Comments on Pens Fatales: Martha Says There's No Substitute for Experience

I love this. I also love that after 20 minutes yo...

2009-12-15T14:21:13.157-08:00

I love this. I also love that after 20 minutes you hadn't just smashed the lock into a million pieces and have your character armed with a handy sledgehammer for just such an occasion.

Just got back edits on my latest manuscript from m...

2009-12-15T14:11:57.485-08:00

Just got back edits on my latest manuscript from my agent and next to my lock picking scene was the comment "great detail" - woohoo! And it all pay off!

Kelly - my husband actually also resets locks. when we first moved into our house we needed 3 keys to get in through all the dors and I said nosiree, so he got the kit and learned how to do it in order to reset all the locks for me. :)

Heh. I used to practice lock-picking the bathroom ...

2009-12-15T13:15:41.023-08:00

Heh. I used to practice lock-picking the bathroom door when I was a kid. I love the amount of research you put into this!

The husband is pretty good at lock picking? :) I h...

2009-12-10T16:49:05.088-08:00

The husband is pretty good at lock picking? :)
I hope your neighborhood has a good neighborhood watch system! ;)
But seriously, it's so simple to try something your character is doing, but yet, silly me, I might have just researched and stopped at there! Good post!

M-This is why we love you. :) However, I'm wi...

2009-12-09T15:56:32.454-08:00

M-This is why we love you. :) However,
I'm with Adrienne...I'm sending my character to five star restaurants :) :)

More proof that Lala and I are the same person!! ...

2009-12-09T15:55:42.130-08:00

More proof that Lala and I are the same person!!

Anna, I recommend trying everything first hand if possible. :) Just for fun. I'm thinking of making my character spend a summer in Hawaii next. Hmm...what's *that* like?

Both Bethany and Lala can pick locks (and it has c...

2009-12-09T15:28:59.238-08:00

Both Bethany and Lala can pick locks (and it has come in handy). (I just surround myself with people who can get the job done, it seems.) Love that the hubby is good at it, and love this post.

I have a lock-picking scene in one of my manuscrip...

2009-12-09T10:33:50.572-08:00

I have a lock-picking scene in one of my manuscripts and it didn't even occur to me to try it myself. Instead, I watched a few videos of people doing it and studied some diagrams of different types of locks. But you're absolutely right that theoretical/second-hand knowledge isn't nearly as good as first-hand. I'll try to be less of a wimp in the future!

I could do the padlock Juliet but it would take an...

2009-12-09T09:27:48.361-08:00

I could do the padlock Juliet but it would take an embarassingly long time - I can lend you the husband if you'd like!

Sophie, now that I've tried lock picking, I can tell you most cans are too flimsy to stand up to the raking (plus you have the issue that you still don't have a wrench to turn the tumbler).

Adrienne - next up for research for me - what does it feel like to be driven along a highway in the trunk of a car. Woohoo!

You're so good. And so scary. I only feel the...

2009-12-09T08:10:12.463-08:00

You're so good. And so scary.
I only feel the need to dive into first hand research when I there is a fancy dinner scene, or a drinking scene, or sleeping past 6am scene.:-)

oh. um. wow. see, when i wrote about making lock ...

2009-12-09T07:56:24.904-08:00

oh. um. wow. see, when i wrote about making lock picks from rinsed-out bud cans, I couldn't really research it cause i don't drink beer from cans, only draft. so the spirit was willing, but, you know, it failed in execution.

oh well.

I love it! Especially the sensory detail. That...

2009-12-09T07:19:36.614-08:00

I love it! Especially the sensory detail. That's the sort of rich writing you only glean from experience, in my view. Plus, you just might end up with handy skills.
Speaking of which...um...I have an old padlock that needs picking. Are you the gal?