Hostages: Episode 8 Analysis 1/3

Seriously, medically speaking, the CBS drama Hostages is becoming that car accident I can't avert my eyes from. This episode had me doing some serious eye rolling-- one of my eyes may have actually rolled away from me at one point. I have since recovered it so don't worry.

During episode 7-- the husband is left alone with the primary hostage taker and his primary goal is to do him in. What remains in the house is the "colorless, non-traceable, fast-acting poison" that was contained in a lipstick holder for Ellen to give the President during surgery.

Hubby finds it, a needle and syringe and draws up the medication. At the end of this episode he manages to put it into his chest and pushes in a little of the medication.

Enter the hero doctor who is now convinced that he must live or all of her family will die.

She asks him, "What is the poison?"

He says, "A rapid-acting paralyzing agent."

At this point, I'm going to beg the producers of this show to either get a new medical consultant or hire one. Because, whoever is advising them doesn't know anything about WHY this wouldn't kill the president during his operation.

Paralyzing agents don't stop your heart from beating. I've blogged here before about the unique characteristics of heart cells. They have their own automaticity. Paralyzing agents work at the neuromuscular juction to stop the muscles from being able to contract. Your heart muscle is different from this system but your diaphragm is not which is the primary muscle used for breathing.

The reason a paralyzing agent will kill you is that it stops the contraction of your diaphragm muscle and therefore you stop breathing. Obviously, if you're not breathing you're going to die so to save your life we have to provide rescue breathing and preferably oxygen.

In surgery, especially the type of surgery the president is having which is a lung surgery, he is already going to be intubated and bagged with oxygen to keep him alive. The injection of a paralyzing agent (of which he may already have some on board to get him intubated) would have a net ZERO effect.

You can read more about neuromuscalur blocking agents here. 

So-- it is fiction people and someone in the military wants him gone. You can't invent an odorless, rapid-acting, undectable poison and give it a cool name?

Part II we'll continue with the good doctor's treatment.

Deadly Toxin: Mustard Gas

To celebrate Poison's release, I'm giving away THREE personalized copies of Poison by random drawing to commentors on this week's posts. To be eligible, you must leave a comment that includes your e-mail address. Must also live in the USA. Drawing will take place midnight on Saturday, February 9th. Winner announced here at Redwood's February 10th.

I like book titles with double meanings. My first published book was titled, Proof. There were two types of proof the heroine needed. Proof to convict her assailant of his horrific crimes and proof of God in her life.

Poison, the second book in the Bloodline Trilogy, is releasing this month and in this instance—there is an actual nefarious agent (not giving away too much) and a side meaning as well.

What poisons your life? Is it a bad relationship? Is it believing a lie? Is it an actual toxin like dirking too much liquor, using illegal drugs or prescription drugs in ways they weren’t intended?

Writing suspense, particularly with a heavy medical edge, I think requires something unusual to be found. I’m a research hound. I love to learn about new things. And for Poison, I read a lot on different types of toxins.  

Aren’t toxins interesting? How minute substances can make a person ill or end up killing? This is the stuff suspense novels are made from and the lure for every author—finding that one poison—undetectable, fast-acting, easily transmittable or ingested without the victim knowing.

I remember as a youngster hearing the story of how a long-dead great uncle had passed. According to my grandfather, he’d served in the military during WWI and had died as the result of complications from mustard gas exposure.

So lately, in thinking about toxins, I began to wonder what exactly mustard gas was and how did it kill.

Interestingly, I discovered that term “gas” can mean more than just a vaporous substance and can be any chemical substance.

Lethal Gases: Lead to disablement or death.

Harassing agents: Disrupt enemy soldiers.

Accidental Gases: Gases encountered during war that are not related to a chemical agent like excessive gases from gunpowder during a fight.

Mustard gas falls into the first group—lethal gases. Tear gas, for instance, would fall into the second category. 

But how does mustard gas kill?

Mustard gas is also called sulfur mustard and its name is derived from its foggy yellow appearance and mustard like smell. It’s a blistering agent/alkylating agent and comes in many forms: vapor, liquid or solid. When a person comes into contact with the agent, it damages the skin and mucous membranes inside. The chemical liquefies tissue.

Since it freezes at a high temperature, it’s not very effective when it’s cold. It doesn’t spread easily and would fall to the ground before soldiers could be exposed. This property also made it a good weapon because it could stay low on the ground for weeks depending on the temperature and expose unsuspecting troops going into the area. Another factor that made it a good weapon—people adjusted to the smell quickly.

Mustard gas was used first by the Germans in 1917 and was born out of the trench warfare era where new military strategies had to be devised to get men out of their bunkers. The agent was fitted onto artillery shells which were then shot to toward the enemy lines without the accompanying explosion which I’m sure seemed strange to the soldiers at the time.

Hey, why didn’t that thing blow up? What exactly is that yellow fog?

Unfortunately, mustard gas doesn’t often kill expediently. The first symptom was generally red blisters to the skin that developed within 2-24 hours. If the gas was inhaled, these blisters would slowly develop and seal off the airway.

Other symptoms:

•  Eyes: Irritation, redness, burning, inflammation and even blindness
• Skin: Itchy redness that is replaced with yellow blister
• Respiratory system: Runny or bloody nose, sneezing, hoarse throat, shortness of breath, coughing, sinus pain
• Digestive system: abdominal pain, diarrhea, fever, nausea and vomiting

It was possible for the body to heal if there was a short, brief encounter. Longer, more frequent exposures proved to be more deadly. 

By the end of WWI, chemical agents inured 1 million soldiers and civilians and killed 100,000 people.

Likely, mustard gas wouldn’t be considered favorable to use in chemical warfare these days because of its prolonged activity. 

This link goes to a very powerful article on mustard gas and its effects and was used heavily in the writing of this piece—the italicized areas are from the article. It is definitely worth the read.

What about you? What interesting things have you researched that have ended up in a novel?

The Truth About False Memories

To celebrate Poison's release, I'm giving away THREE personalized copies of Poison by random drawing to commentors on this week's posts. To be eligible, you must leave a comment that includes your e-mail address. Must also live in the USA. Drawing will take place midnight on Saturday, February 9th. Winner announced here at Redwood's February 10th.

During the 80s, there were a number of children who falsely accused adults of molestation. Some of these adults were sent to prison and later found to be innocent.

You can read a little bit about that here. 

For my second book in the Bloodline Trilogy, Poison, I researched how false memories can be created. I came across a non-fiction book called My Lie by Meredith Maran.

In her autobiography, Maran outlines how she began to believe she had been molested by her father, when in reality, she had not.

At the time, Maran was a journalist doing a number of pieces about child molestation. She was observing family therapy sessions where incest had occurred. Suddenly, very innocent things from her life (like dreaming about her father's hands) became evidence that her father had harmed her.  Obviously, when she came to know the truth, her relationship with her father was significantly damaged.

There was a definite craze in the 80s about recalling repressed memories under hypnosis. This is problematic for a couple of reasons. One, is there such a thing as a repressed memory? That being that something traumatic is witnessed by a person and as a form of protection, the mind bundles it up and tucks it away until a later time where recalling the memory is safer.

Some say yes-- absolutely. Others say, no. You can read more about the different thoughts here which is a lengthy treatise but very interesting, balanced information.

The other problem is that hypnosis places the mind in a suggestible state and perhaps, a therapist with ill intentions, could use this suggestible state to introduce an idea into someone that they then begin to believe is true.

Is that possible? Hmm . . . you might have to read Poison to find out.

What we know from every day life is that some people believe things that are NOT true. And this belief in a lie can become great fodder for suspense novels. The eyewitness who falsely accuses. Possibly believing harm has come to you as a child when in fact, like Meredith, nothing insidious happened.

The question becomes, how do we prevent these false memories or false beliefs from harming other individuals? Is there a way to have a "perfect" justice system where only the truly guilty are imprisoned. 

I don't know . . . sounds like another book. 

Eight Questions: New Authors

Last week, I did a blog post that answered these eight questions about my current wip. You can find the post here. It's all about Peril which will follow Poison-- releasing here in Feb.

1. What is the working title of your book?

2. Where did the idea come from for the book?

3. What genre does your book fall under?

4. What's the synopsis of your book?

5.  Will you book be self-published or represented by an agency?

6. How long did it take you to write the first draft of your manuscript?

7. What other books would you compare this sotry to within your genre?

8. What else about your book might pique a reader's interest?

So check out the following authors and their eight questions!

Anita Brooks: http://brooksanita.com/eight-questions-why-did-i-write-this-book

Dena Ratliff Dyer:  http://denadyer.typepad.com/my_weblog/2013/01/a-resource-for-wounded-women.html

Sheila Hollinghead:  http://www.sheilahollinghead.com/2012/12/the-next-big-thing.html

Laura McClellan: http://bellewoodfarm.blogspot.com/

Carol Moncado:  http://carolmoncado.wordpress.com/2013/12/03/questions-about-my-wip/

Enjoy!

Eight Questions

Today, I'm participating in Dale Eldon's "The Next Big Thing" blog hop. If you're an author and would like to participate-- leave me a comment with your e-mail address and I'll link to you here. Your post must be set for Jan 3, 2013.

It's simple: answer these questions about your current WIP.

1. What is the working title of your book?

Peril-- book #3 of the Bloodline Trilogy. It follows Proof and Poison, the first two books in the Bloodline Trilogy. Poison releases Feb 1, 2013.

2. Where did the idea come from for the book?

I've been fascinated by the stories of transplant patients remembering things only their donor would know. Is it possible that memories can be transferred between individuals? As a medical thriller author, I like to take things in medicine that HAVE happened and then ask a question or pose an ethical dilemma. Peril will be a very controversial book.

3. What genre does your book fall under?

Medical  Thriller
Suspense
Christian

4. What's the synopsis of your book?

Three armed men take a pediatric ICU hostage in order to force a researcher to disclose why they are suffering horrific medical complications after they've had a neural graft placed to give them superior autobiographical memory.

5. Will our book be self-published or represented by an agency?
It will be published by Kregel, October 2013. A good spooky read.

6. How long did it take you to write the first draft of your manuscript?

About six months.

7. What other books would you compare this story to within your genre?

Chromosome 6 by Robin Cook

A Heartbeat Away by Harry Kraus

8. What else about your book might pique a reader's interest?


If you LOVE tense suspense novels-- you will love this book. I like to bring readers along on a very scary ride but I also like to pose ethical questions. What do you think about life? When does it start? What differentiates us--- makes us special-- what gives us our humanness. So, along with scaring off your pants, I'd like people to consider some of these questions.



Dale-- thanks so much for allowing me to participate in your parade. It's been  A LOT of fun.



Jordyn

Top Three Most Popular Posts: #2

Suspense novelists are a little consumed with finding ways to kill their characters. I'm guessing that's why this post by Kathleen Rouser was the second most popular post.

Plants: Poisons, Palliatives and Panaceas

Then God said, “I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food.” Gen. 1:29 NIV

Shortly after the time Adam and Eve were forced to leave the Garden of Eden, because of their fall into sin, human beings most likely began looking for relief from pain and sickness. Perhaps by God’s guidance or by what seemed like coincidence, they found that there were certain plants that not only nourished, but also relieved symptoms or cured illnesses.

Throughout the ancient world healers emerged, whether as a medicine man, priest, wise woman or physician. They were brave enough to search by trial and error to find the right cure for each malady. These practitioners, whether spurred on by superstition or curiosity, had to figure out which plants healed... and which ones harmed. The line between healing and poisoning was often quite fine.

A few of the remedies the Sumerians used were made from licorice, myrrh, mustard and oleander. The Code of Hammurabi, originating during his reign (1795-1750 BC), regulated medical practice. There, apothecaries emerged, since the role of preparing medication was considered separate from that of the physician.



Poppy Plants

Around 1500 BC, the Egyptians wrote a dissertation on medicine and pharmaceuticals. Among many plant sources they derived their drugs from were castor seed, spices, poppy and acacia. They imported some ingredients due to the limitations of what they could grow. The Egyptians developed ways to dry, ground up and weigh these materials. Those that concocted medicines were called ‘pastophors’ and were members of a priestly profession.

Seventh century BC clay tablets have been discovered revealing that the Babylonians used many plants as pharmaceuticals including castor seed, thyme, peppermint, myrrh, poppy and licorice.

Various theories of diagnosis and treatment arose through the Greek and Roman civilizations. Pedanius Dioscorides, who lived from around 50-100 AD, wrote Materia Medica, which listed various materials with their medicinal uses and also Codex Aniciae Julianae. This text on herbals, listed many plants and how to prepare them through drying and extraction. Dioscorides, a surgeon to the Roman armies, shared a philosophy with another famous Roman medical man, Galen. They believed that each plant’s shape, color or other physical characteristics left a clue as to which body part or ailment it was meant to treat. By the 16^th century, this was foundation to one Christian viewpoint, which had expanded upon the Doctrine of Signatures, stating that it was the Creator who had marked each of these plants for their use.

During the Dark Ages, the Arab world and the monasteries of Europe, with their healing gardens, preserved much pharmaceutical knowledge.

Throughout history, many folk remedies, based on superstition, were supplemented with chants and rituals. Most often they missed the mark, perhaps imparting comfort if nothing else, considering man’s need to feel as though he is doing something! But apart from that, many plants continued to be used for healing and a large proportion of modern day prescription drugs are rooted in their derivatives. Some emerged to the forefront.



Cinchona Tree

During the 1600s, European Jesuit missionaries in South America sent a powder back home, derived from the bark of the cinchona tree. They’d been surprised to find out that the Native Peruvians knew how to successfully treat malaria, an illness spread by mosquitoes that has killed so many. In 1820, when French chemists extracted a chemical compound from the powdered bark of the cinchona tree, they called it quinine, based on the Peruvian name for the tree, quinquina.

William Clark and Meriwether Lewis took cinchona bark with them on their westward expedition. Lewis’s mother was an herbalist of some renown and imparted some of her knowledge to her son. While the men did not wind up contracting malaria, they found the bark useful for lowering fevers and as ingredient in poultices.

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Kathleen lives in Michigan with her hero and husband of 29 years. First, a wife and mother, she is “retired” after 20 years of home educating their three sons, who are all grown and have moved away. Since then, Kathleen returned to Oakland Community College to complete a Liberal Arts degree and a certificate of achievement in ophthalmic assisting. Last year the American Board of Opticianry certified her. Kathleen has been published in Home School Digest and An Encouraging Word magazines. She writes regularly for the local women’s ministry “Sisters” newsletter. She also contributes articles and author interviews to FavoritePASTimes.blogspot.com, a blog devoted mostly to historical fiction. Read about her fiction writing endeavors at: www.kathleenrouser.com. 

Principles of Poisoning: Part 1/3

Nothing will get a writer's mind whirling like dreaming up the perfect poison to kill off a character. Is there a perfect, undetectable poison? Maybe, probably... but you'd be amazed at what might be available in your own bathroom cabinet.

If you're going to use drug poisoning as a way to sicken or kill a character, there are a couple of things you're going to need to research in order to figure out how much to give them, how long it will take the medication to take effect and what the patient's signs and symptoms will be.

Consider these guidelines:

Guideline #1: What is a toxic dose of the drug/plant/poison? After all, you don't want to hype up this scene where a character is poisoned and you've given them a normal dose of the drug. That would be very anti-climatic. One way to do this is to look for the LD50 which stands for median lethal dose. In very basic terms, it's the dose of the drug that will kill 50 out of 100 people. Now, it may take less of the drug to kill some and some people may live through that dose as well, but it will be a good place to start from. You can also get a good gauge on this from looking at drug information sheets under the overdose or toxicology sections.

To read more on LD50:
1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Median_lethal_dose
2. http://www.rsc.org/pdf/ehsc/ld50.pdf

Guideline #2: When does the drug peak and what is its half life? These are time issues. Peak concentration is the maximum concentration of drug in the circulation. Generally, when the patient will feel the full effect of the medication. This is important to know because drug peak concentrations range wildly from a few seconds to days. Half-life is how long it takes 1/2 the drug to be eliminated from the blood. This is roughly how long the effect of the medication will last.

To read more:
1. http://www.beltina.org/health-dictionary/peak-level-drug-concentration-blood.html
2. http://www.wisegeek.com/what-does-a-drugs-half-life-mean.htm

Guideline #3: How is the drug metabolized in the body? This is important because whatever organ breaks down the drug will be overwhelmed by the amount of the drug and begin to shut down. In addition to this, it's important to know what that organ does specifically. Acetaminophen is metabolized by the liver. Hence, its toxic effects and what ultimately kills the patient is the failure of this organ.

1. http://www.medicinenet.com/tylenol_liver_damage/page3.htm
2. http://www.medicinenet.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=191

Have you written a scene using a drug/plant/poison to injure or kill a character?