or paper or whatever comes next – the day your book comes out is still exciting. It is a day like no other.

  Janis Patterson is a seventh-generation Texan and a third-generation wordsmith who writes mysteries as Janis Patterson, romances and other things as Janis Susan May, children’s books as Janis Susan Patterson and scholarly works as J.S.M. Patterson.