Of course, mystery writers are familiar with the concept of a red herring – a clue that is really a misdirection, distracting the reader and sending your sleuth on the wrong path to finding a killer. In an article for Writer’s Digest, Dimitri Vorontzov introduces the concept of the green herring.
Vorontzov defines the “green herring” as the facts and feelings that disguise your real culprit. “Similarly to how we made the ‘red herring’ character conspicuous—we need to make the real culprit inconspicuous, the last person anyone would think of as the real villain,” he explains.
While a character that’s too good to be true will likely trigger suspicion, a character who is flawed but essentially good will not. “We can let such a character make dumb mistakes (which we may later reveal to be deliberate acts of sabotage); we can make him or her slightly selfish, or slightly dishonest (a tiny instance of dishonesty may prove their overall integrity); we can give that character some of the ‘seven deadly sins,’ for example sloth or greed,” Vorontzov explains.
Even better, the green herring can be relatable, with feelings and problems readers understand. They might have a physical or emotional weakness, real or faked. A character who excels at something may elicit admiration, while a bumbler may cause a laugh or engender empathy.
Giving the green herring a small role or putting them in conflict with the red herring are more ways to help them blend into the background. If you’re clever enough, you even disguise your green herring as the red herring.
