Wicked Wednesday - paranormal mysteries

Mystery is always somehow woven into a paranormal romance. The protagonist needs to find something out whether it be who this strange man is, shed light on a murky family history, or find out who committed a horrific crime. Sometimes all of those things. Mysteries are trickier in this genre because they usually have a paranormal twist.

Here are a few tips to writing a believable and intriguing paranormal mystery:

1. Plot is key. The reader is playing detective as they're reading. Each plot point must be plausible within the world you've created. The action must be kept going forward too. Don't go off on tangents as it will only confuse and/or bore the reader.

2. Use red herrings. There should be at least one crucial clue in the story, but you don't want the reader to figure it out right away. Red herrings will lead them off in different directions and put their suspicions on other suspects. YET don't let them continue on for too long or become too frustrating.

3. Suspense. Strange footsteps and an unanswered question. Use time constraints and keep the stakes high.

4. The protagonist should be clever enough to keep the reader intrigued, or at least, have very smart friends. *coughsHermioneGrangercoughs* A mystery requires the protagonist to investigate and that requires a certain level of skill and intelligence. The protagonist can't stumble across every answer.

5. The reader must have access to all the clues available to the protagonist and, even though it shouldn't be readily apparent, the answer to the mystery should be there before the end.

Do you have any tips on how to write a good mystery?

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