So I was pondering peculiar story premises, and I unearthed a strange idea. What if, for one reason or another, a detective murdered someone. (Not sure who or why yet.) He works in the police business, so he knows how to cover his tracks pretty well. After a couple of months with no suspicions or anything more than a missing person on the agenda, he thinks he got away with it. Many people have been trying to track down the killer but have failed, which is good for him. His own job isn't going too well though, and if he comes up short with another case, his position as a detective is definitely lost. This is the point at which he is assigned to his own case. Dilemma! It was a strange thought, but I have a feeling there is a thrilling or comically amusing potential in it. Which is why I'm asking the brilliant minds of yours to help discuss the possibilities of this premise. I know it's quite simple and open ended and holes in the idea are inevitably going to be found, but I've got a hunch about this one. I feel like it could be made into something great. I don't know, I could just be a loony who thinks he's got an amazing idea but it turns out stupid. I hope to god this hasn't been done in a really obvious book or film.
Dexter (showtime) is a show about a serial killer who works for the police department as a blood analyst, but from what I've seen of the first season (they're on six now, maybe?) he was never assigned his own case because he never got caught. That's the only similar-scenario that I thought of at first,though. I would just wonder who the character would set up to get himself off of the hook. I feel like him trying to plant evidence and build a back story for why someone else would do it without raising the suspicion of his partner would make for a really interesting read.
It's been done. Strike that: It's all been done. But it has never been done by you, and that is all that matters. This sounds like a good story, so grab some index cards, create your characters, figure out the ending and get writing! Good luck! ~ JJ
Exactly. There have been lots of stories of murderers who were police officers. The key parts would be preventing the appearance of a conflict of interest -- not just someone figuring out he was the murderer, but his having ties to anyone involved - i.e. the victim, other suspects, etc. There's no reason you couldn't write a great story on this premise.
There are even real life examples. Consider former Ohio police officer Drew Peterson, who is alleged to have murdered not only one, but two of his wives.
One thing you should know is that you may write a book with a plot idea that's been done, but they are always different. Think about Eragon. Rider and dragon are connected right? Well this was likely inspired by Anne Mccaffreys Dragons of pern series. I simple plot to tell the tales of how man and dragon must save the world, but with differing scenarios are stories. Also remember, it's how you tell the story too. I'm reading Jason and the Argonauts right now. it's an incredibly simple book obviously written for teens, but it's good because it gives a clear picture as to whats happening and it's well written. I would suggest looking of books that are similar to yours and see how they are written, and then try to stand out a bit. If none have been written from a First Person perspective then do that. I always feel more involved in stories like that.
He was actually in Bolingbrook, Illinois, just outside of Chicago. I always thought the big lesson he should have learned is: if you get away with killing one spouse, you can't then subsequently go ahead and kill another spouse. That is very suspicious.
I stand corrected. I must be mixing him with some other sleaze. I'm pretty sure there was something similar in Ohio...
Sounds like the premise to a good double detective tale Meaning another detective investigate the detective on the case
Consider this, (we discussed this in psycology and I've seen it on Criminal Minds and other materials with profiling the human character) there are some people who like to inject themselves back into an investigation or the attempts to find a killer, when they themselves are the guilty party. It's apparently a behavior that happens more often then you would think. It's something to consider. I can't remember where I read this, but I do remember reading sometime back a story about a young man who murdered people in a very violent and gruesome fashion just so he could feel like he was in power and become as he put it "King of the Blood Empire". He was very knowledgable in covering his tracks, and when it came down to finding his killer he was able to twist everything around enough so that his father, who he apparently hated and was the cause of his killings, was arrested and tried for the murders. Again, this is just something to consider, but hopefully it helps.
