tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3119105822589181967.post8207988429108388140..comments2024-03-28T15:01:21.285-04:00Comments on SleuthSayers: Truth in Fiction vs. the Changing Nature of Child-created Violent CrimeLeigh Lundinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07921276795499571578noreply@blogger.comBlogger10125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3119105822589181967.post-70749043554668820922011-12-16T17:10:39.048-05:002011-12-16T17:10:39.048-05:00Incidentally, Leigh, I forgot to mention that I ag...Incidentally, Leigh, I forgot to mention that I agree with your statement re: unintended consequence and counterintuitive response. <br /><br />It’s always amazed me how often folks thought SF guys just ran around shooting people, when we really spent most of our time building things, running medical clinics, etc., in order to win the psywar. The "obvious direct response" so often escalates instead of defusing, or shuts down one problem while raising thirty others. Before you know it, you’re fighting so many alligators, you forget you actually came here to drain the swamp.Dixon Hillhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11220791609338404147noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3119105822589181967.post-48266734548493081872011-12-16T17:01:46.161-05:002011-12-16T17:01:46.161-05:00>Personally, I don't write "social iss...><i>Personally, I don't write "social issues", but let's face it, whenever any of us write, our thoughts, feelings, history, and even prejudices creep in. I just try, like everyone here, to write a good story and hope for the best.</i><br /><br />I think that's a great outlook, David. And I have to admit, I don't set out to write "social issues" myself. I just find them rising up through the writing -- which I think is really just me paraphrasing your statement above. lolDixon Hillhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11220791609338404147noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3119105822589181967.post-31664886114480576312011-12-16T15:47:11.801-05:002011-12-16T15:47:11.801-05:00Really good post, Dixon, and very well researched ...Really good post, Dixon, and very well researched as usual. <br /><br />Featuring children in crime fiction, either as victims or participants, is indeed a dicey topic. Janet Hutchings struggled over whether to accept "Tomorrow's Dead" due to child molestation being the crime. Even though nothing was described and all the events propelling the story happened in the past, she was worried. Honestly, I was too, but argued manfully that it was crime fiction and child abuse is certainly a crime. It turned out, however, that the readers were fine with it. In the end, I think it's all how it's handled; your "Dancing" being an excellent example.<br /><br />Personally, I don't write "social issues", but let's face it, whenever any of us write, our thoughts, feelings, history, and even prejudices creep in. I just try, like everyone here, to write a good story and hope for the best.David Deanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13005457506363262838noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3119105822589181967.post-17930086422636348792011-12-16T14:27:46.456-05:002011-12-16T14:27:46.456-05:00Thanks for the input, Leigh. Glad you mentioned I...Thanks for the input, Leigh. Glad you mentioned Ibrahim’s Eyes, too. I should have mentioned it.<br /><br />I’m sure you’re right about myriad younger paid killers in Mexico, and your note about child soldiers is spot-on, too. In fact, I’ve been thinking about how to address that issue, myself. I skipped it in the article, because I was trying to pare things down; I tend to write long (in case you haven’t noticed lol).<br /><br /> I’m completely onboard with the idea of using unique or unusual focal points. How do you manage to keep your feelings about the theme out of the story? I like that idea, and try to practice it myself; it seems to act like reins that keep me from writing over the edge. Yet, I find it pretty difficult sometimes – makes me feel like I’m holding a long rope with a heavy weight suspended over a cliff side, and I’m standing on a steep shale slope, my feet sliding down as the ground gives way beneath me. You know what I mean?<br /><br />--DixDixon Hillhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11220791609338404147noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3119105822589181967.post-3829273902648724282011-12-16T13:46:55.207-05:002011-12-16T13:46:55.207-05:00EQMM also published David Dean's chilling &quo...<i>EQMM</i> also published David Dean's chilling "Ibrahim's Eyes", which falls under this topic.<br /><br />I've noted that Edgar Jimenez Lugo isn't the only child assassin in Mexico and probably not the youngest. Child soldiers proved frighteningly effective in Somalia, Sudan, and Chad.<br /><br />Under the law of unintended consequences, I wonder if our 'fence' hasn't made the situation worse? Prohibition was supposed to address one perceived social issue, but created a myriad of worse problems. Just saying', you know?<br /><br />I read the mayor of, um, either El Paso or Brownsville said they had few problems until Washington made an issue of illegal immigration. I don't think politicians or people are in a mood to make counterintuitive changes, but one has to wonder.<br /><br />><i>Kids being obliquely recruited by cartels is an important social issue, which mystery fiction is in a special position to comment on.</i><br /><br />Good point. Here are my answers:<br /><br />1. If I hadn't felt before that the issue was important for us to address, your article today would have convinced me.<br /><br />2. I usually prefer unique or unusual focal points, something to make people <i>think</i>. I feel best about my own stories if I haven't given away how I feel about a given topic. After writing this, I see Fran made the point about not preaching, and I fully agree.Leigh Lundinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07921276795499571578noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3119105822589181967.post-90272918143258753342011-12-16T12:41:09.365-05:002011-12-16T12:41:09.365-05:00By “correctness” I take it you’re talking about so...By “correctness” I take it you’re talking about so called “political correctness” – is that what you’re saying, Liz?Dixon Hillhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11220791609338404147noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3119105822589181967.post-56492834899980959172011-12-16T11:14:41.411-05:002011-12-16T11:14:41.411-05:00I think it's important to write about social i...I think it's important to write about social issues, and I've worked very hard to do so without sounding preachy. (The secret weapon is REVISION!) It puzzles me that crime fiction balks at child molestation <i>as a topic</i> but not at serial killers. I have yet to sell a story in which I think I did a great job getting into the head of a molested 11-year-old (who turns the tables on her molester). On the other hand, EQMM published a historical story that includes the on-scene (though NOT lovingly described) rape and murder of a young Taino girl in 1492. I sometimes wonder if the triage of such stories has more to do with "correctness" (conscious or unconscious) than with the stories that we actually write.Elizabeth Zelvinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13944424094949207841noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3119105822589181967.post-74369660754218903732011-12-16T10:06:53.969-05:002011-12-16T10:06:53.969-05:00LOL Fran, I know just the hill you mean on Canner...LOL Fran, I know just the hill you mean on Cannery Row; studied Arabic at the Presidio there. That must have been one wild ride!<br /><br />And, I think you hit the nail on the head about avoiding preaching -- as well as the difference between kids just gravitating toward crime, vs. folks intentionally recruiting them.<br /><br />Hope your mom gets better soon!<br />DixDixon Hillhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11220791609338404147noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3119105822589181967.post-64659223886127589282011-12-16T07:11:09.303-05:002011-12-16T07:11:09.303-05:00Dixon, I won't be available for follow-up as I...Dixon, I won't be available for follow-up as I'm headed to the rehab center shortly, but I did want to comment. <br />Personally, I have no problem with stories that approach society's ills, so long as the story is worth telling and not written just to "preach." At times, I might disagree with what I just said since, at times, I'm reading for escape from the world and all of our problems.<br />Children involved in crime, as the perpetrators as well as victims, is age-old, but being paid to perform vile deeds at a young age is different from the old "Bad Seed" theories.<br />I won't be able to participate in a dialogue, but I'll be sure to check tonight to see how it goes.<br />BTW, as an avid Faulkner and Steinbeck fan, your opening reminded me of a wonderful trip to California when I visited Cannery Row on a motorcycle with a friend who'd broken his leg. We just strapped the crutches to the cycle and traveled from the top to the bottom and back again. Of course, that was when I was young--you know, hardly out of my forties.Fran Rizerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08655783035179620991noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3119105822589181967.post-65184798764908420552011-12-16T01:19:46.257-05:002011-12-16T01:19:46.257-05:00I logged on with the first comment to be sure I co...I logged on with the first comment to be sure I could recieve email follow-up notices. <br /><br />Looking forward to your thoughts,<br />DixonDixon Hillhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11220791609338404147noreply@blogger.com