Crime And Criminals by Rhonda Pollero

Crimes fall into 2 general categories:

1. Crime of Opportunity: The victim(s) is/are convenient and random and
the criminal would not necessarily have a prior relationship or contact with
the victim. Normally these are psychological-based crimes.

2. Crime of Intention: The victim(s) is/are the specific target of the
killer. Normally these are motive-based crimes.

Criminals fall into 2 general categories:

1. Stupid: This type of criminal is normally disorganized too impulsive
and will leave enough clues to make detection a virtual certainty.

2. Intelligent: This type of criminal would be organized and methodical.
They would do everything possible to cover their tracks.

Motives are limited, though some common ones are:

1. Revenge: The killer feels wronged - this perception might be based on
fact or it can be fantasy-based. Behaviors might include stalking, taunting
and torture. This type of crime requires organization on the part of the
criminal.

2. Fame/Glory: This killer seeks attention. Often he/she is a loner and
is almost desperate to ‘leave his/her mark’ on society. These killers normally
target celebrities and personalities and enjoy media attention. In the case of
a murderer, this type of crime would be committed by either and an organized or
disorganized killer. In the case of a kidnapping or a white-collar crime
(computer hacking, etc.) the criminal would be more organized.

3. Psycho-sadist: This killer simply enjoys killing and often derives
sexual pleasure from the act or acts. He is a hunter and normally has an
escalating history - peeping, violence toward girlfriends, then targeting
strangers. This criminal would begin as disorganized, growing more organized
as time passes.

4. Money: This kind of crime is planned and designed to bring financial -
usually substantial - gain to the criminal. There are 2 basic sub-types: A
well-planned, well-executed scheme or a spur of the moment poor decision. A
kidnapping would require careful planning while stealing a car might be a
simple opportunity-based event.

5. Love: This is a simple ‘if I can’t have you no one can’ scenario.
Often there is a history between victim and perpetrator, though not always.
The crime is often a result of some sort of stressor for the criminal -
divorce, loss of custody, a break-up, etc.

6. Personal Protection: This criminal has something to hide and will go
to elaborate ends to protect the secret. Common types of victims include
witnesses and accomplices to the prior bad act.

7. Morality: This is a crime that is morally correct and legally wrong.
An example would be a distraught parent killing their child’s molester.
Morally this can be justified, though the person may eventually be punished for
committing the act.

PACING

Pacing Checklist:

___1. Does every chapter relate to the theme or conflict of the story?

___2. Is the story's climax also the climax of the character's growth arc?

___3. Do the subplots tie back into the main plot?

___4. Within each chapter, are there a number of peaks and valleys in the flow
of the story?

___5. Does the foreshadowing create suspense or interest?

___6. Is exposition subordinate to the story? Are flashbacks at the most
dramatic moments?

___7. Is the emotional pacing varied? (Have you relied on only 1 emotion?)

___8. Does the opening grab the reader's attention?

___9. Do chapter breaks end with something to hook the reader?

___10. Do scene cuts enhance drama and/or suspense?

___11. Is the language varied? Are sentences varied? When you read through, can
you differentiate between characters?

___12. Overall, is the story told in the most dramatic, emotional and
suspenseful way possible?

THE KEY ELEMENTS OF PACING:

Pacing is the way the writing pulls a reader through the events of a story
without a pause; the reader anxiously turns the page and absolutely, can't put
the book down. It causes readers to keep reading into the wee hours of the
morning.

1. Plot and Character: There should be a tight correlation
between the plot and the character development.

- The character must grow and change and this growth and change must
be paced in such a way to reveal the change through the actions and events of
the story.

- The plot must progress through action and the action must be paced
in a logical series of events that result in the growth and change of the
character.

2. Plot and Subplots: There should be subplots to support the
main conflict of the story and/or the characterization to enhance the pacing of
the story.

- Subplots can be parallel or entwined, depending on the structure and
type of the work. Regardless, they must have a point and purpose in order to
enhance pacing.

- Subplots can involve main characters with secondary characters or
secondary characters alone.

3. Story Points: Micro-pacing: Big plot points are usually easy for
the author to define and manipulate. But the micro-pacing plot points are
often more subtle and therefore more difficult to incorporate into the story.

- In Chapter 45 of Gone With the Wind (The scene where Scarlett is forced to do needle point with Melanie and the others while the men go out to clean up the shanty town), there are 21 different action (pacing) changes that lead up to the climax of learning her husband is dead out on Decatur Road.

- Micro-pacing is the use of details to support the plot

*** Warning: There’s a fine line between detail and an info
dump.

4. Foreshadowing: This is one of the strongest ways to
strengthen pacing, plot and characterization!

- Foreshadowing is simply mentioning something that will
become crucial to the story at a later point in the story.

- The key here is to make it a smooth, simple inclusion of
dialogue and or action.