When fiction becomes reality

By: Joelle Charbonneau

I’m sad.  My heart aches as I’m certain yours does.  Here at Do Some Damage we are fans of fictional crime.  Fans of heroes and villains.  We write stories that often have violence at the core.  But when fiction becomes reality, it is time to step back, pause and reflect.

As I’m sure you are away, this weekend was the opening of the new Batman movie.  I’m a huge comic book movie fan and while I doubt my crowded personal life will allow me time to see it in the theaters, I still anticipated the release of the movie.  I smiled as I watch Twitter and Facebooks posts leading up to the big day.  I was curious if opinions I respected would believe the movie to be as strong as its predecessors and watched for the commentary.

Instead, I found tragedy.

A man wearing a gas mask threw tear gas into a packed theater then opened fire.  12 dead.  11 critically wounded.  Dozens physically injured.  The shooter has been apprehended, although I doubt anyone will ever understand why he made the choice to kill.  The police that went to his home found trip wires and explosive devices.  Handmade grenades.  Accelerants designed to kill whoever entered and potentially destroy the entire building and its residents.  This sounds like the plot to a book or a movie.

But it’s all too terribly real.

This is not a book where I root for the bad guy to be brought low.  It isn’t a movie where the audience cheers when the hero triumphs. 

Instead, there is only sadness, confusion and heartbreak.

I don’t know if the people that survived the shooting will ever recover from the terror they must have felt.  No matter how many psychiatrists weigh in, we will never know the reasons for this unthinkable act that stole the lives of so many.  All we can do is pray for the families of those who were lost, show our support to those that survived and in the sadness cling to the hope that this senseless taking of lives will never happen again.

To the people of Aurora, Colorado—my thoughts and prayers are with you all.  My you find peace in the days and months ahead.