Category Archives: Lethal Chemical Poisons

Visine as a Deadly Poison!

I’ve blogged often about various methods of murder that do NOT involve the spilling of blood, and I’ve discovered yet another weapon that can be used when writing a bloodless death scene—Visine! Yes, those eye drops that we all use … Continue reading

Posted in A How To Blog on Murder Plot Ideas, A How To Blog on Murder Weapons, About James J. Murray, About Medications/Pharmacy, About Murder, All About Murder, Blog Writers, Blogging, Bloodless Death Scene Writing, Chemical Poisons, Chemicals Used For Murder, Designing Murder Plots, Dramatic Murder Weapons, Drug Poisoning, Drugs For Murder Plots, How To Write A BloodLess Murder Scene, Ideas for Murder Scenes, Instruments of Death, Interesting Murder Weapons, James J. Murray Blog, Killing Off Characters in Your Novel, Lethal Agents and Murder, Lethal Chemical Poisons, Methods of Murder, Misuse of Drugs, Murder Weapons Discussed, New Blog, New Methods of Murder, New Methods To Kill Characters in Your Novel, Pharmacy/Pharmaceuticals, Plotting Interesting Murder Scenes, Poisons Used For Murder, Prescription For Murder Blog, Spiking Drinks With Visine, Tetrahydrozoline Poisoning, The Science of Murder, Tools of Murder, Unique Murder Plots, Unique Murder Weapons, Visine as a Murder Weapon, Visine as a Poison, Visine in the news, Visine Poisoning, Visine Prank, Writing Death Scenes, Writing Dramatic Murder Scenes | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

COPPER SULFATE – The Green Chemical

Copper sulfate is a fascinating substance that burns with a green to aquamarine colored flame. Often it’s used in high school chemistry classes to demonstrate just such a phenomenon. It’s also considered a “green chemical” in that the US agricultural … Continue reading

Posted in A How To Blog on Murder Plot Ideas, A How To Blog on Murder Weapons, About James J. Murray, About Murder, Acute Poisons, All About Murder, Blog About Poisons in Fiction Writing, Blogging, Bloodless Death Scenes, Chemical Poisons, Copper Culfate, Copper Sulfate Poisoning and Farm Workers, Copper Sulfate Poisoning and India, Developing Story Plots, Developing Storyline Ideas, Drug Poisoning, Drugs Used For Murder, Ideas for Murder Scenes, Instruments of Death, Interesting Murder Weapons, James J. Murray Blog, Killing a Villain in a Novel, Killing Off Characters in Writing, Lethal Chemical Poisons, Lethal Chemicals in Murder Mysteries, Methods of Murder, Murder Weapons Discussed, New Blog, New Methods of Murder, New Methods To Kill Characters in Your Novel, Pesticides and Murder, Poisons and Murder, Poisons Used For Murder, Prescription For Murder Blog, The Green Chemical, The Writings of James J. Murray, Tools of Murder, Unique Lethal Compounds, Unique Murder Plots, Unique Murder Weapons, Ways to Murder, Writing Death Scenes | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

ANTIMONY – A Shimmery Toxic Metal

Antimony is a naturally-occurring metal usually found in ore deposits. Although it is a rare element, it’s extensively used in the manufacturing industry and is present in many household items. Its appearance is described as “a silvery, luscious gray metal” … Continue reading

Posted in A How To Blog on Murder Plot Ideas, A How To Blog on Murder Weapons, About James J. Murray, About Medications/Pharmacy, About Murder, All About Murder, Antimony and Murder Mysteries, Antimony Poisoning, Antimony Uses and Misuses, Blog Writers, Blogging, Bloodless Death Scene Writing, Bloodless Death Scenes, Chemicals Used For Murder, Creating Emotional Drama in a Murder Scene, Deadly Poisons Discussed, Deciding How to Kill Off a Character in a Novel, Designing Murder Plots, Dramatic Murder Weapons, How to Choose a Murder Weapon for a Plot Idea, How To Write A BloodLess Murder Scene, Ideas for Murder Scenes, Interesting Murder Weapons, James J. Murray Blog, Killing Off Characters in Writing, Killing Off Characters in Your Novel, Lethal Chemical Poisons, Lethal Poisons, Methods of Murder, Murder Mayhem and Medicine, Murder Weapons Discussed, New Blog, New Methods of Murder, New Methods To Kill Characters in Your Novel, Plotting Interesting Murder Scenes, Poisons Used For Murder, Prescription For Murder Blog, The Perfect Poison, Unique Murder Plots, Unique Murder Weapons, Ways to Murder, Writing Dramatic Murder Scenes | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

SAMARIUM – The Good and The Bad

In the past I’ve blogged about lethal radioactive chemicals (here and here) as possible murder weapons to use in your murder mysteries and thrillers. There is another rather dramatic radioactive agent—a beneficial medication at that—which could take center stage in … Continue reading

Posted in A How To Blog on Murder Plot Ideas, A How To Blog on Murder Weapons, About James J. Murray, About Medications/Pharmacy, About Murder, All About Murder, Blog Writers, Blogging, Chemical Poisons, Chemicals Used For Murder, Designer Drug Deaths, Designer Poisons Used For Murder, Designing Murder Plots, Developing Storyline Ideas, Dramatic Murder Weapons, Drug Poisoning, Drugs For Murder Plots, Drugs Used For Murder, Drugs Used to Murder, How to Choose a Murder Weapon for a Plot Idea, Ideas for Murder Scenes, Instruments of Death, Interesting Murder Weapons, James J. Murray, James J. Murray Blog, Killing Off Characters in Writing, Killing Off Characters in Your Novel, Lethal Agents and Murder, Lethal Chemical Poisons, Lethal Chemicals in Murder Mysteries, Lethal Radioactive Agents, Murder Mayhem and Medicine, Murder Weapons Discussed, Murder With Drugs, New Blog, New Methods of Murder, New Methods To Kill Characters in Your Novel, Overdose of Samarium, Pharmacy/Pharmaceuticals, Plotting Interesting Murder Scenes, Prescription For Murder Blog, Radioactive Drugs Used for Murder, Radioactive Pharmaceuticals and Murder, Radioactive Weapons of Murder, Samarium, Samarium and Murder, Tools of Murder, Unique Murder Plots, Unique Murder Weapons | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

TOXIDROMES: Wet vs Dry Symptoms

In last week’s blog, I introduced the concept of toxidromes—defined as a group of specific symptoms and clues which medical examiners use to identify the specific substance used to poison a victim. In that blog, I discussed two of the … Continue reading

Posted in A How To Blog on Murder Plot Ideas, A How To Blog on Murder Weapons, About James J. Murray, About Murder, About Writing, Achieving Writing Perfection, All About Murder, Anticholinergic Toxidromes, Blog Writers, Blogging, Bloodless Death Scene Writing, Chemical Poisons, Chemical Weapons Discussions, Chemicals Used For Murder, Cholinergic Toxidromes, Deadly Poisons Discussed, Designer Poisons Used For Murder, Designing Murder Plots, Developing Story Plots, Developing Storyline Ideas, Developing Writing Skills, Difficult to Solve Murders, Dramatic Murder Weapons, Drugs Used For Murder, How to Choose a Murder Weapon for a Plot Idea, Ideas for Murder Scenes, Instruments of Death, Interesting Murder Weapons, James J. Murray Blog, Killing Off Characters in Writing, Lethal Anticholinergic Drug Symptoms, Lethal Chemical Poisons, Lethal Chemicals in Murder Mysteries, Lethal Cholinergic Drug Symptoms, Methods of Murder, Murder Mayhem and Medicine, Murder Weapons, Murder Weapons Discussed, Murder With Drugs, New Blog, New Methods of Murder, Pharmacy/Pharmaceuticals, Poisons and Murder, Poisons Used For Murder, Prescription For Murder Blog, The Science of Murder, The Writings of James J. Murray, Tools of Fiction Writing, Tools of Murder, Toxidromes and Murder, Toxidromes and Murder Mysteries, Toxidromes in Murder Mysteries, Toxidromes to Identify a Poison, Toxidromes to Solve Murders, Unique Lethal Compounds, Unique Murder Plots, Unique Murder Weapons, Ways to Murder, Writing Death Scenes, Writing Dramatic Murder Scenes | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

TOXIDROMES: Solving The Poison Puzzle

The murders that occur in my novels and short stories often involve a lethal medicine or a poison. To create a believable plot, I make sure to do my homework to get the toxic effects of those substances correct. That’s … Continue reading

Posted in A How To Blog on Murder Plot Ideas, A How To Blog on Murder Weapons, About James J. Murray, About Murder, All About Murder, Blog Writers, Blogging, Bloodless Death Scene Writing, Bloodless Death Scenes, Chemical Poisons, Deciding How to Kill Off a Character in a Novel, Depressant and Stimulant Toxidromes, Designing Murder Plots, Developing Story Plots, Developing Storyline Ideas, Dramatic Murder Weapons, Drug Poisoning, Drugs For Murder Plots, Drugs Used For Murder, How to Choose a Murder Weapon for a Plot Idea, How To Write A BloodLess Murder Scene, Ideas for Murder Scenes, Instruments of Death, James J. Murray Blog, Killing a Villain in a Novel, Killing Off Characters in Writing, Killing Off Characters in Your Novel, Lethal Chemical Poisons, Lethal Chemicals in Murder Mysteries, Methods of Murder, Murder Mayhem and Medicine, Murder Weapon Groupings and Categories, Murder Weapons Discussed, Murder With Drugs, New Blog, New Methods To Kill Characters in Your Novel, Plotting Interesting Murder Scenes, Plotting Murder Scenes, Poisons and Murder, Poisons Used For Murder, Prescription For Murder Blog, The Science of Murder, The Writings of James J. Murray, Tools of Murder, Toxidrome's, Toxidromes and Murder, Toxidromes in Murder Mysteries, Toxidromes to Identify a Poison, Unique Murder Plots, Unique Murder Weapons, Ways to Murder, Writing Death Scenes, Writing Dramatic Murder Scenes | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Phosphorus – An Enlightened Poison

The name phosphorus comes from a Greek word meaning “bearer of light” and is commercially produced in two predominant forms—white and red phosphorus. In its white phosphorus (WP) structure, WP is a waxy substance that gives off a slight glow … Continue reading

Posted in A How To Blog on Murder Plot Ideas, A How To Blog on Murder Weapons, About James J. Murray, About Murder, All About Murder, Blog Writers, Blogging, Bloodless Death Scene Writing, Chemicals Used For Murder, Choosing How a Character Should Die in a Story, Deadly Poisons Discussed, Death From Phosphorus, Dramatic Murder Weapons, Drugs For Murder Plots, Drugs Used For Murder, Ideas for Murder Scenes, Interesting Murder Weapons, James J. Murray Blog, Killing Off Characters in Writing, Lethal Chemical Poisons, Methods of Murder, Murder Mayhem and Medicine, Murder Weapons Discussed, Murder With Drugs, New Blog, New Methods of Murder, Phosphorus and Murder, Phosphorus Poisoning, Plotting Murder Scenes, Poisons and Murder, Prescription For Murder Blog, Red Phosphorus, The Science of Murder, Tools of Murder, Unique Murder Plots, Unique Murder Weapons, White Phosphorus | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

TABUN – A Dramatic Murder Weapon!

Although first developed as a possible pesticide in Germany in 1936, tabun quickly became known as an excellent chemical warfare agent and was made on an industrial scale by Germany during World War II. It was the first of the … Continue reading

Posted in A How To Blog on Murder Plot Ideas, A How To Blog on Murder Weapons, About James J. Murray, About Murder, All About Murder, Blog About Poisons in Fiction Writing, Blog Writers, Blogging, Bloodless Death Scene Writing, Chemical Weapons Discussions, Chemicals Used For Murder, Contact Poisons, Designer Poisons Used For Murder, Dramatic Murder Weapons, How to Choose a Murder Weapon for a Plot Idea, Ideas for Murder Scenes, Interesting Murder Weapons, James J. Murray Blog, Killing Off Characters in Your Novel, Lethal Agents and Murder, Lethal Chemical Poisons, Lethal Chemicals in Murder Mysteries, Methods of Murder, Murder Mayhem and Medicine, Murder Weapons Discussed, New Blog, New Methods of Murder, Poisoning With Tabun, Poisons and Murder, Poisons Used For Murder, Prescription For Murder Blog, Tabun, Tabun as a Murder Weapon, The Science of Murder, Tools for Murder, Toxic Chemical Warfare Agents, Unique Murder Weapons, Writing Dramatic Murder Scenes | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

Mad As A Hatter!

More than 200 years ago, hat making was a profitable business, but it could also be a deadly one! The furs used to make felt hats were dipped in a preservative made with mercury nitrate solutions. The soaking also helped … Continue reading

Posted in A How To Blog on Murder Plot Ideas, A How To Blog on Murder Weapons, About James J. Murray, About Murder, All About Murder, Blog Writers, Blogging, Bloodless Death Scene Writing, Bloodless Death Scenes, Chemical Poisons, Chemical Weapons Discussions, Chemicals Used For Murder, Contact Poisons, Designing Murder Plots, Dimethylmercury, Dimethylmercury as a Potent Neurotoxin, Dimethylmercury is Lethal, Dimethylmercury Poisoning, Dramatic Murder Weapons, Hatter's Disease, How To Write A BloodLess Murder Scene, Ideas for Murder Scenes, Interesting Murder Weapons, James J. Murray Blog, Killing a Villain in a Novel, Killing Off Characters in Writing, Killing Off Characters in Your Novel, Lethal Chemical Poisons, Lethal Chemicals in Murder Mysteries, Mercury Poisoning, Murder Weapons Discussed, Murder With Dimethylmercury, Murder with Neurotoxins, Neurotoxin Poisons, Neurotoxins, Neurotoxins and Murder, New Blog, New Methods To Kill Characters in Your Novel, Plotting Interesting Murder Scenes, Poisons and Murder, Poisons Used For Murder, Prescription For Murder Blog, The Science of Murder, Tools of Murder, Unique Murder Plots, Unique Murder Weapons, Ways To Kill, Ways to Murder, Writing Death Scenes | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Hydrofluoric Acid – The Flesh Eater

Last week’s blog was about an interesting acid that’s corrosive enough to destroy DNA evidence. A whimsical Facebook post—as a joke—by one of my friends regarding “how to get rid of the body in the basement” made me think of … Continue reading

Posted in A How To Blog on Murder Plot Ideas, A How To Blog on Murder Weapons, About James J. Murray, About Murder, About Writing, All About Murder, Blog Writers, Blogging, Bloodless Death Scene Writing, Bloodless Death Scenes, Breaking Bad Acids, Breaking Bad Poisons, Chemical Poisons, Chemicals Used For Murder, Difficult to Solve Murders, Dramatic Murder Weapons, Flesh Eating Acids, How To Write A BloodLess Murder Scene, Hydrofluoric Acid, Hydrofluoric Acid and Murder, Ideas for Murder Scenes, Interesting Murder Weapons, James J. Murray Blog, Killing a Villain in a Novel, Killing Off Characters in Your Novel, Lethal Chemical Poisons, Murder Mayhem and Medicine, Murder Weapons, New Blog, New Methods of Murder, Plotting Interesting Murder Scenes, The Science of Murder, Tools of Murder, Unique Murder Weapons, Ways to Murder, Writing Dramatic Murder Scenes | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments