[Writer Post] Civic Duty Takes on Writing
Obligatory Appearance Announcement: This Sunday, April 1st, I will be signing and selling books and chatting up people at The North Texas Comic Book Show (and they might actually let me have a table INSIDE this time, like a grown up person.
Yesterday (Tuesday), I was called for Municipal Court duty. At 7:30 a.m. Now, I’m usually up and about by that time, but not where I have to interact with other people. I had to drink my coffee quickly because I wasn’t sure if they were going to let me take it through security, so I didn’t have all the caffeine I should have.
I was on the first row or – as the poor, underslept, but witty, judge put it “The Splash Zone” – so I figured this was the time to get my civic duty feet wet. Municipal Court is misdemeanors – so I was dealing with traffic court (yes, in Texas you can have a jury trial for a speeding ticket). And it was pretty cool, even if we did have to ruin someone’s day in the process (in this case the defendant). In minor cases like this, where no physical evidence is presented, it’s Witness vs. Witness and Lawyer vs. Lawyer, it really did come down to who was clear, concise, and made their point better.
I was out by lunch. And now, the next time I need a lawyer – especially prosecutor – I have a model. One of Arlington’s City Attorney’s is a great base for a lawyer. Former JAG, originally from the area, and takes even traffic court seriously but with compassion and humanity.
I really wanted the defense attorney to be more like a TV lawyer. One that comes across all kindly and grandfatherly – then turns into the shark-like attorney. That would’ve made for a more exciting and dramatic case…but alas, in this one, real life wasn’ t nearly as exciting as what I could’ve made it. And I have to admit, I was kinda sad when the defense lawyer didn’t turn out that way.
But hey, I have a nifty printed certificate for my service to the city. I was able to do most of what I normally do on a Tuesday. But one of the story elements that DID come out in our deliberations – and this is your writing tip for the day…besides finding character basics in real life people…
Writing Tip… if you have a character argue a certain point, such as calibration of an instrument…make sure if the counter argument is based on a mechanical foible of a machine that you have something to back up what you’re saying, such as a mechanic’s report. It comes down to the If there is a gun on the mantle in page X of your story, it needs to be used by page Y. Because if a jury doesn’t buy it, your readers aren’t going to either. Word. (Yeah, I know , I can’t pull that off.)