Monday, August 3, 2015

Gun Totin' Mama




For the sake of argument, remember that I’m talking about fiction.

With that said, what might happen if a mugger approached your protagonist and she was carrying a weapon in her purse?

He might say, “Gimme your money or lose your life!”

Is she going to hand over her purse if there’s a weapon in it? Probably not, because it could be turned on her.

She could say, “Hold on a sec, sweetie, while I fish my gun/pepper spray/ knife/ mace out of my purse.” Not a good move on her part. Maybe, instead, she could say, “Hold on a sec, sweetie, while I fish my heart pills/hormone pills/inhaler/ lipstick (lipstick?) out of my purse. You can have everything else.”

Of course, many of today’s bad guys are worse than in years past, but we’re talking about fiction. The antagonist can be as good or bad as the author wants him or her to be.

I know I’m repeating myself, but a long time ago a friend and I went to the bank on our lunch hour. As we were leaving, she was mugged. Long story short, they were struggling on the ground when I raised my purse to hit him over the head. He glanced up and saw what I was doing and took off. I’ve always carried large purses, and apparently he feared for his life when he saw the monster I carried. By the way, the only weapon I carried was the purse itself.

Chances are that in real life the woman would just hand over her purse. Although… If the victim was carrying some kind of weapon, she might actually try something like I’ve mentioned.

I once read that your keys are a good weapon. Carry them with a key sticking out between your fingers. You might be able to poke someone in the eye or some other sensitive spot.

There’s a thought. Step forward to hand over your purse and in the process lift your knee quickly, hitting the bad guy’s Family Jewels.I guess that’s not such a good idea if he’s pointing a gun or a knife at you, though.

I’m making light of the situation, but remember, I’m talking about fiction. You can ask yourself what you might do under those circumstances, and you can write your character out of a tough situation. Just make it at least somewhat real.

In A Well-Kept Family Secret, Sandi Webster’s mother was waiting for her in a parking lot. She saw a mugger approaching and, surprise, surprise, she was carrying a large purse. As he rushed her, she swung the purse and hit him upside the head. In fiction, she got the drop on him like I’d wanted to.

Sometimes truth is so much stranger than fiction. Without going into it, a woman was recently attacked and she grabbed a rake. When the really, really bad guy tried to take the rake from her, he dropped his gun. She grabbed it and shot over her shoulder, killing him. Or so the story goes. It turned out, last I heard, that he may have been a serial killer. If you read that in a book, would you believe it? Yes, it happened in Cincinnati.

I remember reading one of Dorothy Bodoin’s books where the main character grabbed a salad bowl and dumped it on the killer’s head, leaving lettuce, salad dressing, and all the other ingredients running down the person’s face and into her eyes. Ingenious. I never would have thought of that, and it worked. It also made sense.

Have you ever surprised yourself by taking unexpected actions in a crisis situation? Sometimes our minds go blank and sometimes they kick into gear when faced with a horrendous situation. In fiction, we can make sure our protagonist thinks quickly and takes action. Please make sure it’s realistic, something that could really happen.

A salad bowl could really happen.

Now, sweetie, give me a sec to think up a new scenario. Nope. That’s all I’ve got to say on the subject.

Until next time, have a great week and walk with a key sticking between your fingers if you’re alone in a parking lot or walking down a dark street.

CLICK HERE to visit Marja McGraw’s website
CLICK HERE for a quick trip to Amazon.com

If you read What Are the Odds? – A Sandi Webster Mystery, remember that everything about the house in the story is true. The rest is pure fiction. Isn’t that what they call a teaser?

15 comments:

  1. In real life and/or in fiction, something important to remember: If a bad guy tries to force you into a car, truck or van whether he does or does not have a weapon, DO NOT get in! Kick, scream, hit him in the eye or the family jewels but, most importantly, RUN! Once a woman gets into a vehicle with a maniac, her odds of survival decrease dramatically.
    Great post, Marja!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you, Pat, and great advice! Prepare yourself to take immediate action -- don't freeze. Thank you for stopping in today!

      Delete
  2. LOL, Marja. Funny but great advice, whether fiction or real life. Women need to know how to defend themselves. I've been told it's better to crash into something if someone forces his way into your car, so I had my protagonist drive her motorhome into a ditch to escape a killer. Bending a finger backwards if someone attacks you from behind is also a good defense. And kicking back into the man's knee cap (or family jewels) can help you escape.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you, Jean, and also good advice. Maybe this was a good post because it encourages others to offer a defense. Thank you for stopping in today!

      Delete
  3. when my kids were teens, I leaped out of my VW bus and chased four young men carrying off a screaming woman. While swinging my big purse over my head, I chased after them, yelling all the wile. The guys dropped the girl, she ran one way, they another. I returned to my bus, big purse in hand. Too old and too smart to do dumb stuff like that anymore, but back in the day I was fearless and champion of the underdog.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. You impress me so much, Marilyn! I have no doubt that you'd find a way to take care of things even today. And don't those big purses come in handy? Thank you so much for stopping in today!

      Delete
  4. In one of my novels I have a scene where the female protagonist's date pulls a gun on her. She picks up a lamp intending to hit him on the head but the lamp is plugged in and only goes so far. This really happended to me. In the book and in real life, I talked my would-be rapist out of it.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It's interesting how much we put in our books that's based on real life instances. I'm glad you were able to do some fast talking, Pat! And thank you so much for stopping in!

      Delete
  5. All this talk about being attacked is making me wary about going to the supermarket tomorrow. Just kidding. I always carry pepper spray with me in a place where I can easily get my hands in it. If I ever need to use it, I just hope the wind is blowing in the right direction. Sigh! But with my luck...

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. LOL You just brought up something I've often thought about, Evelyn; the wind. I hope it's not blowing in my direction if I ever have to use pepper spray. Thank you for stopping in today!

      Delete
  6. My protagonist prefers to use stiletto heels (and she always wears stiletto heels), but she might use a purse unless she worried it would get ruined or stolen or taken in as evidence by the authorities. As for me, I'd just use my big mouth and scream like crazy.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I can picture our protag protecting herself, Lesley. : ) For me it would be a big mouth and a big purse. Thank you so much for stopping in!

      Delete
  7. I love the scenario you created. You're right, it's a whole new ballgame If the person being accosted has a weapon in her purse. Hmm.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Thank you, Sharon! It's getting to the weapon that could be a problem. Thank you for stopping in!

    ReplyDelete
  9. Moral of the story carry the gun, pepper spray, etc. in your pocket or hand. At night best to have in hand & ready. If windy you can probably duck any blow back. Then run like crazy screaming at top of your lungs. Weaving if there is gun to hopefully avoid being shot in the back. You always have great blogs.

    ReplyDelete