Why Body Horror Grips Readers (and How to Write It)
Caitlin Starling continues making the rounds to promote her book The Death of Jane Lawrence, most recently appearing in CrimeReads with an article about...
Why Historical Mysteries May Require Careful Research
Writing historical fiction presents creative challenges distinct from other types of fiction. Adding genre elements - such as a mystery - can complicate your...
Does Your Magic System Have Rules?
Everyone loves magic but not everyone understands the rules. It's easy to write about wizards who pull spells out of the air higgledy-piggledy, but...
Pace Your Mystery, Sustain Tension
Every story requires the writer to pay attention to pacing, but none more than the mystery novel. Your literary novel might get away with...
Why Do Readers Love a Mystery?
We've said it recently: Every story has an element of mystery. In a recent interview with the Creative Penn podcast, Jonah Lehrer discusses his...
Know Your Enemy…and Beat the Crap Out of It
Writing fight scenes between two human characters is difficult enough. We've all marveled at the way action movie protagonists can take massive amounts of...
Using Fear as a Weapon and a Hill to Conquer
Fear: a vital element for thriller and horror fiction, but also an emotion commonly found in stories of all types. Mastering the expression of...
Suspects are the Frame to Your Mystery’s Puzzle
A murder mystery needs a victim, a perpetrator, and a sleuth, but your other suspects are the glue that holds your novel together. They...
Every Tale is a Mystery
A sense of mystery is at the heart of every story, regardless of genre. At the outset, you don't know where the story is...
Does Your Villain Mean Well?
In a post for CrimeReads, Kerry Anne King takes a look at 10 characters who do bad things for good reasons. Whether motivated by...
