What is a Mystery?

At its simplest, mystery fiction is a puzzle story: the classic whodunit, with all the clues present for the reader. The game, and that’s what it is, is to see if the author can fool the reader while “playing fair”; the fan and the detective both receive the same information at the same time. Remember, nothing is simple.

In the broadest definition, the mystery category is about crime, and the solution to the puzzle or the prevention of the criminal action. The basic forms of a mystery are the cozy, the private detective, and the police procedural novels. Each offers the reader a protagonist, usually the detective, a crime worth solving, and a series of clues, information, and background. The differences lie in the way in which the story is told and the degree of real-life information.

The cozy is the least realistic form, and the most popular. The detective is an amateur, a local citizen with an interest in everything or one thing in particular. He or she may be an expert in some area. Example: Jessica Fletcher is a mystery novelist, while Father Dowling enjoys mystery fiction. Other reacquiring characters are antiques experts, wine mavens, or jockeys. Whatever that specialty is will come in handy within the plot. Your own imagination as a writer is the only real limit on your choice.

Violence is generally minimal and offstage. The detective uses powers of deduction (one of the hallmarks of this genre) his or her expertise in a particular area coupled with knowledge of human nature, and some solid questions to come up with the murderer and in a final scene explains how the solution was found.

The settings tend to be less urban than p.i. and police procedurals present, but a cozy novel can be set anywhere. It is a matter of attitude and voice. Characters are often eccentric, the police at a loss for answers, and storytelling gentle.

The flip side is the hard-boiled novel, most often in in the form of p.i. novel. The private investigator is almost licensed by the state, probably carries a weapon, and is involved in the kinds of cases that gives meaning to the phrase mean streets. Tough, cynical, and jaded, the p.i. deals with street people, petty criminals, and the down-and-out on a regular basis. They are, after all, the best sources of information about missing people. These detectives also get involved in cases dealing with industrial espionage and security matters, the ugly side of family relationships, such as cheating spouses, missing heirs and runaway kids., and stumble onto murder enroute to solving the case.

The traditional detective is always wise cracker, especially to a police officer. While they all have sources on the job, there’s always a ranking officer who resents and dislikes the investigator. The resentment is rooted in the real world. In the fiction it serves to allow for a presentation of the facts to that point, giving the reader a chance to catch up. Until recently, the p.i. was male, but we are seeing more and more women as lead characters.

The police precedural is the most most realistic form of mystery, and while deduction and investigation plays the same key role as in the other forms, the nature of police work means that the snitch coming forward at the right time is also an element. Procedurals tend to have more than one “hero,” because cops—on the job—are rarely loners. The supporting cast is also larger. Police departments have access to a wide range of investigatory help, but are bound by law to act in a certain way. They have district attorneys and politicians breathing down their necks and come face to face with the general public on a regular basis.

Because we see the police daily, either on the streets or on the news, procedrals must be the most carefully researched novels in the category. Because regulations are always changing, you may want to lift a page from Ed McBain, who turned New York City on its side to create the city of Isola and his 87th Precinct.

Espionage novels are a form of procedual, and romantic suspense might fall into the cozy vein. Many writers mix and match within the category. Example: Silence Of The Lambs is a procedural, while Al Guthrie’s Grave Murderers is a private eye novel that reads like a cozy. Your own strengths as a storyteller, coupled with an understanding of what makes each category work with its audience, will allow you to experiment and move the genre forward.