Thanksgiving means so much more to me this year. Why? FINAL JUROR, the mystery novel I'm working on, is set during that time frame. So I'm very cognizant of the sights, sounds and smells of the season.
My detective, Brad Frame, is serving on a jury in a murder trial. It's lasting weeks, and as might be the case in real life the trial happens to span the Thanksgiving holiday. In fiction, grounding events in places and circumstances with which the reader can identify helps make it more believable. As part of my research, I visited the courthouse where the trial would take place. I determined that, in fact, trials take place nearly every working day of the year except holidays.
While I can give my protagonist a respite from the trial, I can't afford to let the reader get too far away from the plot of the mystery, which brings me to what I call the "muddle in the middle."Every book has a beginning, middle and end--and each of those story aspects creates its own set of challenges. For me, the beginning of a mystery novel is all about setting up the premise of the story. Usually a murder has taken place and the reason is established as to why Brad Frame is going to take on the case. My objective is to raise lots of questions that will draw the reader into the story. In the final 50 - 75 pages I try to wrap up the plot in a satisfying way. Hopefully, the solution won't come "out of left field" even though the reader may be surprised by the ending.
It's in the middle of the story that I'm planting cues, laying red herrings, misdirecting the reader so s/he doesn't readily see the truth of what my detective sees. Middles are the most challenging part, in my opinion. It's important to me that all of the clue planting--as well as the misdirection--be organic to the story. So I'm plodding my way through the middle of my story, and eager to get to the wrap-up.
Muddle in the middle isn't what's stuffed inside the Thanksgiving bird, it's the framework that takes the detective (and the reader) through the puzzle and toward the ultimate solution.
Do you have any pet peeves about the middle of mystery stories that you've read? Please feel free to join the conversation.
Ray, your books never have the slightest hint of muddle, so obviously you iron out all the problems before they get into print. All the more impressive, since you've said you don't outline. It's tricky getting everything you need to in, without bogging down or going astray - not an easy feat!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Mary Ellen. I just find the middle of a mystery novel to be the hardest part of writing mysteries.
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