Here is the December newsletter and more:

NEWSLETTER
December 2019

THANK YOU FOR A FANTASTIC YEAR!

2019 has been a busy year at Think Forensic, below are some of the things which have been keeping us busy.

'WELLCOME' TO FORENSICS

In conjunction with the Workers Education and Wellcome Trust we were commissioned to design and deliver our 'Wellcome' to Forensics programme. Aimed at members of the public each programme featured six half day sessions and included not only crime scene techniques and forensics but also interview techniques, criminology, archaeology, and profiling. We were able to provide 4 events based at different venues including Scunthorpe, Leicester, London and our own crime centre in Huddersfield. No prior knowledge or educational standard was required and the workshops were quickly fully subscribed with delegated enrolling from very diverse backgrounds. The workshops were pronounced a great hit with everyone and we thoroughly enjoyed delivering them. We hope to secure funding to be able to continue to deliver the programme in 2020. If you are interested in attending please keep an eye on either our website, Twitter or Facebook pages.

EXPERIENCE DAYS

We have developed and refined our Digging Deeper into Forensics event for members of the public. Digging Deeper into Forensics is meant as a follow on to our CSI Experience, however, we have designed it in such a way that it is not essential to have been to the CSI Experience first. Digging Deeper into Forensics is especially fun as we “dig” out Boris, our blood spatter head, to create blood spatter patterns. So if you have a lot of tension you would like rid of then Digging Deeper into Forensics may be the place to do it. Further details about the sessions are available here. We are currently working on a new adult experience “Tracing the Truth” which will be launched on Saturday 13th June 2020. If you are interested in this workshop let us know and we will send you details when we have finalised things.

As many of you know for some time now, we have made and manufactured our own kits for use in schools. This year we have expanded our range to cater for individuals. These kits make ideal Christmas presents and include the following:

Adult Fingerptint Kit for the would be super sleuths in your life
Children's Crime Busters Detective Kit
Children's Spy Kit
Pet Pawprint Casting Kit

You can find more details about our kits here.

SCHOOL WORKSHOPS

Our schools workshops have seen the development of Diddy Detectives After School Club.

This has been specifically designed for Key Stage 1 students. This last term has seen children as young as four attending. The club takes place over six weeks and is based on a mystery which the children solve. It is closely linked to the school curriculum and covers topics such as hygiene, animal tracks, teeth, X-rays, the human body, senses, microscopy, chromatography, colours, sorting, measuring, team working and the list goes on...

AUTHORS WORKSHOPS

Following on from Harrogate Crime Writing and Dublin Murder One Festivals we have helped several of our author friends with technical questions around their plots and characters and we are now eagerly awaiting their new books. In addition we have joined forces with Vanessa Fox O’Loughlin (author Sam Blake). Vanessa’s books include the Cat Connolly trilogy, “Little Bones”, “In Deep Water” and “No Turning Back”. She is due to release her new book, “Keep Your Eyes on Me” in January 2020. In conjunction with Vanessa we are planning a new Authors Workshop which is scheduled for May 2020, but we will update you soon.

THIS SEASON'S MYTH BUSTER

SANTA & FORENSICS

Bari is an Italian port city on the Adriatic Sea, it is also the site of the Basilica di San Nicola and the home of some of the remains of St Nicholas. Although the remains are entombed in Italy the saint was of Turkish decent and lived his life in Turkey, it was only after his death that the bones were removed and taken to Italy.
In 1953 the saint’s remains were exhumed to facilitate restoration work at the church. In 1957 the Italian anatomist Professor Luigi Martino conducted a complete analysis of the saint’s bones. From X-rays and measurements of the bones the professor concluded they represented a male who was over 70 years old, 5’4” tall, of slender to average build. The skull showed the Saint had a short face with wide cheek bones, broad forehead and slightly protruding chin. Consistent with his age St Nicholas suffered from chronic arthritis of the pelvis and spine.

Numerous analysis and reconstructions of the bones have been conducted over the years, the most recent being in 2014 by Forensic Anthropologist Caroline Wilkinson of Liverpool John Moores University. Professor Wilkinson used anatomical knowledge, data around the tissue depth of men from Turkey and the latest computer generated imagery to produce the likeness below. It’s Santa ...but not as we know him! Merry Christmas to you and your loved ones from everyone at Think Forensic.

Think Forensic Ltd
Lodge Street
Skelmanthorpe

Huddersfield

HD8 9DR
hello@thinkforensic.co.uk

AUTHORS' NEWSLETTER

AUTUMN 2019

STOP PRESS!

We are pleased and extremely proud to announce our new author in residence is best selling crime writer Vanessa Fox O’Loughlin. Vanessa writes under the pseudonym Sam Blake and her books include the Cat Connolly trilogy, Little Bones, In Deep Water and No Turning Back. She is due to release her new book, Keep Your Eyes on Me in January 2020.

Vanessa is the founder of the award winning writing resources website, www.writing.ie, and of The Inkwell Group Publishing Consultancy. She is Ireland’s leading literary scout and currently advises and assists writers at all stages in their career, including many award winning and bestselling authors. She is also responsible for Irelands International Crime Writing Festival “Murder One” and many other exhibitions and events.

As well as providing information and expertise through our own usual channels we will be working alongside Vanessa in providing advice on crime investigation techniques, forensic and police procedures to authors via her publishing consultancy. Together we are planning to hold several authors workshops throughout 2020. So watch this space as we will be announcing more details shortly.

Vanessa had put together some tips around creating tension in your writing, below is an extract but the complete document can be viewed by clicking here.

“How do crime writers create that all important edge of the seat page turning story? Great characters are vital, a great plot too, but that’s not enough, it’s how that story is delivered that holds the reader. Here are some key techniques – next time you read a crime novel look out for them;

The hook – starting right as the action begins. This is vital to building tension and applies to every chapter as well as that crucial first one. Getting your reader right into the middle of a scene as fast as possible keeps them engrossed. In today’s fast paced environment of internet and TV no-one has the patience to smell the roses and discuss the relative merits of tea roses over climbers if there’s a body lying in the middle of the rose bed.
Foreshadowing is a vital weapon in the crime writer’s arsenal. Dripping detail essential to the plot builds a solid and convincing narrative and when the end comes the reader has an ‘oh yes’ moment when they realise the clues where there all along. Equally the crime fiction reader is sharp and experienced in the genre and has an expectation that the writer will deliver - as playwright and short story writer Checkov said, "If in the first act you have hung a pistol on the wall, then in the following one it should be fired. Otherwise don't put it there." For me, not knowing the answer to the key question in Little Bones meant that I had to trust the characters to guide me, trust that they had left the answers woven in to the threads of their appearances, and thankfully they had. When I went back and re-read it, I could see the markers.
Short, clipped no nonsense sentences move the reader along fast when you need the pace to increase - next time your read Lee Child just look at his sentence structure. Pace and tension of intrinsically linked. When Cathy’s is in the gym and working through a case in her mind, her sentences can be as staccato as her punches.
Short focused chapters do the same thing, creating that sense of forward movement - what does the reader need to know in this chapter that is crucial to moving the plot forward and what is the cleanest way to deliver that? In Little Bones some of the chapters are only 1000 words long providing a window on one of the intertwined subplots without distracting you from the main story. Chapters of differing length speed up and slow down the reader at crucial moments. “

THIS SEASON'S MYTH BUSTER

We are often asked if bleach can remove traces of blood at crime scenes. Below is a very short answer that just touches the surface.
There are two kinds of bleach that are generally found within the home. Firstly there are bleaches that are primarily chlorine (containing sodium hypochlorite) and secondly there are oxygen bleaches which were developed to be safely used as detergents on coloured clothing.
Chemical blood tests react to the haemoglobin in blood. Chlorine bleaches can remove a blood-stain to the naked eye, but chemical applications such as luminol or phenolphthalein can still show that haemoglobin is present. In fact, even if a criminal washed a bloodstained item of clothing 10 times, the chemical tests could still reveal blood.
If an area is cleaned using an oxygen bleach, haemoglobin is completely removed and can't be detected using the chemical tests. However because the bleach is not as potent there may still be visible staining which in turn would lead to further questions. While Oxygen bleach does remove a great deal of evidence in exposed areas, areas which are protected such as behind skirting boards, between floorboards or the seams of clothing, are a totally different matter; it is far more challenging for a criminal to remove evidence from these areas…

OUR AUTHORS SERVICE

Established and published authors have often built up a network of experts they can consult to ensure authenticity in their plots and investigations. When an author first sets out these contacts may not be available and whilst the internet is a great resource it isn’t totally reliable. We therefore offer the services of our experts who between them have amassed a massive bank of knowledge.
To date this year we have been able to help a significant number of both new and established authors with technical questions around plots and investigation techniques.
Below are just some of the experts we have within Think Forensic

Police officers, detectives, interview specialists, senior officers, crash investigators, fire investigators, surveillance specialists, close protection, fire officers, video operatives, crime scene photographers.
Forensic experts including specialisms in DNA, anthropology, blood spatter, chemistry, archaeology.
Experts in criminology, geographical profiling, computer analysis and cyber security.

All our experts have experience of working in the field, some have retired whilst others are still operational, we can therefore offer guidance not just around techniques and procedures but also the emotional impact that incidents and case work can have.
Whilst we do charge for these services we offer free access for a limited time following attendance on one of our authors events. So if you need help please get in touch via any of the methods below.