Cover Me

By Jeri Westerson


It’s something most authors have no control over. Yeah, we write the books, create the characters and plots, but we are not trusted to give input about what our covers should look like.

And perhaps, in some instances, that’s a good thing. Not everyone’s visual. But what about covers? Do they sell books? And what about mine, since, I mean let’s face it, that’s why we’re here?

My first published novel was VEIL OF LIES seen here as a hardcover. I had no idea what St. Martin’s art department was going to come up with. Here was a new medieval mystery, a “Medieval Noir,” so it was sort of a different take from the average medieval mystery. Those covers ran the gambit from stained glass windows, to old drawings of knights, to tapestry-like paintings. Historical novels usually employed costumed models in lush backdrops. So it could have been anything, and since I am a visual person (I was a graphic artist for fifteen or so years) I anxiously awaited what they would come up with. I knew for myself that book covers are the first thing that get my attention in a bookstore. So I was hoping for something eye-catching…in a good way.

The initial image my editor presented is the one that ended up on the hardcover. Basically, they ran out of time. He never really liked it but it was okay by me because it looked rather literary and it was, after all, my first freakin’ book cover! Though my first reaction was “Why a key?” My editor replied, “It’s a locked room mystery.” Oops. I’d forgotten that.

Anyway, after a while it did seem a bit literal. A key, a folded veil, drops of blood. Nice, classy, but did it really say “Medieval Noir?” I had in mind more of a cover like my friend Kat Richardson had; a single character on a shadowy background where you can sort of tell what city they’re in. The only thing iconic to London of the time period was the Tower of London, but you can’t have that in every shot.

As luck would have it, when it was time for VEIL to go to paperback, the paperback division of Minotaur Books absolutely hated the hardcover art. In fact, they weren’t going to spend the money on the paperback if Minotaur did not change it and pronto.

Suddenly, I was being asked for ideas, and the same guy who did Kat’s books was being looked at. I might have given a girly squeal at one point. Crispin Guest, my brooding ex-knight turned detective, is the driving force in the novels, a sort of medieval Sam Spade, and so I really wanted that single figure in a shadowy background. The fellow who did Kat’s covers was overbooked but I was given links to other artists they were considering who did similar work, artists who used model photos that are then manipulated in PhotoShop. A model was chosen for Crispin and I was shown the head shots of him. Now we were getting somewhere!

I was worried about the costume because so many historical covers get the era wrong. After all, it’s the author who does all the research, but the artist just seems to have a vague idea of “medieval” or “Renaissance.” Fortunately, someone did their homework, and Crispin is in the proper clothes. Even the right colors! I couldn’t have asked for a better job.

With different backgrounds and different moody colors (I particularly liked SERPENT IN THE THORNS with its sepia tones) “Medieval Noir” came to life.

They only get better and better. We get a rather dramatic flourish of cloak and brandishing of dagger on the VEIL OF LIES trade paperback, a preoccupied Crispin in sepia on a dark and lonely street on SERPENT IN THE THORNS, and a pensive and anxious Crispin by moonlight—a sort of Batman watching over Gotham shot—on the newest, THE DEMON’S PARCHMENT (which is apt in this one, because there is a mysterious creature stalking the streets of London). I can’t wait to see what they’ll come up with for next year’s installment, TROUBLED BONES. They took a boatload of shots of this model in costume so there is a good supply for many Crispin novels to come. (And no, I do not bring him with me when I do book signings or talks. Sorry, folks. All I know is that his name is Wes and he probably lives in Oregon.)

I also credit these covers with my surprising number of young male readers. Not only is it cinematic (I get asked time and again when the movie is coming out. I wish!) but it also has a sort of fantasy feel and a video game vibe. I suppose guys pick up the books because of the cover first, perhaps thinking of a video tie-in and then plunk down the money after reading a page or two.

I am completely enamored of these covers. Oh I know that there are folks out there who will say “That’s not how I pictured Crispin.” And to tell you the truth, it’s not exactly how I pictured him either. But it’s darned close.

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Jeri gets to picture Crispin all time when she writes her “Medieval Noir” series. *sigh* You can read a chapter of her latest, THE DEMON’S PARCHMENT, on her website www.JeriWesterson.com.

More Medieval Forensics: Part Two

Today we have guest blogger, Jeri Westerson. Welcome back, Jeri!

More Medieval Forensics: Part Two

by Jeri Westerson 


On another blog on my blog tour, I discussed the Coroner and the First Finder of a crime and how it’s all about intent whether it’s murder or not (and you can catch the Part One and other guest blog posts at www.JeriWesterson.com)

In a medieval mystery, forensic science was few and far between. It takes clues and a detective who is wily enough to understand them. Without a police force, without the help of scientific procedure, a detective was left with what he could observe.

In murder, it still might be important to derive at a time of death. Though they didn’t have the tools we have today, there were still some obvious clues, especially to someone like Crispin Guest, my ex-knight turned detective, who had been a fighting man and had his fair share of observing bodies after a battle.

Rigor mortis—literally, “death stiffness,” happens very methodically—from the face downward about 2 hours after death. It takes another 8-12 hours for the body to become completely stiff and fixed into position. Fixed for another 18 hours is called the Rigid State. Then it reverses in the same order it appeared for another 12 hours—(Flaccid state). What is rigor? When the blood stops flowing from the heart, the natural bacteria in the body can no longer be fought off and they go to town, creating chemical reactions that prevent the muscles from contracting, which makes the body stiff. Heat quickens the process and cold slows it.

The Greeks and Egyptians had their own system: Warm and not stiff: Not dead more than a couple hours. Warm and stiff: Dead between a couple hours and a half day. Cold and stiff: Dead between a half day and two days. Cold and not stiff: Dead more than two days.

Livor mortis or lividity or post mortem hypostasis (literally “after death state”) is the state of being blue, or colored blue. What is this? Blood stops flowing and pools in the vessels in the lowest point due to gravity. Wherever the body is in contact with, say, a floor, the skin becomes pale ringed by lividity. It shows up 30 minutes to a couple of hours and stays fixed after 8 hours. The detective would know if a body had been moved if lividity had set in on the wrong part of the body.

Fingerprints? This was the science of the 19th century, 500 years after Crispin’s time.
Or was it?

In Nova Scotia, there are cave drawings of a hand with all the ridges and lines associated with palm creases and fingerprints, a drawing 1200 years old.

In ancient Babylon, thumb impressions in clay were used for business transactions.

In China, thumbprints were used on clay seals for the same purpose.

In fourteenth century Persia, some official documents show finger impressions, and a physician of the time was recorded to observe that no two fingerprints were alike.

It wasn’t until 1892 in Argentina, that a murder was solved by the use of a bloody fingerprint and matching them to the murderer. The idea was finally taking hold that fingerprints were individual.

But since there was no medieval fingerprinting, that wouldn’t help my detective at all.
How about the use of insects to solve crimes—forensic etymology? We have an example in at least one celebrated instance.

The earliest account of someone using insects to solve a murder comes from thirteenth century China in the Hsi Duan Yu or The Washing Away of Wrongs, a collection of anecdotes and observations on death and decomposition. Here’s the account in a nutshell: A local peasant in a Chinese village was found murdered, hacked to death by a hand sickle, something used to harvest grain. The local magistrate suspected that he was done in by another farmer. He called all the farmers together in the town square and had them present their sickles, laying them on the ground in the hot sun. As they waited anxiously for the magistrate to continue, blow flies started to gather. Strangely, they only seemed to land on one of the sickles. Even though the sickle was cleaned, the flies were attracted to the remaining blood and soft tissue evident only to them on the metal blade. Very clever and very effective. The man who owned the sickle then confessed and was hauled away for murder.

What about blood samples? Blood wasn't “typed” until 1901. But observing the blood—whether it runs and how it splatters—might offer my medieval detective clues.

Since he was a former knight, a fighting man, acquainted with battles and their aftermath, he might recognize the signs of clotting without really knowing the science behind it. It takes 3-15 minutes for blood to clot. If it’s still liquid, the murder is fresh by a few minutes. If the blood is shiny or gelatinous, then the murder occurred less than an hour earlier. If there is clot and serum, then many hours have passed.

Blood spatter is a whole science unto itself (ever watch Dexter?) What is the origin of the bloodstains? Is it oozing, gushing, dripping from a person or a weapon? What type of weapon could it be? The spatter shows the position of the assailant to the victim. The number of blows might be determined by this spatter as well as the truthfulness of witnesses. For instance, if a witness says that the victim was sitting, the blood spatter might very well show he was standing. Is the witness lying? Crispin might extrapolate that information from observing the spatter. 

Poisons were readily available in the medieval period and the information on them—the symptoms and possible treatments—were so detailed and accurate that they differ little from the litany of toxicology today. Poisons were used to kill (including the use of insecticides, even then) and to use as curatives. Think Botox. A little helps. A lot kills.

Petri de Abano wrote De Remedis Venenorum in the 1300's and listed the following as poisons (whether they were or not—folk tales went a long way in those days and some in these days, too): mercury, gypsum, copper, iron, rust, magnetite, lapis lazuli, arsenic sublimate, litharge or lead, realgar (a type of arsenic),  cucumber (I suppose you could choke them with it), usnea (a lichen), coriander, hellebore, mezereon (a woodland shrub), fool's parsley (water cress), bryony (a vine), nux vomica (seeds from a tree that contain strychnine), colocynth (bitter apple, a gourd), laurel berries, cicuta or hemlock, serpentary also called snake-root, cantharides or Spanish fly, and menstrual blood (I suppose getting it would be the dangerous part).

In the end, it’s really up to the cleverness of the detective to ferret out whodunit. Even given all the forensic help in the world, I don’t think there’s anything more satisfying then having one’s detective know in his gut who the guilty party is.

For further reading, may I suggest Clues! A History of Forensic Detection by Colin Wilson, The Science of Sherlock Holmes by E.J. Wagner, and Forensics for Dummies by D.P. Lyle.

To read more on medieval forensics, please follow my blog tour, the schedule of which can be found on my website www.JeriWesterson.com. SERPENT IN THE THORNS, the newest Crispin Guest Medieval Noir, will be in bookstores September 29th.

Hands-On Research

Working Stiffs welcomes guest blogger Jeri Westerson today. Jeri tells us about some very, um, interesting research she did in her own backyard!

Hands-On Research

by Jeri Westerson

There's nothing like a little hands on investigating. For the most part, I do my research for my medieval mystery, VEIL OF LIES, in books and in the papers I can dig up in archives. But sometimes this just won't do.

I am very interested in medieval weapons. I own a few at home. Some are fairly authentic and some not so much. It's just fun to have them around. For instance, I own a sword. This is a pretty authentic piece in terms of weight and length. I doubt it was forged (not for what I paid for it), but more likely cut out of a piece of steel and then finished, polished, and sharpened by hand. A sword is a wonderful thing. It speaks of the Middle Ages to me, for all it represents: knighthood, chivalry, the movement of troops across Europe, borders changing, religion, class levels in society. It's only about 40 inches long and weighs three pounds, and yet this single object has moved mountains and populations.

I also own a small battleaxe. It's about the size of a hammer and can do some damage if you sliced someone over the head or across their neck. Likewise the flail I own. It is a metal ball with spikes hooked to a chain which in turn is fastened to a wooden handle. Swing that around and smite someone in the face with it and they stay smote.

I also have a dagger. A small, but very sharp dagger. Too small to use in a sword fight, it would be for closer association. Perhaps a sinister woman using it to kill her unfaithful lover.

All great stuff. And there would be plenty of opportunity for my villains to use such instruments to dispatch their victims. But then I began to wonder, with my sharpened objects, what it would be like to actually stab someone. Oddly enough, I couldn't get any volunteers for this. So I went to Costco.

Now it's not easy picking out your victim, although it's a little easier when you look for him in the meat section. I got myself the biggest slab of beef I could get. I couldn't get one with ribs, so I bought those separately and planned to make my own Frankenstein's monster.

I chose my victim who was already conveniently encased in plastic and hauled him home. I wanted ribs so I could get a sense of what it felt like for the steel blade to glance off bone and I also wanted to see what it would be like to take my sword to it.

When I brought it home, my victim's body was already prone, lying there innocently on the butcher block. How to attack it properly? There was no help for it. I needed the fellow to be upright and the only way to do this was to take him outside and nail him to the wooden post of my son's swing set.

I first must explain that my son wasn't home. No one was home but me and my meat victim. I only hoped that the neighbors weren't peering out of their windows into my yard when I decided to get all CSI out there.

First thing I did was attack it with the dagger. It is so sharp a blade it went in cleanly. I tried the fattier parts because at this point, we aren't going through skin, so I was trying to mimic as closely as I could what my characters might be experiencing. Of course, Sir Loin of Beef was not struggling, but that was okay. I could extrapolate the rest. Next I wanted to feel the blade against the bone. The ribs were nailed up behind the slab. I lunged. Very hard. Lots of spine chilling scraping there. Yes, very tough if you had a small blade like this and managed to catch a rib.

After stabbing it a few more times at a few more angles, it was time for the sword!

Now I had used the sword before to slice off the scalps of pumpkins. You see, the blade isn't sharp at all and I thought it best to keep it that way with the sword hanging on the wall in the living room. When my son was a teenager and had his friends over the thing was a boy magnet, to be sure. I never thought I would hear myself say, in my best Mom voice, "A sword is not a toy!" But there you have it. So I wanted to see what kind of power it took to use a dull blade to lop off the scalps of something head-like, even though our pumpkins didn't have skulls inside of them (but that would be way cool if they did!) and I also wanted to get the feel of really swinging the thing (because broadswords are not rapiers or foils. You generally do not use them for stabbing. You used them for chopping and swinging). It didn't take much to do it to the pumpkins. It was pretty easy, in fact, even with a dull blade.

But now it was time for Sir Beef.

I cocked back the sword one-handed and gave it a good whack. Right through the bone on the first go and into the wooden post. Wow. That was fun. Another! Yup. This guy was dead. Really dead. Really most sincerely dead.

It was a good day.

What happened to my hapless victim after I hosed off the post? I had to hide the body, after all.

So we ate him.

Jeri Westerson grew up on the mean streets of South Central Los Angeles and so always had a thing for noir. She also always had a thing for the middle ages. It was a natural fit. She tried her hand at acting but real life auditions were too brutal. She turned her attention to her other interest of art and design and became a successful graphic artist in L.A. and Pasadena in the mid '80s and early '90s. After becoming a mom, she directed her passion again to writing and embarked on the long, slow goal of publishing her growing body of historical fiction. But when she switched to writing historical mystery, she found success. Veil of Lies; A Medieval Noir is her debut novel. Jeri has had various careers in the meantime: a luggage salesperson, winetasting host and tour guide for a winery, choir director, travel insurance agent, secretary, ceramic studio manager, and journalist.

She is married to a commercial photographer, has a son in college, and herds two cats and a tortoise at her home in southern California.