So cool you’re writing a mystery! I write mystery games, so my experience is very hands-on; creating a mystery hard enough to be challenging and logical enough the players don’t feel cheated after the reveal. I can say two of the biggest things to know are 1) the answer should not be “whodunit” and 2) the deduction must be calcula…[Read more]

@bookdragon

Hey Book Dragon! (Awesome name btw XD)

I am absolutely still looking for advice, it’s always welcome! Thank you so much for it, that makes a lot of sense! Thankfully I am definitely an outliner, so that part comes naturally to me at least XD

Thank you, and nice to meet you!

Hello! I don’t know if you’re still looking for input, but here is what I have found most helpful:

Mysteries tend to be very structured, especially when looking at episodic mysteries. Someone (I forget who) broke it down into 5 elements that most mysteries have. (1) Someone finds the body. When I write, this is the first act, and it’s usually the…[Read more]

I like the pharmacy idea. Thank you Rose!

@curious1

Hi! That already sounds like a really fun premise!

Let me see, I think the most likely way to make money without getting in too much trouble would be to steal and sell things.

The safer, more obvious choice would be tools. I don’t know how it works for the setting, but surgical tools might be worth something and it would be easy e…[Read more]

@obrian-of-the-surface-world

Thank you so much for that advice! I’ll look into those things, it helps a lot! I’m really excited to keep working on it! 🙂

Here’s just a little something I wrote which shows some misdirection:

Rathburn did not know what he was in for. We had found strategic positions and lay in wait for him. There was not a lot of cover, so we had to find safe positions behind the austerely furnished room. Getting access had taken months of planning. Rathburn often worked late nights…[Read more]

I am very glad to have helped. Your insights have helped me many times, so I am pleased to return the favor.

Another thing I would mention is to layer misdirection or false trails within the story. Sometimes these are called “red herrings” in the writer’s guides.
Have several characters have reasonable motives for wanting to off the victims. …[Read more]