Using Obscure Facts in Fiction

Did you know that “If you travel with a lot of cash [governments] just seize it and assume it is illegal. This is commonly called Policing for Profit. They have transformed the drug laws of money laundering into tax evasion claiming anyone with a foreign account not reporting that money is engaged in money laundering and they get to confiscate everything you have and you go to jail for up to 25 years,” says Martin Armstrong, economist.

In my upcoming novel Dead with Envy, similar obscure money laws play an important part in the story.

As an author, I found it fun to do the research because what I discovered was new to me. As a reader, I am equally fascinated when the writer teaches me something I didn’t know.

 

Writing About Covert Operations

When writing spy thrillers, or other stories about covert operations, one should be factual. This isn’t difficult for the author who has served in the military special forces or other intelligence agencies. Experience teaches these authors how things work in the real world of covert operations.

I stumbled upon an abbreviated video from the website of Catherine Austin Fitts, who worked in government under President George H. W. Bush. The speaker on the video is discussing the pattern of a covert operation. Who are the players? What role do they serve?

If you want to write in the spy thriller genre, and do not have a background that gives you an insider’s perspective, then listen to this video. It’s educational. And short!

http://solari.com/blog/a-taste-of-the-solari-report/