Gun shot advice

[elisheva_m]

The big melodramatic action climax of the lakorn I'm writing involves a gun fight (tropey genres x 2, realism is a bonus). Key characters escape, but it's too much to ask that it's unscathed or that they all only have grazes.

What's a good location for a gun shot wound which, let's say, requires stitches but can plausibly be expected to heal without complications? Arm or leg as they had the magical protection of body armour and being main characters. They've made it to a safe location with supplies prepared in advance and with the expectation of bullet wounds. One in particular has been around violence for over a decade and has experience.

I have a good enough idea on graze wounds for my needs - these really are "little details" in the lakorn and I'm just trying to calm the melodrama a bit with something heading in the vague direction of realism :D :D  It's been harder to figure out a wound which conveys "serious" (ie stitches as an emotional stand-in for surgery) but won't be difficult to treat for someone with good supplies and experience.

So rather than asking if this or that might work for you all to tell me it won't, I figured i'd just ask for suggestions on the location(s) from the start :D :D

TIA and thanks for replies to my earlier question.

Comments

[full_metal_ox]

Fair enough. (Not specifically singling out naughty bits, just trying to think of areas of flesh that would neither contain vital organs nor permanently disable.)

[elisheva_m]

One of the themes is women's sexual agency and autonomy. I truly cannot shoot my FL in her breast.

Draft currently has it in her calf. That 95% works so I just need to get it the other 5%.

[full_metal_ox]

Absolutely understood! (Disclosure: I’m not even remotely lakorn-savvy—in fact, it was you who introduced me to the word.)

[elisheva_m]

Since you've replied here, I should probably mention that lakorns aren't savvy re women's sexual agency. It's heavily constrained, especially for FLs. My story comes from observing some lakorns grapple with how to allow/depict some measure (still constrained) of sexual agency and desire for their FL or 2FL in a culture which is comfortable with that for men, not women. That's how I ended up writing well outside my comfort zone, to situate my FL outside social norms. (That men with men can be shown more explicitly is rooted in the country's sexism and patriarchy.)

For all that, many lakorns have great women characters. They're a lot of fun too. Tropey melodramas which race over every plot hole to get back to the emotions, which are always the real story. To Sir With Love (Eng subs on one31's youtube) is an excellent one to start with if you're interested.