Outside experimental prose, it’s safe to say all stories are about the search for something. Mysteries are the obvious example, but they cover only part of the spectrum. In an article for Writer’s Digest, Lian Dolan offers advice for writing a search story that isn’t a traditional crime mystery.
Dolan describes her latest book, Lost and Found in Paris, as an art history treasure hunt, “because I don’t know how to write mysteries.” “With a search story, readers are along for the ride,” she explains. “There’s no payoff in figuring out the clues ahead of the plot because you might miss all the fun.” Her tips on writing an engaging search story include:
- Pick a subject you know a little, but not too much, about. When she started her novel, Dolan didn’t know too much about art history or Joan of Arc. “Knowing enough but not too much allowed me leeway with the topics, incorporating some pop culture with the history and broadening the scope of the story,” Dolan says.
- Think outside the clue box. Your search story doesn’t require traditional mystery clues and your sleuth doesn’t need to stumble over them. In her novel, Dolan’s protagonist received clues from a songwriter in the form of song lyrics. “Anything can work but consider a delivery system that is organic to the story,” Dolan writes.
- Decide how many clues is the right number. Too many clues might feel repetitive but too few might frustrate your readers. “At some point, your characters need to take the information they’ve collected and act on it,” Dolan says. In the rewrite process, I jettisoned a whole chapter of searching because I felt like the audience had already been through enough and they needed some resolution.”
- Consider location and transportation. Let your protagonist have some fun. Choose unexpected settings and create visually interesting transport sequences.
