The Elements Of A Mystery

I'm a little late today... Lets look into the way a mystery is written... Or me just talking abut mystery.

Most famous mysteries are murder mysteries. Who done it and why?

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I can't say reading this will help you solve a mystery you are reading or watching, I can't always figure it out. You see that is the point. The author already knows who the killer is. So they can plan it out. It's kind of backwards. They can say its going to be this way and that way, because they already know all the elements.

They know when the death accrued. Take an Agatha Christie story. The time of the murder is always different from what you first thought, throwing you off course. But that is the point. So is the red herrings. It is so simple, yet very hard to have a good red herring, take the book Death in the Sky by Agatha Christie.

Say the person was killed by a dart of poison. All you need is a suspect to have something that would work as a blow dart, since obviously the real blow dart wasn't used.

It is a tangled web. That is the point. Which can drive some of us  me  up that wall trying to figure it out. Or maybe your not like me and just enjoy the story. The TV series Death in Paradise is kind of the same way. I mean there are only a few suspects, yet you still don't see it coming, or you did see it... than comes a red herring, I mean they can't be the real suspect nor the person who says they were the killer, it is someone you missed.

But wait, it can't be the Butler either, it's to cliche, and where is the motive. It can all be quite confusing. The author takes advantage of them. I mean we can't help thinking that way. Some how they know how we thing.

We can only guess. And they know that.

Lets go back to the beginning, though. The Author already has the killer, the victim, the weapon the place, the time, next the red herrings. They got to convince you it was this time or that time, and this person must have done it cuz, look all the evidence, and this person has all the motive. Than there is the alibi. Though it doesn't matter, unless you guess it right, your wrong.

Confused yet?

So yeah, I should probably just enjoy the story, the mystery, but I don't. I want to find out. You know the detective is going to catch the killer. The author has given them all the power. There are a few times where I just sit back and take in the mystery and guess.

What is the element we are looking for? The author's point of view? Or the detective's point of view?

Sometimes they leave out some clues, which makes everything so, so unfair. If you do write a mystery try to give the reader or audience a chance to solve the case. Also look at it this way. They (the detective) have all the time in the world to solve this case you or I don't, we could but it really isn't that serious.

So enjoy the mystery or solve it. Reading or watching mystery will help you write mystery. Have fun with it!

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Yes this is a little bit different from my normal posts. Hope you don't mind this little rant.

What do you love about mystery. 
Want more of these type of posts or not? 
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