|
Post by frankthetriviaman on Sept 27, 2017 11:46:36 GMT -5
So I don't want the "next generation" story to go to waste, so here are some ideas for LMs based on Commissioner Turner's list:
Ashes to Ashes-
With London's serial arsonists becoming more brazen, the last remaining Arson detective who respects the Swede is left with no choice but to turn to Gunnarson for help if he is to stop at least one of them.
Battleground London-
With London's gangs now stepping up their game, the only detective in gangs/organized crime that respects Gunnarson calls on his help to take down one of the four leaders of said gangs.
This Time, Its Personal-
When one of Marlena's closest friends falls victim to one of the serial rapists, she takes matters into her own hands.
The Root of all Evil-
The counterfeiters are flooding London with bad money; but when Commissioner Turner personally tells Gunnarson he can't work this case, the Swede finds himself working alone to stop at least one of the counterfeiters.
Thoughts?
|
|
|
Post by Biblically Accurate Angel on Sept 27, 2017 15:09:23 GMT -5
These would fit great as short stories in a compilation, like I suggested earlier.
|
|
|
Post by frankthetriviaman on Sept 27, 2017 15:19:58 GMT -5
All right, so how do we go about this then? Pick four at random and make a volume?
|
|
|
Post by Biblically Accurate Angel on Sept 27, 2017 15:38:31 GMT -5
Basically, we go through, one story at a time until for are completed. Probably an epilogue that the end of a volume to tie it all up.
|
|
|
Post by frankthetriviaman on Sept 27, 2017 15:50:30 GMT -5
Sorry; phrased that wrong
Will we do, say, all the "fours" in one book, or will we do a random assortment?
|
|
|
Post by Biblically Accurate Angel on Sept 27, 2017 17:43:09 GMT -5
The best way I can say - the four stories you came up with are in one volume.
|
|
|
Post by frankthetriviaman on Sept 27, 2017 17:48:22 GMT -5
Personally I was thinking of making the arsonists, all four, one book with a connecting arc.
|
|
|
Post by Biblically Accurate Angel on Sept 27, 2017 18:11:06 GMT -5
Like I said, that was a suggestion, I don't really care too much about which stories go in which volume.
|
|
|
Post by frankthetriviaman on Sept 29, 2017 12:14:48 GMT -5
So Toz; I'm not entirely sure what happened towards the end of the chat last night; so just in case anything I said didn't go through- just a red to let you know I'm fine with the the hurdles in front of the mob before the climax- but the gas attack needs to happen because of Chekhov's gun- since it was brought up, it has to be used.
That being said- I do trust what you are doing; although I am not sure what will happen in the next several posts, I do trust you.
|
|
|
Post by Toz76 on Sept 29, 2017 15:53:53 GMT -5
I don't want the gas to be used on Blade's gang per se, but I do want it to be used. Just because its existence is a chekov's gun doesn't mean it's going to be used exactly as intended. This is still a detective novel. There shall be twists.
|
|
|
Post by frankthetriviaman on Sept 29, 2017 16:05:06 GMT -5
Makes sense to me.
We just need to remember not to destroy the mob just yet- that's next novel.
BTW- is Byrne now considered one of Blade's goons or what is his situation.
|
|
|
Post by Toz76 on Sept 29, 2017 17:21:07 GMT -5
He's part of Blade's gang. His role will be clarified next time he appears. And I will say this, he is one of the goons that survives this novel intact.
In other news:
LM??: Treachery, Faith, and the Great River
Prologue:
They'd started showing up a few weeks ago. On street corners, fully hooded in habits, the nuns stood with an armful of papers. People who saw them swore every nun they met was identical in face, but there must have been thousands throughout the city. They stood ramrod straight with a neutral expression, saying the same phrase over and over again: "Salvation! At Fifth And Crescent! Come home to Christ!"
If the pedestrians knew what they were really coming home to at Fifth and Crescent, they would not have been so courteous to the nuns.
********
In the fifties, London was not exactly a safe haven for foreigners, but Amos Sugiyama had managed to make himself a pillar of the community in a small North London neighborhood, running what may have been London's first authentic Japanese restaurant. Sugiyama was well respected by his neighbors and peers, and his restaurant was a hotspot for locals gathering to exchange gossip.
On the morning of June the 23rd, Sugiyama did what he did every morning. He walked into his shop from the upstairs apartment, and went to the cellar to take stock of his materials. The cellar was a large square room with only one exit and shelves lining the walls. This allowed Sugiyama to scan the whole cellar at once and make sure no one had stolen his supplies. He locked it every night too, and chained it up, because importing genuine ingredients from Japan was too expensive to risk theft.
But on this day, he was greeted with a shocking sight. The locks were undisturbed, as were the shelves. But something was there that hadn't been there the night before.
A body.
*********
Marlena Gent was officially Scotland Yard's first female detective. It wasn't exactly public, due to the need for secrecy in investigations, but it was official, and she was proud.
However, being a detective officially wasn't as fun as being a PI. There were only so many crimes to investigate, and more often than not, she had nothing to do.
But today was different. As she walked along the Thames to her bus stop that morning, she happened to spot a couple of men by the riverbank. The unmistakable smell of cannabis wafted up to her. Marlena checked to make sure she still had her badge and gun, and once assured, crept down to make some arrests.
A loud bang behind her stopped her in her tracks. She whirled around, but could see no shooter.
"I could have sworn that was a gunshot. Perhaps it was just a car?" She wondered, doubtful.
But when she did finally reach the pier, she was in for a surprise. Both of the druggies were now facedown in the river, which was turning an unmistakable shade of red. Marlena hauled the bodies out of the water and it became clear.
"Both shot in the chest, clearly a bullet hole... but they're unarmed!"
Two bodies, two bullets, but only one gunshot... this was a strange one indeed.
|
|
|
Post by frankthetriviaman on Oct 1, 2017 22:32:34 GMT -5
LM ?? - the Arson arc
Part One- Ashes to Ashes
The Arson department of Scotland Yard was smaller than most other departments- since compared to other sections they didn't really see much action. But in recent months, it had been different. Ever since Commissioner Turner put out most wanted list, the Arson Department's top priority was taking down London's four serial arsonists. Dozens of fires, and the 18 detectives assigned to the section were at their wits end. They knew who they were after but they couldn't figure out why they were so brazen. Almost all arsonists were one time criminals. But these four seemed to have a real knack for the hot stuff, and their motives were impossible to figure out.
"Insurance and retribution; it's never anything else" Detective Calhoun, chief of the Arson unit would always say. And yet... there was nothing here that truly indicated either. Detective Connors had just wrapped up a small case involving insurance, and now turned his attention to one of the four most wanted. Calhoun came up to him.
"Any ideas?" Calhoun said.
"Not really; they keep burning London and we're no where closer to catching them" Connors observed.
"We'll just have to keep at it till they slip up" Calhoun replied.
"There is one chance sir. We can call in another set of eyes" Connors proposed.
"Absolutely not! I want that Swede no where near my department!" Calhoun declared.
"We've gotten no where and they keep setting fires like there's no tomorrow! Sir. To be honest, I only suggest this because everything else has failed. We've got nothing to lose st this point" Connors said.
Calhoun thought for a second before giving an ultimatum. "I take no responsibility for this- if he does anything legally questionable- it is on you" Calhoun declared.
"Very well- you have my word" Connors agreed before going to make a phone call. "Hello, Adolf Gunnarson? This is Detective Connors of the Arson Department. I was wondering if you'd be interested in working an Arson case.."
|
|
|
Post by frankthetriviaman on Oct 6, 2017 1:26:08 GMT -5
This time, It's Personal-
......
Marlena was in her office, taking care of some paperwork that came with the line of work. Ever since Commissioner Turner had begun restricting detectives such as herself and Gunnarson from investigating crimes, finding work was becoming rather difficult. To get around this, she made detailed files of every case she investigated, to be handed over to the police upon request. But today, today was different. The monotony of the paperwork was broken up by a loud, hard knocking coming from her door.
"Marlena! Marlena! Please help me!" The female voice screamed. Marlena ran to the door and opened it. It was her friend, Rowena Crow. She was badly beaten, and her clothes were torn and some articles were missing. She practically fell into Marlena's arms in tears. "He got me... the bastard got me!" She screamed.
"Who got you?" Marlena said, trying to get her to calm down.
"Marshall Johnston! That serial rapist in Hammersmith! I didn't recognize him when he hailed my cab; but when we came to the destination, he asked me to come out to help with his bag, and that was when he...he..." and she just kepy crying in Marlena's arms.
"Calm down Rowena; he can't hurt you anymore. And I swear I will bring him to justice" Marlena assured.
Marlena brought Rowena to her own home for the night so she wouldn't have to be alone that night. It wasn't until next day when Rowena began pulling herself together and recovering from the incident. Assuring Marlena she was fine for now, Marlena set out to begin working on the case. But before she did, she made a stop at a local gun store.
"How can I help you ma'am?" The clerk asked.
I need a self defense hand gun... something small I can keep on myself. What do you recommend?" She asked.
"Got a shipment of these in from America earlier this month... Colt Detective Special. .38 caliber, snub nosed revolver, 6 shots. Should be ideal for what you are going for" the clerk explained.
"Excellent; I'll take one, plus two boxes of ammunition" she said.
"All right, just give me one minute" the clerk said as he went to get the requested items.
"I'm coming for you Marshall... and when I do, you'll regret ever laying a hand on Rowena..." Marlena said to herself, her blood boiling at the mere mention of Johnston's name.
|
|
|
Post by frankthetriviaman on Oct 6, 2017 23:57:40 GMT -5
Ok; maybe that was a bit dark even for LM standards. I'm really sorry guys; but to be honest, I thought giving Marlena the focus of those stories would offer a really interesting opportunity for character development.
Got more ideas on the way; stay tuned
|
|
|
Post by Toz76 on Oct 7, 2017 0:41:16 GMT -5
I can't see Marlena owning a gun, even for self-defense. Remember, this is set in England, not America. Significantly fewer people own guns, and Marlena isn't the type.
Also, "serial rapist"? I'm not an expert, but I think those are fleetingly rare.
I like what you're going for, but I don't think we have any way to write honestly yet delicately about this subject. We will very likely end up completely screwing up this subject.
|
|
|
Post by frankthetriviaman on Oct 7, 2017 0:49:08 GMT -5
Exactly; that's why if you looked at the rapists- only two are like that. The other two were one time. And that's why Turner wants them taken down.
the angle I was going for was what happens when Marlena takes up a case that hits close to home; something like that episode of Batman the Animated Series- where Robin confronts and nearly kills the man who killed his parents.
the other thing you are correct on- Marlena would not buy a gun, you are correct. My intention was that in the climax- just when it looks like she will give into rage and outright kill him- she throws it away and realizes that getting that gun wasn't the answer.
|
|
|
Post by frankthetriviaman on Oct 7, 2017 1:06:32 GMT -5
All of that being said- you've got good points Toz; and this will need to be reworked
|
|
|
Post by Biblically Accurate Angel on Oct 7, 2017 12:56:32 GMT -5
I myself disagree with both Frank's outline and Toz's thoughts, and think there's a good way to meet in the middle here. I do like Frank's idea, but here's how I would go about setting up such a story:
Marlena has a friend who is usually cheerful and outgoing, but suddenly she starts acting differently, i.e. retracts into her shell and doesn't see Marlena for a while. It takes some coaxing but eventually she tells Marlena that she has been the victim of a rape and has been depressed ever since. Marlena is horrified, and vows to catch the rapist no matter what. This leads to a game of cat and mouse as the female detective sets out to catch him.
Also, I have no problems with Marlena owning a gun, if she's gonna be a police officer it would probably come in handy for when she's up against violent killers.
|
|
|
Post by frankthetriviaman on Oct 7, 2017 14:15:58 GMT -5
Sounds fair to me
The idea is that it's one of the four in the most wanted; so the set up doesn't bother me. I was thinking that Marlena would take this arc; maybe this initial takedown gives her the resolve to take down the other three
|
|