Writing Unleashed with Laura M. Harkins

Today, I want to discuss a technique an investigator can employ to catch a perpetrator: victimology. Victimology is a field in forensic science, specifically it is the study of victim characteristics. The investigator looks at the victim’s personal, professional and social life to determine why they were selected at the specific location and time. The show Criminal Minds dramatizes the lives of special agents with the Behavioral Analysis Unit of the FBI. The agents look over cases of serial killings and use similarities between victims to profile the unknown subject (unsub) in order to apprehend them.  Victims fall into three categories: High-, medium- and low-risk. I used information from the HOW DUNIT series, Forensics: A Guide for Writers , pages 415-16, to explain the characteristics of the three victim categories.    “ High-risk victims are those who are frequently in high-risk situations. Prostitutes, particularly those who “walk the stre...

hubpages.com Good morning! Today’s post comes to you a bit late. I’m still recovering from my novel workshop on Saturday. Elizabeth Mosier, through Philadelphia Stories, guided 14 novelists through writing exercises and deconstructing our novel. A great learning opportunity, but, as my once broken coccyx will tell you, an uncomfortable and mind-numbing 8 hours spent sitting in a hard, wooden chair conceptualizing my novel. I would like to apologize to all my visitors for the amount of time it’s taking me to respond to your comments. I love to read the goings on in your life and writing. Please bare with me.    Ok, on to another mystery/thriller topic. The past few posts dealt with methods a suspect might use to render someone weak or even kill them. So, who is this unknown suspect (unsub)?   According to Forensics: A Guide for Writers , a psychopath “tends to be self-centered (egocentric and narcissistic), manipulative, emotionally shallow, and devoid...