Writing a Mystery Story

Writing Tips

There are a lot of elements to writing a mystery. These tips should help you brainstorm! Included are all the
steps you'll need to create a story full of surprise and suspense. Read through them, and start making notes for
your mystery.

1. Every story begins with an idea. Keep your eyes, ears, and mind open to ideas. Ask yourself what if? Try
looking for ideas as you read the newspaper. Did burglars hit three houses on one street in the middle of the
day? How did they know no one would be home? What were the burglars looking for? What if you decided
to be a detective and solved the crime? Use the newspaper story as a springboard and jump into your own
idea.
2. Your main character is the most important part of your story. The main character will determine in
which direction the plot will grow. Is your main character a new girl at school who covers up her insecurity
by bragging a lot? How will her personality affect the way the story is solved? Step inside your character's
mind. Then ask yourself, "Now what will I do?"
3. Choose minor characters who will be in your story. Does your main character have a best friend who
will help her sort out the clues? Best friends are good to include, because the main character needs
someone to talk to. Are there people who don't want the main character to solve the mystery? Who are
they?
4. The plot of any story is this: The main character has a problem, and must solve it by him or herself.
In a mystery story, the problem has to do with the solution of the mystery. What is the mystery idea you've
chosen? Is it a crime? Is it something scary? What should the main character discover? And what — or
who — is going to get in the way, so the solution to the mystery won't be too easy?
5. Make a list of clues that you can use in your story. One should be the crucial clue. This crucial clue is
one piece of important information that helps the main character finally solve the mystery. The crucial clue
might be something that points directly to the perpetrator of the crime. For example, maybe one character
— Sam — says that he received a strange telephone call at eight o'clock. Later in the story, the main
character receives information about where all the suspects were at eight o'clock, remembers what Sam had
said about receiving a call at that time, and knows that it couldn't possibly have happened. Your detective
then realizes that Sam is the perpetrator.
6. Think about "red herrings." Red herrings are bits of information that are designed to mislead readers by
making them suspect the wrong characters. Red herrings are fun to include because they make mysteries
harder to solve. Maybe you want readers to suspect the main character's little brother, who has a real
fondness for peanut butter and grape jelly sandwiches. Suppose your main character finds smeared jelly
 fingerprints in a suspicious place. Readers will immediately think of the little brother's sandwiches —
especially if your main character is disturbed by the jelly stains — and they won't notice if you slip in a real
clue.
7. Suspense is an important ingredient in a mystery story. Footsteps coming up the stairs in the dark, a
doorknob silently turning, a suspect arriving when he's not expected, an unanswered question about one of
the characters — there are many ways to make your stories suspenseful. Allow your characters to be
scared. Your readers will identify with him or her, and they'll be scared, too.
8. The setting should fit the mood of the story. Think about where you want your story to take place.
Should it be at night? On a foggy morning? During a thunderstorm? Maybe the day is sunny and bright, but
the character has to explore the dark passages of a deserted building. What was that noise? Rats?
Footsteps? Describe the dark passages. Let readers see the building. Write so vividly that readers feel they
are there with your character.
9. Look for the best place in which to begin your story. Mystery stories should begin with action, with
suspense, with something interesting or exciting happening. Readers should meet the main characters and
be introduced to the mystery right at the beginning.
10. Know how your story will end before you begin to write it. It's easy to begin writing and surprise
yourself on every page, then discover that in the middle of your story you've written yourself into a box.
Think over various solutions to your character's problem, remembering that she has to solve the mystery
herself. She's in charge. It's her story.

As you think over ideas, you're going to discard some of them because you'll see they won't work. When the
right solution comes along, you'll know it, and you'll be able to begin your story. It's all right for the middle of
your story to remain flexible. You might think of something funny or exciting or interesting for your main
character to do that you hadn't expected when you began writing. It's the ending that must stay in place. You
won't lose your story and have to begin again with another idea if you know where your main character is
going.
 Crime/Mystery Starting Points!
Story Starters

1. It was a strange night, there seemed to be a chill in the air... A

2. As soon as I arrived, I could sense that something was out of place... A

3. One night, as I looked out the window, I saw the neighbor... A

4. I was watching TV when I looked up. There in the window I saw... A

5. I decided to go for an evening stroll.  I walked about three blocks when I felt it... A

6. They would have been fine if they hadn't stopped for the stranger... A

7. Everyone avoided the big old mansion. It was believed to have... A

8. They said she was able to utter a few words before she died... A

9. Something is drastically wrong! Every time I pick up the telephone... A

10. All of a sudden I was trapped! A

11. “DID YOU HEAR THAT?” I screamed… A

12. As I walked through the door, all I could focus on was the blood that covered the floor…A

13. Never in a million years did I think that someone would steal my…B

14. She thought he was out of her life forever, until…B

Possible Character Relationships/Occupations Possible Crimes/Mysteries:

1. Co-workers 1. Murder
2. Siblings 2. Theft/Robbery
3. Friends 3. Kidnapping
4. (Creepy) Extended Family 4. Escape
5. Enemies 5. Blackmail
6. Lovers 6. Greed
7. Strangers 7. Revenge
8. Law Enforcement 8. Competition
 9. Lawyers 9. Affair
10. Monsters 10. Joke gone bad

Possible Settings
1. Haunted House
2. Graveyard
3. Police station
4. Rural location
5. High School
6. Busy city
7. Suburban neighborhood
8. Train/bus/subway
9. Ship/boat/canoe/kayak
10. Woods/Forest