Crickets chirp in the darkness. The toad sitting calmly three inches away from your foot croaks as you lift your leg away from it. An owl hoots in the shadows, as if telling the night that you are up to no good. Suddenly stumbling through the dark forest, you happen upon a wooden shed with one shimmering light coming from the attic. Curiosity beckons you forward as you walk up the creaking steps of the front porch. As you open the door, nothing is visible in the thick air. You follow the light upstairs and into a room full of cobwebs. The light emanated from an old rustic lamp, its shade ripped on one side and its light revealing a stretched pale hand underneath the deep green bed sitting next to it. The rest of the mystery is history.
Mystery. Suspense. On the edge of your seat. That's what keeps the genre of mystery alive and amazing. It's filled with plot twists, suspense and excitement. But what really makes a mystery so good? There are certain criteria that are important to a mystery:
These elements are the essentials for writing a mystery, but there are a few key tips to keep the suspense strong in your story:
The best advice to follow is given in your own favorite mystery stories. What did the authors do in the story that you enjoyed? How did they portray characters, settings, suspense? Mysteries like Sherlock Holmes and Goosebumps didn't have everything out in the open. They built the plot up through the main character's eyes. They gave eerie scenes. They kept the mystery until the end. They created suspense. Are you ready to create your own suspense? |
FROM THE WRITER
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July 2018
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