Deadly Advice: Five Survival Tips That Will Kill Your Characters

Welcome to another thrilling episode of Writing Rural With Alley! In this episode we debunk common survival myths that could spell doom for your fictional characters.

Join us as we explore five dangerous survival tips:

1. All Berries Are Safe to Eat- Discover the dangers of trusting every berry you come across.
2. You Can Drink Seawater to Survive- Learn why this can lead to a quicker demise.
3. Climb a Tree to Escape Wild Animals- Uncover the truths about tree-climbing as a survival tactic.
4. You Can Eat Anything if You Cook It Long Enough- Understand why this could be a fatal mistake.
5. Relying on Your Instincts- Debate the risks of trusting instincts in survival situations.

We'll also delve into our segment "What Could Possibly Go Wrong?" where we discuss various ways these myths can go awry in your story. Perfect for fiction writers aiming to add more realism and tension to their narratives!

Keywords: fiction writing, survival tips, character development, writing tips, story ideas, fiction podcast, writing podcast, survival myths, writing realism

Transcript

Does your character know what berries are safe to eat? How can they test the safety of eating an unfamiliar plant? What animals might charge your character up a tree and follow them up the tree? What does moonshining have to do with any of this? Learn about all of this and more in today’s episode. 

Welcome to Writing Rural with Alley, the fiction writer’s weekly inspiration station for rural life and lifestyles, from historical to post-apocalyptic, helping you bring your rural stories to life! I’m Alley, and this is episode #98, 5 Survival Tips That Will Kill Your Character. Stick around to the end to find out all the ways things could possibly go wrong in your story. Now, let’s get into this.

Before we get into today’s episode, let me say that I am in no way, shape, form, or fashion a medical anything. This is not medical advice, normal advice, or anything in real life. This is for the purpose of fiction writing and nothing else. Now, on to the show. 

There are all kinds of survival myths and misunderstandings, well-intended but very wrong advice, and sometimes outright lies. This is the third in a five-part series that will help you write realistic survival scenarios or at least let your characters give good advice. Or argue if the advice is bad. That could be fun, too. So, without further ado…

1) All berries are edible/safe to eat 

Let’s start by saying that by eating anything, your character isn’t 100% sure about, risks of killing them. In reality, the vast majority of berries, or things that look like berries, are poisonous to humans. I don’t care that the dog ate them, Great Uncle Joe said they were good, or the fence post had a sign. Many are dangerous or even deadly to humans. 

A quick Google search says that there are over 400 types of berry plants in the world. 90% of these are edible, and the other 10% are toxic. That’s all well and good, but many have look-alike plants that have toxic berries, or worse, a plant that doesn’t have berries, but berry look-alike’s. Some have up to a dozen look alike plants. These copycats are not considered real berries and are almost always toxic. The scary part is that the average person wouldn’t know the difference between them. In fact, if you dropped me in the jungle, I wouldn’t be able to tell you what plant is what. Characters are likely to only know local berries, and look alikes. If they go somewhere new, they will have to learn. Hopefully, not the hard way. 

Let’s take a quick moment to go over the signs and symptoms that your character has injected a toxic berry. Just remember, this is a general list, and if you state a specific plant, you’ll need to see if they have any other symptoms. 

These symptoms include, but are not limited to: 

* Nausea

* Vomiting

* Diarrhea

* Abdominal cramping and pain

* Dizziness

* Difficulty breathing

* Rash or red blotches 

* Headache

* Heart Palpitations, both irregular and rapid 

* Weakness 

* Fatigue

* Lethargic 

* Seizures (in extreme cases) 

In modern times, at least here in the USA, your character would either call 911, get them to the hospital, or in a case that seems minor, they could call poison control. Poison control is a national number you can call to learn what to do to treat anything that was injested that could be toxic. I learn about it when I was little and tried to eat a battery. I’m sure my parents about had a heart attack because as a parent, I would have! 

Now there is a way that survivalists teach to check plants to see if they are safe to eat. First, separate the parts of the plant they wish to test. The parts are leaves, stems, roots, flowers, seeds, and fruit. Then pick a part, and stick with only that while testing. The other parts can be tested after this part is done. For this example, we will say they picked leaves. 

The first thing they will do is rub the leaves on the wrist or arm, and wait a few minutes to see if there is a reaction. If the skin itches, tingles, goes numb, or develops a rash, the leaves are not safe to consume. 

If they pass that test, the next part is to (if possible) boil them until cooked. Many plants are poisonous to humans when raw, and cooking will also make it easier to digest the plant. If this is not possible, that’s ok. Your character can skip this one if they have to. 

The next step is to hold the leaf inside the lips for a few minutes. Then wait for a full 15 minutes. If there is any reaction, it is not safe and should be discarded. If there is no reaction, go to the next step.

This is to take a small bite and chew it. No, don’t let them swallow it yet. They will be checking for the flavor. If it is bitter or soapy, spit it out, and go no further. Those are signs it is poisonous. 

Should it pass all of those, they can swallow the small bite. Then they wait. I know it’s crazy, but they will wait a full 8 hours! Why eight? Because some plants take that long to start showing a reaction to them. This can be a hard time for a starving character, but survival must be their number one priority. 

If at the end of eight hours, there is no reaction, the leaves are good to eat. I’m sure your character will be thrilled to have food by that time. Now, they can try the next part of the plant. Although, if it was me, I would find the same plant and get a fresh part to try the next part of the plant, but that’s just me. 

2) You can drink seawater to survive

Let me clarify that when I say seawater, I am talking about water in the ocean. I get why someone who doesn’t know better would believe this, however this is a horrible idea, especially in a survival situation.

The most obvious reason is that it is salt water. The average level of salt in seawater is 3.5%, but it varies around the world. Drinking salt can lead to several issues in the human body. 

You see, salt has to be filtered out of the body by the kidneys. In order for the kidneys to filter out the salt, it needs water. This makes a person feel thirsty. If your character is drinking seawater (AKA salt water), they are putting more salt in that needs to be filtered out. This puts a heavy strain on the kidneys. 

To top that off, the body will start expelling more water in an effort to get the salt out. This can quickly lead to losing more fluid than a person is taking in, and that causes dehydration. Being dehydrated in a survival situation can have a fatal outcome, or will at least be miserable for your character. 

A few signs and symptoms of dehydration are: 

* Excessive thirst 

* Dry mouth

* Dark urine

* Fatigue

* Dizziness

* Headache

* Dry skin

* Decreased or even no sweat

* Rapid heart rate

* Sunken eyes

* Confusion

* Lethargic 

Another issue that arises with drinking seawater is that the high salt content can cause hypertension in even healthy adults or children. Hypertension is the fancy doctor’s term for high blood pressure. We all know how that can kill middle-aged men, but according to my doctor, it is also the number one silent killer of women in their 30s, 40s, and 50s.

Many times, there are no signs or symptoms a person is dealing with high blood pressure, but other times, there are. Here are a few of the common signs of high blood pressure. 

* Headaches that are severe or persistent

* Dizziness

* Blurring vision 

* Seeing spots, or “floaters” 

* Shortness of breath

* Chest pains

* Nose bleeds

* Flushed or red cheeks or face 

Yes, I realize some of those symptoms are the same as being dehydrated. This could lead to misunderstandings about what problem they are suffering from. However, since they are drinking seawater, it is possible they are dealing with both issues at the same time. 

There are also parasites living in the ocean that can infect your character if they drink water that contains them. These can be things that can take years to affect a person, or can be more deadly things like brain-eating amoebas. Ok, I know they have a technical name, but I can’t pronounce it! 

In good news, these parasites can be killed if your character boils the water. 

This brings us to other issues: debris and chemicals. Chemicals can’t be boiled out of water, but can be filtered out with a survival filter, or modern filtration, designed to do so. As for debris, your characters might have to filter this out by pouring it through a shirt or other filter they make. 

So, how can your characters make seawater safe to drink? Good question! This can be done by filtering debris and chemicals, then distilling the water. Distilling means they boil the water to make steam. The steam is captured and rapidly cooled, so the water droplets come together and make their way into a separate container. The boiling both kills any parasites or bacteria, and will while the water will turn into steam, the salt will not. This will give your character fresh water. 

Yes, your character can make stills out of all kinds of things, including plastic bags, in a survival situation. That said, the most famous form here in the USA is the moonshine still. If you want to have your characters make a survival still, you can find many different kinds online. 

3) You can climb a tree to escape wild animals 

I remember hearing this for the first time after I switched schools at a young age, and the kids were city kids. When I pointed out that bears could climb trees, well, let’s say there was a heated argument. Yes, a lot of people are under the impression that only monkeys and squirrels climb trees. That’s not true. 

Most big cats can climb trees, and some like jaguars spend a lot of time on trees. Bears are also often seen in trees, and cubs enjoy playing in trees. Some skunks, like the spotted skunk, are excellent climbers. The one that always gets me is that porcupines not only climb trees but can make nests in them. Can you imagine having a porcupine fall out of a tree on you? I mean, your character? 

4) You can eat anything if you cook it long enough 

This is most definitely not true. I do understand this likely started when people didn’t know how long to cook their meat, and believed you just needed to cook it longer. The problem comes when people start trying to cook things like pufferfish with that thought. Cooking longer doesn’t remove the toxin. 

In skunks, there is a sack or gland that holds all the stink. Can you imagine the horrible fate your character would have if they didn’t remove it and just cooked it longer? Ok, I can think of a few bad guys who might deserve that, but it will ruin the meat in a survival situation. 

Now, if we add that to plant-based food, you have the same problem. Nightshade will be toxic, cooked, or uncooked. Poke that has turned purple will always be toxic to the body. These are only a few examples. Make sure to research the plants and animals of the area your character will be in if you want to implement this. 

5) You can rely on your instincts 

If your character relied on the above instincts of climbing a tree when a bear comes, drinking salt water, or eating random berries that they do not know are safe, their instincts would be bad! 

The fact is, people have to learn these things. No one is born with the knowledge or how to survive. Some of us learn it at a young age, and others when they are older. There is no shame in what age a person learns. 

However, foolish people and characters think they don’t need to know but one or two things and they will be able to survive in a survival situation. Yet, many people thrust into these don’t know what to do, and learn the hard way, or suffer the consequences, which in this case, could be deadly. 

Some of the tricky things characters can struggle with is to know they need shelter before anything else. Hypothermia can happen even in the summer if left to the elements. Knowing which way is north. Being mindful of how much daylight is left. It can be very difficult to know in the forest when a person can’t see where the sun is at in the sky. There are many more, but we don’t have the next few hours to list all of them. Be creative. You got this! 

One quick reminder before we get to all the ways things could go wrong in your story. 

To help others find this content, pop on over to Apple Podcasts and leave me a review. Or if you are watching on YouTube, drop me a comment and say hello or ask a question. This is the best way to help others find my content. 

Now, for everyone’s favorite part, what could possibly go wrong in your story? 

Likely to go wrong: Your character drinks seawater with its high salt content. Soon, they become dehydrated. 

Likely to go wrong: Your character thinks they can rely on their instincts in a survival situation. One day, their car breaks down in the middle of nowhere, with nothing closer than 30 miles. With no food, predators, no resources, and no knowledge of what to do, they soon find out how ill-advised their lack of knowledge truly is. 

Possible to go wrong: Your character tries one wild berry to see if it is safe. They plan to wait one full hour before eating more. However, within minutes, they start vomiting because the berry was poisonous. 

Possible to go wrong: Your character breaks down with their friends in a car on a cold winter night. The friends decide to make camp close to the car and see if anyone comes looking for them in the morning. Your character, however, decides they know what is best and stays in the car with the engine running to stay warm. This causes carbon monoxide to build up inside of the car. This could be deadly. 

Unlikely to go wrong: Your character is thirsty, and all they have is salt water to drink. They drink a lot, thinking it will help them. However, this only causes them to become dehydrated quickly. If things continue in this manner, this could be deadly. 

Unlikely to go wrong: Your character wants to make sure the wild game is fully done and cook it two hours longer than they needed to. By the time they get ready to eat it, the meat is little more than jerky on the bone that is dry and hard to remove from the bone. 

Improbable but still technically in the realm of possibilities: Your character cooks a skunk with the stink gland still inside of it. As it is cooking, the gland ruptures, and the meat is coated in skunk stink, rendering it unedible. 

Improbable but still technically in the realm of possibilities: Your character climbs a tree to get away from wolves, only to find there is a skunk in the tree. The skunk is not happy your character is in their tree. If they stay in the tree, they risk the skunk spraying them. If they get down, the wolves could get them. 

Thanks for listening! Until next time, happy wordsmithing.