Young Writers Society

Hello! I am currently writing a detective novel and I am still unsure of the ending.
The plot is a detective who's father left before he was born. In 2012 a body is discovered in the desert during an archaeological dig, and it turns out to be the detectives father. They pinpoint the date of his death to the date his father 'left'. He finds a journal on the body detailing his fathers life up until his death. The book follows the detectives plights in 2012 to track down his fathers killer and in 1982 following his father. I'm not too sure as of yet what the father did that got him killed, but I thought perhaps the detectives step father turns out to have been the killer. Would this be an obvious ending? And could this turn out to be a great story?
-Greg Squires

Learn detective conventions inside and out.

If you are looking to really shock readers, find out what the "give aways" are for detective fiction in your market. Read a lot. Study the novels that really surprised you, but make sure you've read a lot of detective novels so you start to see what the conventions are.

RachaelElg has articles on the Do's and Don'ts of keeping your writing unpredictable, which would help get your story away from predictability.

But, really, it all boils down to understanding how mysteries work and using that knowledge to your advantage. If one character type is almost always the killer, either remove that character type or really twist it around (like, it looks like it's not the killer, only he ends up being the killer— only to find out the suspect was an accomplice. Super basic example, but that gives you an idea how much you need to twist things around) to leave readers surprised.

The key, really, is to be able to use readers' expectations against them so they're honestly surprised a twist like that was pulled, then take it one step farther for people who also know detective mysteries, figure you're using their expectations against them and see through the next layer of deception you've set up.

Make it as complex as humanly possible and you should be all set.

This is a very good idea! And yes, it could turn out to be a great story. The trick to making the ending a good surprise is to get the reader emotionally involved with the characters. If they are reading about a cut-and-paste character, it won't matter who killed his father to them. Make them care about the father too, it might be hard because he's dead, but you can do it!

Another thing, don't make the time of death that accurate, make it around the time he left, it adds tot he mystique and is a bit more realistic. It's hard to give an exact date when the time of the murder is so far from the time of discovery.

Also, if you're having trouble finding out what got him killed, think of the step-father. What would motivate him towards murder? That's what counts. That tells you how he would kill him, when he would kill him, where he would kill him, pretty much every detail about the murder. Research tons and tons of forensics.

I suggest you read the Ruby Raven. It's is the best mystery story I have ever read. Not only is it fun and exciting, but the twist is great. It makes you want to smack yourself on the forehead. What the author did with this story sounds a lot like what you want to happen with yours.

Good luck, and if you need any help, shoot me a PM. I love all things detective, and this is my area of expertise. Have fun and keep writing!

One of my favourite novels of all time is a novel that had only six scenes in it, three of which were crime scenes, and six characters, three of whom were dead from the beginning, and one who only talks on the phone and never actually turns up. All the evidence was given but I still didn't see the twist at the end until I had sped right past it.

If you play your reader right they'll never see the ending coming. Things to remember are;

Motive: A lack of motive is a good tool for creating reasonable doubt in your readers mind, and divert them from the killer. An alternative motive combined with a well designed character can make them believe that this person would never do it until 'Oh! Oh gosh I see it now!' And a decietful motive, for example, that character who is obviously suspiciosly turning up in all the wrong places (take Snape in HP1) makes a great diversion.

Victim: The victim almost always plays a crucial part in the lead up to their death. A cheating lover, a thief, a runaway from a crime sindicate, creating reasons for your victim to be victim will throw your reader off the trail of why they were actually killed

Unreliable Narrator: 'My dad was a great man, he wouldn't hurt a fly. He was researching the cure for cancer. Whoever killed him must have wanted that cure for themselves!' An unreliable narrator will fill your readers head with all the wrong clues and assumptions, and divert their attention from the stuff that the reader should really be paying attention to.

Slightly off topic, but Tenyo, that post made me want to write a detective novel now xD

Edit: Very off topic, but Tenyo, you made me write a detective novel.

It would be too obvious of an ending, anyone like a stepfather/mother or an ex is probably one of the first people that will get singled out as a killer.