If you’re like us and love to read, then click here to score tons of free and discounted ebooks.
Welcome to the shadowy world of mystery writing, where red herrings swim in murky waters and plot twists lurk around every corner . . .
Picture this: It’s 2 AM, and your reader is hunched over your book, eyes burning but refusing to close because they must know who poisoned Lord Pemberton at the charity gala. That’s the mystery writer’s ultimate victory—creating a story so compelling that sleep becomes secondary to solving the puzzle you’ve crafted.
Writing a mystery isn’t just about creating a whodunit; it’s about becoming an architect of suspense, a master of misdirection, and most importantly, a fair but cunning opponent to your readers. Here’s how to craft a mystery that will have readers frantically flipping pages while furiously scribbling notes in the margins.
The Golden Rules of Mystery Writing
Before we dive into the dark art of red herrings and false alibis, let’s establish the sacred commandments of mystery writing:
Play Fair with Your Readers This is mystery writing’s prime directive. Every clue your detective finds should be available to your readers too. No secret evidence discovered off-page, no crucial conversations happening in narrative gaps. Your readers should theoretically be able to solve the mystery using the same information as your protagonist—they just need to be clever enough to piece it together.
Make Every Character a Suspect Even the sweet grandmother knitting in the corner should have a motive, means, and opportunity. When readers can’t eliminate anyone completely, tension stays high throughout your story.
Building Your Cast of Suspicious Characters
A great mystery lives or dies by its characters. You need a ensemble cast where everyone harbors secrets, and everyone has something to hide—whether it’s related to the central crime or not.
The Detective: Your Reader’s Guide Your detective doesn’t need to be Sherlock Holmes (though a little eccentricity never hurts). What they need is a logical mind, keen observation skills, and most importantly, the ability to ask the right questions. Make them smart enough to be credible but human enough to miss obvious clues occasionally—just like your readers might.
The Suspects: A Rogues’ Gallery Create suspects with layered motivations. The business partner might have financial motives, but also harbor romantic jealousy. The devoted assistant might be embezzling, but also protecting a family secret. When characters have multiple reasons to lie or act suspiciously, you create a web of misdirection that keeps readers guessing.
The Victim: More Than a Body Your victim should be more than just a catalyst for the plot. Give them a rich backstory filled with relationships, conflicts, and secrets. The more complex your victim’s life, the more suspects and motives you can generate. Was the philanthropist also a blackmailer? Did the beloved teacher have a dark past? These revelations fuel your mystery’s engine.
The Architecture of Clues
Clues are the breadcrumbs that lead readers through your mystery maze. But like Hansel and Gretel’s trail, they should sometimes lead in the wrong direction before revealing the true path.
Physical Evidence: The Tangible Trail A lipstick-stained wine glass, a torn piece of fabric, a smartphone with a deleted text message—physical clues feel concrete and important to readers. But here’s the trick: not every physical clue should point to the real killer. That lipstick might belong to someone having an affair, not the murderer. The torn fabric could be from an entirely unrelated scuffle.
Behavioral Clues: Reading Between the Lines Sometimes what characters don’t say is more important than what they do. The suspect who won’t meet the detective’s eyes might be hiding guilt—or severe social anxiety. The person who provides a too-detailed alibi might be lying—or have a compulsive need to over-explain. Behavioral clues are goldmines for misdirection because human behavior is naturally ambiguous.
Dialogue Clues: Words as Weapons Conversations should serve multiple purposes in mysteries. They can provide information, establish character relationships, and drop clues—sometimes all in the same exchange. Practice writing dialogue where characters are simultaneously revealing and concealing information. A simple “I haven’t seen Margaret since Tuesday” could be a crucial timeline clue or a calculated lie.
The Red Herring Buffet
Red herrings are false clues designed to mislead readers, but they should never feel arbitrary or unfair. The best red herrings are logical conclusions based on incomplete information.
The Obvious Suspect Every mystery needs someone who looks guilty from chapter one. Maybe they had a public argument with the victim, they inherit a fortune, or they were spotted near the crime scene. Let readers feel smart for suspecting this person, then pull the rug out from under them. But remember—their suspicious behavior should have a logical explanation that makes sense when revealed.
The False Solution About two-thirds through your story, let your detective (and readers) reach a conclusion that fits most of the facts. Let them feel satisfied with the solution for a few pages, then introduce new evidence that shatters this theory. This technique, when done well, creates a “wait, what?” moment that reinvigorates reader engagement.
The Emotional Red Herring Sometimes the most effective misdirection isn’t about facts—it’s about feelings. Lead readers to sympathize with the real killer by showing their vulnerability or tragic backstory. When readers like a character, they’re less likely to suspect them. Just ensure their sympathetic qualities don’t excuse their crime when revealed.
Pacing Your Revelations
A mystery is like a striptease—you need to reveal just enough to keep your audience interested while saving the big reveals for maximum impact.
The Early Hook Your opening should establish the crime and central mystery quickly, but don’t feel pressured to start with a dead body. Sometimes the most effective openings show the victim alive, letting readers grow attached before the inevitable occurs. This investment makes readers more determined to see justice served.
The Midpoint Revelation Around the halfway point, reveal something significant that reframes everything readers thought they knew. Maybe the victim faked their own death before, or the crime scene was staged, or there were actually two crimes. This revelation should complicate the mystery, not solve it.
The Final Third: Tightening the Noose The last portion of your mystery should feel like a sprint. Clues should click into place rapidly, false solutions should crumble, and the real killer should become increasingly desperate. But even here, save one major surprise for the final revelation.
The Art of Fair Misdirection
The difference between a satisfying mystery and a frustrating one often lies in the fairness of the misdirection. Readers should feel cleverly deceived, not cheated.
Hide in Plain Sight The most elegant clues are those that seem insignificant when first mentioned but prove crucial to the solution. A character’s casual mention of being left-handed, an offhand comment about allergies, or a seemingly innocent question about someone’s schedule can all become important later.
Use Reader Assumptions Readers bring their own biases and assumptions to your story. A character described as “grandmotherly” might seem incapable of violence, while someone with tattoos and leather jacket might seem dangerous. Play with these assumptions, but do so thoughtfully and with purpose.
The Reverse Psychology Gambit Sometimes the best way to hide a clue is to make it seem too obvious. Have your detective or other characters dismiss certain evidence as “too convenient” or “too obvious to be real.” Readers will often follow their lead and dismiss the clue too—even when it’s genuine.
Creating Satisfying Revelations
The moment when your detective gathers everyone in the library (or modern equivalent) and reveals the truth is the payoff for everything you’ve built. This scene can make or break your entire mystery.
The Logical Chain Your revelation should feel inevitable in hindsight. Each piece of evidence should link logically to the next, creating an unbreakable chain of reasoning. Readers might not have assembled all the pieces correctly, but they should be able to see how the pieces fit together once you show them.
Address Every Red Herring Don’t leave readers hanging about false clues. Explain why the obvious suspect was acting suspiciously (they were having an affair, embezzling money, or hiding a different secret). Tie up these loose ends so readers feel satisfied that every mystery element served a purpose.
The Killer’s Motivation The “why” is often more important than the “how.” Your killer’s motivation should be strong enough to justify murder but complex enough to feel human. The best mystery villains aren’t monsters—they’re people who made increasingly desperate choices that led to an unthinkable act.
Modern Mystery Considerations
Today’s mystery writers face unique challenges and opportunities in our digital age.
Technology as Tool and Obstacle Smartphones, security cameras, GPS tracking, and social media have changed the mystery landscape dramatically. Use technology creatively—maybe the killer used dating apps to target victims, or crucial evidence exists in deleted browser history. But remember that technology can also eliminate classic mystery elements like locked-room puzzles or missing persons, so you’ll need to be more creative with your impossible situations.
Diverse Perspectives Modern readers expect diverse characters and fresh perspectives on classic mystery tropes. Consider how your detective’s background, culture, or identity might affect their investigation methods and insights. A former teacher might notice things about family dynamics that a police detective would miss.
The Writer’s Toolkit: Practical Tips
Keep a Master Timeline Track every character’s movements throughout your story. This helps you identify plot holes and ensures your alibis and motives remain consistent. Your killer needs to have opportunity for the crime, but other characters need believable explanations for their whereabouts too.
The Clue Notebook Maintain a list of every clue you plant and what it reveals. Note whether each clue points to the real solution or serves as misdirection. This helps ensure you’re playing fair while maintaining proper balance between helpful and misleading evidence.
Character Motivation Maps Create detailed profiles for each suspect, including their relationship to the victim, potential motives, and personal secrets. Even if not all of this appears in your story, understanding each character’s complete psychology will help you write more convincing suspects.
Read Like a Writer Study mysteries you admire and analyze their techniques. How did the author plant clues? When did you suspect the real killer? What misdirection worked on you, and what felt unfair? Learning from masters of the genre will sharpen your own skills.
Magic Trick
Writing a compelling mystery is like conducting an elaborate magic trick. You’re directing your audience’s attention, controlling the flow of information, and setting up the big reveal. But unlike a magician, you can’t rely on secret techniques—everything must be fair and logical for your readers.
The greatest compliment a mystery writer can receive is a reader saying, “I should have seen that coming, but I didn’t!” That perfect balance of surprise and inevitability is the holy grail of mystery writing.
Remember, every great mystery writer was once a beginner staring at a blank page, wondering how to craft a puzzle that would stump readers while playing completely fair. With practice, patience, and perhaps a slightly devious mind, you’ll develop the skills to create mysteries that will have readers losing sleep in the best possible way.
Now stop reading blogs about writing mysteries and start writing one. Your readers are waiting to be thoroughly and delightfully deceived.
Comments