Can You Solve the Mystery?
Clues for Writing Your Own Mystery
Clue #1: Begin with THE PROBLEM. What is the mystery you want solved?
 Is someone or something missing?
 Did someone steal something?
 Was there a murder?
Clue #2: Decide on WHERE and WHEN you want your story set.
 Is this a modern-day mystery or one that is set in a specific time in the past (say, for instance, the
Wild West)?
 Will your mystery occur here in the United States or somewhere else? Big city or small town?
Clue #3: Create your SUSPECT(S).
 Who committed this crime?
 Is he/she a hardened criminal or is he/she someone who has no previous criminal record?
 What does he/she look like?
 How old is your suspect?
 How did he/she get mixed up in this situation in the first place?
 How would you describe his/her personality?
 Did he/she have an accomplice?
 What is his/her alibi for the time of the crime?
 What does he/she sound like? What does he/she say? (INCLUDE SUFFICIENT DIALOGUE)
Clue #4: Create your INVESTIGATOR or DETECTIVE.
 Is he/she an official detective or someone like Nancy Drew or Encyclopedia Brown who sees
solving mysteries as a hobby?
 How many cases has your detective solved?
 Does he/she work alone or does he/she have a “sidekick”?
 What does he/she look like?
 How old is he/she?
 How would you describe his/her personality?
 Does he/she work within the perimeters of the law or does he/she take matters in his/her own
hands in order to solve the case?
 What does he/she sound like? What does he/she say? (INCLUDE SUFFICIENT DIALOGUE)
Clue #5: Outline the CLUES that will lead your detective to solving the case.
 Will you have witnesses who can offer clues to the case?
 What did someone leave behind that offers information about the case?
 What did someone say that leads the detective to the right answer?
 Who has an alibi and who does not?
Clue #6: Outline the DISTRACTORS that will throw the detective off the right trail.
Clue #7: Determine the CONCLUSION and how the mystery will finally be solved. How will your story
end?