Category Archives: The Writings of James J. Murray

Create An Action-Packed New Year!

Posted on January 4, 2017 by James J. Murray, Fiction Writer

First off -> HAPPY NEW YEAR 2017! Now, before you roll your eyes at yet another lesson about New Year’s resolutions, here are some practical suggestions to help you 1) make realistic goals, 2) plan them logically, and 3) keep … Continue reading →

Posted in A Holiday Wish, A New Year's Greeting, A New Year's Wish, About James J. Murray, About Running, About Writing, Achieving Perfection, Blog Writers, Blogging, Change in the New Year, Changing Your Life in The New Year, Create a Better You, Creating Change in the New Year, Creating New Habits in The New Year, Developing Better Life Skills, Forging a Better Life, Growing As A Writer, Happy New Year, How To Change Bad Habits, How to Create a Better Life, How to Create a More Enjoyable Life, How to Create a More Productive Life, How to Create a More Satisfying Life, How to Implement New Year's Resolutions, How to Make New Year's Resolutions, Ideas for Creating Permanent Change, James J. Murray Blog, Life Skills, Life-Altering Goals, Making Change Permanent, Murder Mayhem and Medicine, New Blog, New Life Goals, New Year's Resolutions, Prescription For Murder Blog, Skills to Create a Better Life, The Writings of James J. Murray | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Wishing You a Joyous Winter Holiday

Posted on December 21, 2016 by James J. Murray, Fiction Writer

Happy Holidays To All My Readers & May You and Yours Be Filled With Joy and Peace During This Holiday Season

Posted in A Christmas Greeting, A Holiday Wish, A World of Joy, About James J. Murray, Blog Writers, Blogging, Christmas Themed Blog, Happy Holidays, Holiday Cheer, James J. Murray Blog, New Blog, The Writings of James J. Murray | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Are Antagonists Also Anti-Heroes?

Posted on August 17, 2016 by James J. Murray, Fiction Writer

The other day a person whom I admire posed an interesting question to me? What is the difference between an antagonist and an antihero? I have to admit that I paused a good while to consider my answer before spouting … Continue reading →

Posted in A How To Blog on Murder Plot Ideas, About James J. Murray, Accuracy in Writing, Achieving Writing Perfection, All About Writing, An Antagonist vs The Antihero, Antagonist Development, Better Fiction Writing, Better Fictional Character Development, Blog Writers, Blogging, Character development, Character Development Techniques, Character Driven Writing, Characteristics of a Fictional Character, Creating Interesting Fiction Characters, Creating Unique and Interesting Character Flaws, Deciding What Types of Fictional Characters Fit Into Your Plot, Defining The Use of Antagonists vs Antiheroes, Designing Murder Plots, Developing a Writing Career, Developing Better Writing Skills, Developing Effective and Compelling Fictional Heroes, Developing Story Plots, Developing Storyline Ideas, Developing Writing Skills, Elements of Fictional Characters, Fictional Character Development, James J. Murray Blog, Murder Mayhem and Medicine, New Blog, Plot Development, Plot Ideas and Where They Come From, Prescription For Murder Blog, Protagonist Development, The Writings of James J. Murray, Tools of Fiction Writing, Types of Fictional Characters, Villains vs Antiheroes, Writing Skills | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

TOXIDROMES: Wet vs Dry Symptoms

Posted on June 15, 2016 by James J. Murray, Fiction Writer

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

Posted on June 8, 2016 by James J. Murray, Fiction Writer

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

A Book Hangover!

Posted on March 30, 2016 by James J. Murray, Fiction Writer

 This past weekend I read a great book and I have a book hangover! I’ve experienced such an event many times in the past, but I’ve never attempted to write about it. So . . . I googled the words … Continue reading →

Posted in About James J. Murray, About Writing, Achieving Writing Perfection, All About Writing, Almost Dead, Better Fiction Writing, Blog Writers, Blogging, Book Hangover, Character Driven Writing, Connecting With Your Reader, Developing a Writing Career, Developing Better Writing Skills, Developing Writing Skills, Good Books Create Emotions, Growing As A Writer, James J. Murray Blog, New Book Release, Plot Development, Proper Use of the Written Word, The Art of Storytelling, The Art of Writing, The Writings of James J. Murray, Writing Skills, Your Favorite Book, Your Last Book Hangover? | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Mysteries vs Thrillers

Posted on March 23, 2016 by James J. Murray, Fiction Writer

A few years ago, mysteries were the hot genre. It seemed as if everyone was reading a mystery novel. The thrill of guessing “Who done it!” was the excitement that kept me, and many others, reading book after book. More … Continue reading →

Posted in A Mystery Novel, A Thriller Novel, About James J. Murray, About Writing, Accuracy in Writing, Achieving Writing Perfection, Adrenaline Rush, All About Writing, Better Fiction Writing, Blog Writers, Blogging, Character Driven Writing, Designing Murder Plots, Developing Better Writing Skills, Developing Story Arcs, Developing Story Plots, Developing Storyline Ideas, Developing Writing Skills, Difference Between Mysteries and Thrillers, Growing As A Writer, James J. Murray Blog, Mysteries and Thrillers Compared, Mysteries Vs Thrillers, New Blog, Plotting Murder Scenes, Prescription For Murder Blog, Proper Use of the Written Word, Role of Suspense in Mysteries, Role of Suspense in Thrillers, Story Development, The Art of Storytelling, The Art of Writing, The Writings of James J. Murray, Tools of Fiction Writing, Writing Skills, Writing Techniques | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

COPPER SULFATE – The Green Chemical

Posted on January 13, 2016 by James J. Murray, Fiction Writer

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 Medications/Pharmacy, About Murder, Acute Poisons, All About Murder, Blog About Poisons in Fiction Writing, Blog Writers, Blogging, Bloodless Death Scenes, Chemical Poisons, Copper Culfate, Copper Sulfate Poisoning and Farm Workers, Copper Sulfate Poisoning and India, Ideas for Murder Scenes, Instruments of Death, Interesting Murder Weapons, James J. Murray Blog, Killing a Villain in a Novel, 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, Unique Murder Plots, Unique Murder Weapons, Ways to Murder, Writing Death Scenes | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Create An Action-Packed New Year!

Posted on January 6, 2016 by James J. Murray, Fiction Writer

Before you roll your eyes at yet another lesson about New Year’s resolutions, here are some practical suggestions to help you 1) make realistic goals, 2) plan them logically, and 3) keep yourself on track to meet those goals. First … Continue reading →

Posted in A New Year's Greeting, A New Year's Wish, About James J. Murray, About Running, About Writing, Achieving Perfection, Blog Writers, Blogging, Change in the New Year, Changing Your Life in The New Year, Create a Better You, Creating New Habits in The New Year, Developing Better Life Skills, Forging a Better Life, Growing As A Writer, Happy New Year, How To Change Bad Habits, How to Create a Better Life, How to Create a More Enjoyable Life, How to Create a More Productive Life, How to Create a More Satisfying Life, How to Implement New Year's Resolutions, How to Make New Year's Resolutions, Ideas for Creating Permanent Change, Life Skills, Making Change Permanent, Mastering Your Craft, Meaningful Change in The New Year, Modern Approach to New Year's Resolutions, New Blog, New Life Goals, New Year's Resolutions, Prescription For Murder Blog, Skills to Create a Better Life, The Writings of James J. Murray | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Hyphens and Dashes – The Dread of Misuse!

Posted on November 18, 2015 by James J. Murray, Fiction Writer

Hyphens and dashes are two distinctly different punctuation marks and a proper understanding of each will avoid embarrassing mistakes in your writing. Will anyone get MURDERED as a result of using the wrong one in the wrong place? No, but … Continue reading →

Posted in About James J. Murray, About Writing, Accuracy in Editing, Accuracy in Writing, Achieving Perfection, All About Writing, Blog Writers, Blogging, Developing a Writing Career, Developing Better Writing Skills, Developing Writing Skills, Dreaded Misuse of Hyphens and Dashes, Em Dash Use, En Dashes and Em Dashes, Grammar and Punctuation, Hyphens, Hyphens and Dashes, Hyphens and Dashes and Their Misuse, James J. Murray, James J. Murray Blog, Learning the Art of Writing, Mastering Your Craft, New Blog, Obsession with Proper Usage of the English Language, Proper Punctuation in Writing, Proper Use of the Written Word, Punctuation Marks, Punctuation Rules, The Art of Writing, The Proper Use of Hyphens and Dashes, The Writings of James J. Murray, Tools of Fiction Writing, Use of Dashes, Use of Hyphens, Writing Skills, Writing Techniques | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment