Intro
If you have ever read or watched a story involving crimes, clues, criminals, and private eyes, you know what a mystery story is. By the end of this blog post, you will have a better idea of what comprises this literary genre, alongside some writing prompts to inspire your own mysteries.
What is a Mystery?
To begin, a mystery story in literature has various subgenres but, by and large, can be categorized into either a supernatural tale or a riddle story.Â
According to Britannica’s article “Mystery Story,”
“it may be a narrative of horror and terror, a pseudoscientific fantasy, a crime-solving story, an account of diplomatic intrigue, an affair of codes and ciphers and secret societies, or any situation involving an enigma.”
One genre that is of particular note is crime fiction. Think Sherlock Holmes and Agatha Christie’s Poirot.
Ultimately, the mystery genre follows criminal activity, usually by an investigator, in attempts to either uncover the criminal or the method by which they carried out their crime.
Writing Mysteries
When writing a mystery of your own, there are certain questions you need to answer to get an authentic and believable crime and chase story.Â
Location
Is your investigation happening in a small rural town? A city? A remote landscape? The location of your crime is crucial to:
a) How a crime plays outÂ
b) How it is investigated
For example, a story taking place in a small town won’t have the same access to higher-end security measures and police assistance as a big city would.
Outline
Sometimes, creative writers strive to jump right into their story without outlining it ahead of time because it gives them the flexibility to adapt their story, take artistic liberties, and have some fun while writing. Mystery stories are not the genre for “winging it.”
If you are writing a complex sequence of events with intentional clues to be followed, you need to outline it first.Â
Tip: get in the mindset of the criminal and ask yourself certain questions.
- What is the motivation behind my crime?
- At what time and place did I finally commit the crime?
- How does this person’s “disappearance” better my situation?
- In what ways do I plan out and prepare for the crime?
- What is the murder weapon or weapons?
- Who are my accomplices?
- What goes wrong during the crime?
- Do I tell anyone about the crime?Â
- Do I get injured in any way?Â
- What are the biggest mistakes made?
- How do I cover up the crime?
Additionally, map out the various clues your investigator will find to add suspense and advance your plot while simultaneously uncovering more of the crime.
Consider also what new crimes or incidents would occur as a snowball effect to throw the investigator off the trail or threaten them to stop trying to solve it.
Quality Ensemble of Characters
Not only does the crime in your mystery need to be enticing, but your characters as well.
Private Eye:
Your mystery investigator should be especially strange or peculiar. Whether they are a supergenius or a selfish jerk, your audience needs a reason to root for their quest to unveil the mystery.Â
Criminal/criminals:Â
Your criminal doesn’t have to be a supergenius either. Similarly, they don’t have to be psychopaths to get your audience invested. They could be an average Joe who couldn’t control their anger one day. Either way, their motivation for the crime needs to be logical and, in some way, justified to gain your reader’s trust.Â
Suspects:
In many mysteries, there are not only bystanders to the crime, but suspects. Have fun exploring the proximity these suspects had in your mystery to the crime scene on the day the crime was committed. Additionally, think about how the victim’s relationship was to these other suspects to throw your reader off the trail.Â
Others:
Don’t forget to throw in everyday people who may have been at the wrong place at the wrong time. How do they act when questioned by authority figures? What about friends and family of the victim who have a sturdy alibi? What would their emotional responses be to coping with their loss? Â
Urgency
Like with all stories, a mystery needs to have a sense of urgency that drives the plot forward in each scene.Â
Your detective should have a ticking clock to solve this case to add suspense and make your mystery a page turner. For example, if they don’t uncover the murderer, will they plan to strike again?Â
For each new scene, add an element to thrill your reader. Perhaps a shocking clue that points to a new suspect as the killer. Maybe a red herring arises that leads the detective to believe they have been looking in the wrong place the entire time.Â
Red Herring
A red herring is a logical fallacy used to distract from the truth. When used effectively, red herrings can add an additional thrill in your mystery by throwing the reader off the criminal’s scent, making it harder for them to unmask “who done it.”
Types of Mystery Stories
Furthermore, there are seven subgenres of the mystery literary genre into which your story can be categorized.Â
According to Handley Regional’s article “7 Sub-Genres Every Mystery Lover Should Know,” there are:
- Capers: “Planning and the execution of the crimes, like theft, kidnapping, or swindling, is the story focus, not the solving of the crime.”Â
- Cozy Mystery: takes place in a closed setting, lacks graphic incidents, and the mystery is solved at the end.
- Private Detective: mystery is revealed, with the main focus being on the investigator solving it.
- Noir: “protagonists are complex characters who are flawed, risk takers, and often self-destructive.”
- Hardboiled: heavy focus on the police team uncovering the mystery and not the criminal.
- Crime: “these novels focus on the planning or committing of a crime and offer detailed descriptions of the criminal and criminal underworld from perspective of those who live in it.”Â
- Classic: “crime committed, usually a murder, in a closed social setting. The murder is solved by a professional or amateur detective by asking questions and finding clues. The murder is solved and the murderer caught by the end of the story.”
Mystery Authors
Before you start writing, it’s always essential to read some novels from the genre first. Fortunately, the mystery genre has a plethora of authors to choose from. While reading, try to guess the culprit, the murder weapon, the possible red herrings, and map out the overall timeline in which the events take place.
Ask yourself:
- Was there an urgency in each scene that drove the plot forward?
- How can I recreate similar tension and suspense?
List of Authors to Check Out for Inspiration
- Agatha Christie
- Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
- Edgar Allan Poe
- Raymond Chandler
- Dashiell Hammett
- Michael Connelly
- G. K. Chesterton
- Dorthy L. Sayers
- Rex Stout
- P. D. James
- Stieg Larsson
- John Grisham
- Tony Hillerman
- Robert B. Parker
- Erle Stanley Gardner
- Lee Child
- Thomas Harris
- Sue Grafton
- Dennis Lehane
- Graham Greene
- Truman Capote
- Wilkie Collins
Mystery Writing Prompts
If this is your first time using writing prompts, check out a quick tutorial on the proper procedure in the blog post below.Â
Use these either inside your quick write story or as inspiration when creating your own mystery!
- Bending down, she could see a thin, blond strand of hair left behind.
- Suddenly, the detective heard a bullet shoot past his ear, missing him by just an inch.Â
- Could this reveal the murder weapon was actually an icicle?Â
- She smiled with a wolflike charm that the Private eye couldn’t help but lean closer to see.
- The plumes of cigarette smoke escaped his lips before answering their question about his location the day she was killed.
- Scanning the room, it was obvious he had put up a fight before being stabbed to death the day before he planned on leaving the country.Â
- She noted his lazy eye as he struggled to keep his gaze focused on the photograph of the suspect.Â
- “The cuts on her forearm weren’t self-inflicted at all,” the detective said. “The murderer staged her suicide.”Â
- The rusted smell of old blood filled her nostrils while examining the body, hanging upside down in the gardener’s basement.
- When she needed to, she’d bring in her German Shepard to sniff out even the faintest hint of drug residue from a crime scene.
- They awoke to find an ominous red scarf tied around their mirror with the words “check your locks” written in lipstick.
- The wound was not inflicted by a bullet at all. In actuality, they extracted a very small action figure from her heart.Â
- As the shoe fit the corpse perfectly, the police force drew back in surprise. The man behind bars at that moment was truly innocent!
- His hands were shaking violently, rattling the handcuffs, as they interrogated him for the next two hours.
- Taking a quick breath, a sharp sting shot threw him, before he continued his pursuit on foot.
- A light had been blinking S.O.S in Morse code for weeks now. Since the police wouldn’t investigate inside the premises no matter how many times she called, she determined to look for herself tonight.
- He had deep eye bags and smelled of body odor and mildew. He hadn’t seen sunlight for exactly three months until they found him.Â
- Uncovering their mask, the detective gasped. It was her second-grade teacher!
- How could someone do that to a child? NO! How could someone do that to their OWN child?!
- The train car was empty except for a false eyelash stuck to the cracked window.Â
- “But, why would I possibly need that money if I am, as you put it, well off?”
- She started rocking back and forth as the men lined up in front of the double mirror. When the third man stepped forward, she began screaming and uncontrollably crying.
- As she caught the pen, the police realized she was left-handed, just like the murderer.Â
What's Your Mystery?
So, now that you have a better understanding of what categorizes a mystery, why not try to create one yourself? Whether for a short story, play, or fun game night with friends, a mystery story is a great way to practice how to outline a story before writing.Â
What mystery stories have inspired you?
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