The search history of a thriller writer...

[@vespertilia342]

Not in the US, but I have been to churches that were completely empty of people (even staff). But that was usually on the countryside (and our car was the only one in the vicinity and there were no houses anywhere, so we were definitely the only people around). But I think in the cities they probably lock them up at night.

[@MichelleSchustermanAuthor]

That's a great point - location is probably super important here. Thank you!!

[@RivkahSong]

3:04 Hiding from dogs: The key to beating a search dog is to either disperse your scent or cover it up. There are three main ways to disperse your scent and the first is water (esp if it's fairly deep but fast moving) so you can travel up or down a river, swim across a lake, etc. High winds will carry your scent away quickly as well and if it's 30mph or higher most dog handlers won't even try. The third dispersal method is to purposefully spread your scent around in loops, touching everything in the area so that the entire area smells like you, confusing the dog and causing it to not know which trail to follow. For covering up scent you want to use something strong smelling and astringent (if smelling it kind of burns your eyes and nose it's perfect) so spilling jugs of bleach, vinegar, acetone, paint thinner, or concentrated artificial perfumes are perfect to overwhelm the dog's senses and make unable to smell anything else. Combining these methods are going to up your chances of not getting found so a person could run into a building and spread their scent as much as possible while collecting cleaning chemicals and spilling them all over the exit area before doubling back on their own trail and traveling upriver a couple miles to freedom.

[@debrahewitt9011]

Where I'm from there are churches that completely lock up when everyone leaves but others where the sanctuary is open and unlocked 24/7 even though offices etc. are locked up.

[@MichelleSchustermanAuthor]

That's super helpful, thank you!!

[@Jennifer-fl8tv]

Pastor here. Churches typically locked as others said. But a couple notes. One church i worked for had an alarm system (and was the only one broken into funnily enough - stole gas cards and cameras). Also the reason this church had an alarm system is because someone before my time lived in the attic for months before anyone realized and got them help. But my other 3 did not. Rural churches are probably going to be locked, but no alarm and pretty easy to break into. Big city churches are more likely to be open 24/7. I know a few that leave the chapel unlocked but lock up the rest of the building, especially one that do homeless ministry and are okay with people sleeping in them. So depending on the context of your story you could easily have a character hide out in a church.

[@MichelleSchustermanAuthor]

This is SO helpful, Jennifer - thank you! I'm still working on mapping out the route my character takes when she's on the run, but this is going to be in a more rural area...or maybe on the outskirts of a quiet (but more populated) suburban area. Thanks again!!

[@Jennifer-fl8tv]

@@MichelleSchustermanAuthor so the sounds awful but in my experience it's true the richer the people who attend the church, the more likely there will be more security. So if your character is in a rich suburb hiding out may be harder. But poorer areas more people have relationships with those on the margins and aren't afraid of them. So inner city and rural are absolutely easier for someone to hide in. If you go to the suburbs I'd go more working/middle class. But if it's upper middle, upper there will be more security systems unless they are the church known for being welcoming to the homeless. Unless you want some juicy conflict of tripping an alarm and having to deal with that.

[@MichelleSchustermanAuthor]

That makes a lot of sense (sadly). Thank you!!@@Jennifer-fl8tv

[@sistersauthorsfriendsincanada]

I actually work at a church - office administrator. I can’t speak for all churches, but for us the church is locked up if no one is there. I hope that helps. Feel free to ask me any other questions. 😊

[@MichelleSchustermanAuthor]

Amazing! Thanks so much - that's really helpful! :)

[@RivkahSong]

@@MichelleSchustermanAuthor This is especially true of synagogues and catholic churches since there's typically expensive artwork and religious items. If someone isn't on site it's all locked up.

[@MichelleSchustermanAuthor]

Oh great point - thank you!! @@RivkahSong

[@Avionne_Parris]

While I can't speak on US churches, I can say what we do in Trinidad: If the church IS open, there's most likely a sexton present (ideally, churches shouldn't be left open and unattended - on account of there's stuff you can steal). A sexton is like a groundskeeper who maintains the church between Masses / services. They keep the church clean, prepare the altar, care for the plants, fix leaky pipes, etc. And sometimes (but not always) they live near the church for easy access. Churches used to be left open 24/7 prior to 2016 but after a string of late night robberies, they'd ONLY leave it open if the sexton was present. Hope that helps! Have a great weekend, Michelle! Happy Friday the 13th :P Congrats on "Waddle I Do Without You", good luck on submission! Hi Rosa :-)

[@MichelleSchustermanAuthor]

That's SO helpful!! Thank you so much, Avi!!

[@mevia_mastropietro_author]

I think some churches do have a full-time pastor/preacher/reverend/priest around, I'm guessing more Catholic Churches would do this. Churches that offer confessional where people are coming and going with a purpose. My Lutheran church was always locked and nobody was there. It would depend on where the church secretary worked and the hours they worked, if the church was open and if the pastor worked from a church office or from a home office.

[@mevia_mastropietro_author]

If not Catholic with confession, maybe a church does offer prayer time and an open building for coming in to pray. In that case, I think a pastor is around to see if the parishioners need attention and personal care. Sticky fingers might steal what's on a church alter or left in an offering plate or lock box, so I'd imagine, depending on what time period you're writing in, the church may or may not be locked.

[@MichelleSchustermanAuthor]

That's super helpful - thank you so much!! :)

[@mevia_mastropietro_author]

You're welcome!@@MichelleSchustermanAuthor

[@sistersauthorsfriendsincanada]

As for hiding from search and rescue dogs, I’m pretty sure I’ve heard gun powder can confuse the dogs when they’re sniffing someone out, but I heard it on a tv show, so don’t take my (or their) word for it. 😜

[@MichelleSchustermanAuthor]

Ohh that didn't come up when I was searching - thank you!! I'll look into that!

[@sistersauthorsfriendsincanada]

@@MichelleSchustermanAuthor I just remembered it was on an episode of NCIS, so I Googled it - Season 2, episode 3 "Vanished" 😀

[@MichelleSchustermanAuthor]

ah, awesome! thank you!@@sistersauthorsfriendsincanada

[@sistersauthorsfriendsincanada]

My sister actually heard from a university forensics professor that NCIS was the most spot-on with their forensics dialogue, etc. -- so I'd be willing to guess the gun powder factoid is likely correct, but it wouldn't hurt to look it up anyway. LoL @@MichelleSchustermanAuthor

[@starklingspars8956]

Oh, that's great ablout the sales to schools. I never knew that

[@MichelleSchustermanAuthor]

Gotta love the fair! :)

[@shebreathesingold8043]

Congrats on your MG project, Michelle! It sounds so adorable!

[@MichelleSchustermanAuthor]

That's a fantastic idea!! Thanks so much - for the suggestion, and the kind words about my projects! I might give that a shot this week. (I think I've lost track of a lot of them too, lol...I'm not nearly as organized as a lot of authortubers when it comes to this kind of thing!)

[@AuthorJCCarpenter]

I know this answer to the church question is super late and you probably already have an answer, but I know that in Catholic churches there is ALWAYS someone there because they typically will have a rectory attached to the church in which the nuns and priests stay. So because there is typically always someone there in a Catholic church the doors are usually always open. Also, because in a Catholic church they like to leave the doors of the church open in case someone wants to come in a pray alone or go to confessional (where there is usually a priest there). In a regular Christian, Baptists, church etc. They usually are closed up on Saturdays unless they have an event and Sunday afternoons after services are over. And if they aren't there usually you can't get in.

[@pawz3016]

I know search dogs sometimes lose the trail when the surface changes-- i.e. from pavement to dirt.

[@MichelleSchustermanAuthor]

Ooh that's interesting - thank you!!

[@EmmaBennetAuthor]

I love the cover to your new book!

[@MichelleSchustermanAuthor]

Thank you!! :)

[@nick.b.writes]

Got my pre-ordered copy of Waddle I Do Without You yesterday! Looking forward to reading soon :)

[@MichelleSchustermanAuthor]

Wow, thanks so much, Nick!! I really appreciate that!! :)

[@JoeyPaulOnline]

My search history is dodgy 😅 I shall be joining you on the live on the 18th so looking forward to it!

[@MichelleSchustermanAuthor]

I was so excited when Lisa said you were coming on! Can't wait! :)

[@jazzminewillis4724]

Thanks!

[@MichelleSchustermanAuthor]

Thanks so much, Jazzmine!! :)

[@kanashiiookami6537]

Yay, congrats on the pre-order sales! Question though, does it count for library orders as well? (Specifically library patrons taking out a book rather than just the library's initial purchase. Google is wishy-washy whether those help authors. Some things saying you get a few cents per borrow, others saying it only counts when the book needs to be replaced, others saying it only counts toward ebook downloads. So I'm unsure.) As for the writing bit, I had the same question, basing a plot point in my story to having the church open on a weekday because of a daycare set up going on. (Because I remember relatives working for one of those free church daycares on Wednesdays and making me help out as a kid when we'd visit.) Were it not for that ancient memory, I'd be at a loss because Google was zero help and I don't have anyone to ask for this. (or other specific research topics. So my search history is really random and "wtf?!". Lol.) Anyway, I hope your writing is going well and that your weekend will be amazing. Enjoy the beautiful Fall weather!

[@MichelleSchustermanAuthor]

That's a great question! It's actually really unclear on royalty statements, but library sales (ie libraries purchasing copies) count as sales, but the number of borrows doesn't matter as far as print goes. At least, that's my understanding. And honestly, I'm not sure about ebooks! I've never seen anything on my statements to indicate that I'm getting anything based on how many times an ebook has been borrowed. How funny that we've been trying to Google the same thing! There have been some helpful comments here already. :) Hope your weekend is great too, K!