Mar
6
One of the joys of blogging is that from time to time somebody else comes up with the idea for your post. And it is now time for Bob Hruzek’s What I Learned from ….monthly writing project. This month the theme is - THE LAW.
I thought and thought, I started writing and then I stopped. I have really taxed my brain on this one. I am a law abiding citizen though I have earned a couple of parking tickets in my time - one of which I won on appeal but I had to promise never to let the payment ticked slip onto the floor of the car having come unstuck from my windscreen again.
And then it came to me. My knowledge of the law comes from 2 main sources.
Firstly from working in a law firm as a tax adviser for 9 years. I really did think about writing about my experiences in that area and then realised that that could lead to my regular readers deserting me in droves. Have you any idea how much of a conversation stopper it is to tell people you have just met that you work in tax?
So here I am writing about the other source of my knowledge about the law - the Law and Order TV shows. Law and Order Special Victims is my favourite but the others are brilliant too.
There is of course a fatal flaw in gaining my knowledge this way. I live in the UK…but hey. That’s a small detail.
So what have I learned from Law and Order. Well here goes
- When two attractive ladies are jogging in the street chatting about this and that it is only a matter of time til they come across a body. And - they may look innocent but there is a more than fair chance that one of them is connected somehow.
- If there is a fun party going on you can be sure that by the morning somebody will have come to harm ( this applies to CSI too - especially in Miami. Did you know that there is a TV show where people use what they learned by watching CSI in a real live case)??
- The investigating cops will be rough and ready - salt of the earth types - with a wry sense of humour and a social conscience. This makes me feel really safe.
- The lawyers - even the ones that are not classically handsome or beautiful - will be very attractive. That is of course unless they are actually a baddy in disguise - which happens.
- The cops and the lawyers will rarely conduct a conversation standing or sitting still - you have to walk and talk at the same time.
- In court the good lawyers will have a time when they think all is lost - but they will be able to pull something out of the bag at the last minute. I will be exhausted by this time.
- It is usually the comment that the attorney makes that is objected to and has to be withdrawn that turns the case for the lawyers for the baddy ( which I am sure is the point of doing it in the real world too. Duh!). The goodies have to get back on track after that.
- Don’t assume that if there is a teenage kid around that they don’t have something to do with the case. Do expect to have to get past a seriously protective parent to speak to them though.
- If the accused ( defendant ) is hopelessly implicated by have some sort of impairment- which means that this is fundamentally not fair -you can be sure that the prosecutors will “throw” the case ( legally of course) . However on some occasions the loved ones/advisors of those poor souls won’t take good advice and do a deal and they end up going to jail for a very long time.
- If a baddy does get away with it - don’t despair - a couple of episodes later they will turn up again and the proscutors get another chance ( on a different basis of course - can’t be tried for the same thing twice)
I know it is entertainment and not real life. Isn’t it?
You mean… it’s not real? Oh, the humanity!
Jackie, I’m so glad you cleared these things up for me, since I never watch these shows (I’ve often wondered - does that make me abby-normal?)
Hey, thanks for jumping in the fray this month!
By the way, good point about getting someone else to come up with post ideas! Hmmm… could that be a post idea?
We should start a swap post topics day - see where that takes us….
Jackie, you wonder how some writers think! Thanks for a tongue-in-cheek response to Bob’s “What I Learned from…” this month.
I had great fun writing this one,Robyn! It could be construed as “thinking outside the box” - or maybe just making up my own rules.
Looking forward to reading this month’s selection.
Maybe it’s more like “thinking outside the dodecahedron”?
Hey, I like your “swap topics” day! What an absolutely ridiculously fantastic idea! Hmmm… sound of gears grinding this give me a idea…
Stay tuned!
I am not sure what one of them thingies is!?
The idea of swap topics is growing on me too..i am intrigued to find out where that brain of yours might take you on this one!
[…] … the Law, by ettarose at edgeofsanity.com … the Law, by Sarah Stewart at Sarah’s Musings … the law: insure to be sure, by Karin H. at Start/Stop … the Law, by Sam Brogher at Your Scared Seductive System … Testifying in Court, by Brad Shorr at Word Sell, Inc. … Bureaucracy, by Ellen Weber at Brain Based Business … 10 Things I Learned from Law and Order, by Jackie Cameron at JackieCameron.com … Not Writing About What I Learned From the Law, by Joanna Young at Confident Writing … the Law, by Karen Hanrahan at Best of Mother Earth … What the Law Taught Me About Stress Management, by Jean Browman at Transforming Stress Into Personal Power … Personal Injury Attorneys, by Debbie Yost at Three Weddings … the Law of the Playground, by Amy Palko at Lives Less Ordinary … the Law, by Lillie Ammann at A Writer’s Words, An Editor’s Eye … the Law as Applied to Writing, by Jeanne Dininni at Writers Notes […]
Absolutely love your post! I’m a big L%O fan, and have often thought if you watch enough episodes, you wouldn’t need to go to law school. You just proved it’s true!
Hi Brad
thanks for making me feel part of the bigger L&O community!
Jackie
Jackie, I’m so glad you decided to bend the rules. This was a great piece of writing!
Joanna
Joanna - your comment means a great deal to me you being an expert in this area! Thanks
Jackie
Hi, Jackie,
It’s interesting to see all the elements of the TV crime/courtroom-drama formula written down in one place–and in such an entertaining way!
Here’s another: It’s a safe bet that, while working a case, one or more of the detectives will have a personal crisis or moral dilemma to work through at the same time–which, often as not, will have some bearing on the case. (That’s what keeps it interesting, right?)
Thanks for visiting Writer’s Notes!
Love your blog!
Jeanne
[…] … the Law, by ettarose at edgeofsanity.com … the Law, by Sarah Stewart at Sarah’s Musings … the law: insure to be sure, by Karin H. at Start/Stop … the Law, by Sam Brogher at Your Scared Seductive System … Testifying in Court, by Brad Shorr at Word Sell, Inc. … Bureaucracy, by Ellen Weber at Brain Based Business … 10 Things I Learned from Law and Order, by Jackie Cameron at JackieCameron.com … Not Writing About What I Learned From the Law, by Joanna Young at Confident Writing … the Law, by Karen Hanrahan at Best of Mother Earth … What the Law Taught Me About Stress Management, by Jean Browman at Transforming Stress Into Personal Power … Personal Injury Attorneys, by Debbie Yost at Three Weddings … the Law of the Playground, by Amy Palko at [tag]Lives Less Ordinary[tag] … the Law, by Lillie Ammann at A Writer’s Words, An Editor’s Eye … the Law as Applied to Writing, by Jeanne Dininni at [tag]Writers Notes[/tag[ […]
Jeanne - I forgot about that element. Thanks for adding it! And thanks too for your kind words.
Jackie
[…] … 10 Things I Learned from Law and Order, by Jackie Cameron at JackieCameron.com […]
Isn’t number 2 just plain scary? Talk about fiction and reality merging into one!
Seriously though, a great interpretation of this month’s WILF project.
Oh yes Amy - scary indeed. Thanks for your kind comments!