How to learn to write detective stories. How to write a detective story

A detective novel is a kind of intellectual game. Moreover, this is a sporting competition. And detective novels are created according to strictly defined laws - albeit unwritten, but nevertheless mandatory. Every respected and self-respecting detective writer strictly observes them. So, below is formulated a kind of detective writer’s credo, based partly on the practical experience of all the great masters of the detective genre, and partly on the promptings of the voice of conscience of an honest writer. Here it is:

1. The reader should have equal opportunities with the detective to solve the mystery of the crime. All clues must be clearly identified and described.

2. The reader cannot be deliberately deceived or misled, except in cases where he and the detective follow all the rules fair play the criminal is deceiving.

3. The novel should not contain love line. We are talking about bringing the criminal into the hands of justice, and not about uniting yearning lovers with the bonds of Hymen.

4. Neither the detective himself nor any of the official investigators should turn out to be a criminal. This is tantamount to outright deception - the same as if they slipped us a shiny copper coin instead of a gold coin. Fraud is fraud.

5. The criminal must be discovered deductively - using logical conclusions, and not through chance, coincidence or unmotivated confession. After all, by choosing this last method of solving the mystery of the crime, the author quite deliberately directs the reader along a deliberately false trail, and when he returns empty-handed, he calmly informs him that the solution was in his, the author’s, pocket all along. Such an author is no better than a fan of primitive practical jokes.

6. A detective novel must have a detective, and a detective is only a detective when he tracks and investigates. His task is to collect evidence that will serve as a clue and ultimately point to who committed this vile crime in the first chapter. The detective builds a chain of his conclusions based on the analysis of the collected evidence, otherwise he is likened to a careless schoolboy who, having not solved the problem, copies the answer from the back of the problem book.

7. You simply cannot do without a corpse in a detective novel, and the more naturalistic the corpse is, the better. Only the murder makes the novel interesting enough. Who would read three hundred pages with excitement if we were talking about a less serious crime! In the end, the reader should be rewarded for their trouble and energy.

8. The mystery of the crime must be revealed in a purely materialistic way. Such methods of establishing the truth as divination, spiritualistic seances, reading other people's thoughts, fortune telling with the help of magic crystal etc., etc. The reader has some chance not to be inferior in intelligence to a detective who thinks rationally, but if he is forced to compete with spirits other world and chasing a criminal in the fourth dimension, he is doomed to defeat ab initio[from the very beginning (lat.)].

9. There should only be one detective, I mean only one main character deduction, only one deus ex machina[God from the machine (lat.), that is, unexpectedly appearing (like the gods in ancient tragedies) a person who, by his intervention, unravels a situation that seemed hopeless]. To mobilize the minds of three, four, or even a whole squad of detectives to solve the mystery of a crime means not only to scatter the reader’s attention and break the direct logical thread, but also to unfairly put the reader at a disadvantage. If there is more than one detective, the reader does not know which one he is competing with in terms of deductive reasoning. It's like forcing the reader to race a relay team.

10. The criminal should be a character who played a more or less noticeable role in the novel, that is, a character who is familiar and interesting to the reader.

11. The author should not make a servant a murderer. It too easy solution, choosing him means avoiding difficulties. The criminal must be a person of a certain dignity - one who does not usually attract suspicion.

12. No matter how many murders are committed in a novel, there must be only one criminal. Of course, the criminal may have an assistant or accomplice who provides him with some services, but the entire burden of guilt must lie on the shoulders of one person. The reader must be given the opportunity to concentrate all the fervor of his indignation on one single black character.

13. Secret gangster societies, all sorts of Camorras and mafias are inappropriate in a detective novel. After all, an exciting and truly beautiful murder will be irreparably spoiled if it turns out that the blame falls on an entire criminal company. Of course, the murderer in a detective story should be given hope of salvation, but allowed to resort to help secret society- this is too much. No top-notch, self-respecting assassin needs such an advantage.

14. The method of murder and the means of solving the crime must meet the criteria of rationality and science. In other words, in roman policier It is unacceptable to introduce pseudoscientific, hypothetical and purely fantastic devices. As soon as the author soars in the manner Jules Verne into fantastic heights, he finds himself outside the detective genre and frolics in the uncharted expanses of the adventure genre.

15. At any moment, the solution should be obvious - provided that the reader has enough insight to figure it out. By this I mean the following: if the reader, having reached the explanation of how the crime was committed, re-reads the book, he will see that the solution, so to speak, lay on the surface, that is, all the evidence actually pointed to the culprit, and, even if he reader, as smart as a detective, he would be able to solve the mystery on his own long before last chapter. Needless to say, a savvy reader often reveals it this way.

16. Inappropriate in a detective novel long descriptions, literary digressions on side topics, sophisticated character analysis and recreation atmosphere. All these things are unimportant to the story of the crime and its logical solution. They only delay the action and introduce elements that have nothing to do with the main goal, which consists of stating a problem, analyzing it and bringing it to a successful solution. Of course, a novel should include enough description and well-defined characters to give it credibility.

17. The blame for committing a crime should never fall on a professional criminal in a detective novel. Crimes committed by burglars or bandits are investigated by police departments, not by mystery writers and brilliant amateur sleuths. A truly exciting crime is one committed by a pillar of the church or an old maid known to be a philanthropist.

18. A crime in a detective novel should not turn out to be an accident or suicide. To end the tracking odyssey with such a drop in tension is to fool the gullible and kind reader.

19. All crimes in detective novels must be committed for personal reasons. International conspiracies and military policy are the property of something completely different literary genre- say, novels about secret intelligence services. But a detective novel about murder should remain, how can I put it, in cozy, home within. It should reflect the reader's everyday experiences and in a certain sense give vent to his own repressed desires and emotions.

20. And finally, one more item for good measure: a list of some techniques that no self-respecting author of detective novels will now use. They have been overused and are well known to all true lovers of literary crime. To resort to them means to admit your incompetence as a writer and lack of originality.

a) Identification of the criminal by a cigarette butt left at the crime scene.
b) The device of the imaginary seance in order to scare the criminal and force him to give himself away.
c) Forgery of fingerprints.
d) An imaginary alibi provided by a dummy.
e) A dog that does not bark and therefore allows one to conclude that the intruder was not a stranger.
f) At the end of the day, placing the blame for the crime on a twin brother or other relative who is like two peas in a pod like the suspect, but is an innocent person.
g) Hypodermic syringe and drug mixed into wine.
h) Committing a murder in a locked room after the police broke into it.
i) Establishing guilt using psychological test naming words by free association.
j) The mystery of a code or encrypted letter, eventually solved by a detective.

Van Dyne S.S.

Translation V.Voronina
From the collection How to make a detective

IN good detective there will be charming characters, exciting intrigue and a puzzle that will not allow you to stop reading. But writing a truly worthwhile detective story, especially if you haven't done it before, can be difficult. With the right preparation, brainstorming, planning and editing, and character development, you can write detective story, to whom they will read.

Steps

Part 1

Understand the difference between detective genre and a thriller. Detective stories always start with a murder. Main question in a detective story or novel - who committed the crime. Thrillers usually begin with a situation that leads to a major disaster, such as terrorist attack, Bank robbery, nuclear explosion And so on. The main question in a thriller is whether the main character will be able to prevent a disaster.

• In detective stories, the reader does not know who committed the murder until the end of the novel. Detective stories are built on logical chains of searching for crime targets or on a puzzle.
• Mysteries are written in the first person, while thrillers are usually written in the third person and feature multiple points of view. In detective stories, the passage of time is usually more gradual as the protagonist/detective tries to solve the crime. Also, mysteries tend to have less action sequences than thrillers.
• Because the passage of time is slower in detective stories, the characters tend to be more deeply developed and well-rounded in detective stories than in thrillers.

1. Read examples of detective stories. There are many great detective stories and novels from which you can learn how to write a detective story with good story and well-developed characters.

   Identify the main character in the presented stories and novels. Think about how the author introduces the main character and how he describes him.

2. Identify the location and setting of the example story. Think about how the author shows the place and time of the story.

   • For example, in the second paragraph of the first page deep sleep Marlow places the reader in the place and time of the story: “The Sternwoods' main hall had two floors.”
   • The reader understands that Marlowe is in front of the Sternwood house, and this big house, most likely rich.

3. Think through a crime or puzzle that the main character has to solve. What crime or puzzle will the main character have to deal with? It could be a murder, a missing person, or a suspicious suicide.

   • IN Deep sleep General Sternwood hires Marlowe to “take care” of a photographer who is blackmailing the general with scandalous photographs of his daughter.

4. Identify obstacles and problems that the main character may face. A good detective will captivate the reader with the difficulties that the main character will face while fulfilling his mission (solving a crime).

   • IN Big dream Chandler complicates Detective Marlowe's pursuit of the photographer with the photographer's murder in early chapters, as well as the suspicious suicide of the general's chauffeur. Therefore, Chandler introduces two murders into the narrative that Marlowe must solve.

5. Think about solving the crime. Think about how a crime is solved at the end of a detective story. The solution to the crime should not be too obvious or far-fetched, but it should also not be implausible or out of the blue.

   • The solution to the crime should surprise the reader without confusing him. One of the advantages of the detective genre is that you can pace your story so that the revelation comes gradually, rather than in a rushed manner.

6. Review the first draft copy. Once you've drafted your mystery, go through the story, taking care to review key aspects such as:

   • Plot. Make sure your the story goes according to plan and has a clear beginning, middle and end. You should also note the changes in your main character at the end of the story.
   • Heroes. Are your characters, including the main one, unique and vibrant? All your heroes behave in a similar way or are they different? Are your characters original and charming?
   • Pace of the story. Story pacing is how quickly or slowly the events in your story unfold. Good pacing will go unnoticed by the reader. If things seem to be moving too quickly, focus more on the feel to highlight the characters' emotions. If you feel like you're bogged down in details, cut scenes down to the most essential information. Good rule is to always end an episode earlier than you think you should. This will help maintain tension from episode to episode, allowing the story to move at the right pace.
   • Turn. A twist can either ruin or make the whole detective story. It's up to the writer's discretion, but many good mysteries have a twist at the end. Make sure your twist isn't too cheap. The more unique the twist, the easier it will be to describe. When you write a tired "and here they woke up" twist, you have to be a great writer to make the twist work. A good twist can leave not only the reader, but also the hero himself, in the cold. Hint at the twist throughout the scenes of the episodes so that when the reader begins to remember earlier parts of the story, they will be surprised at how they could have missed it. However, try not to make the turn obvious too early.

1. When you start writing, come up with a sonorous pseudonym. If your real name does not fit with the detective genre, create fictitious name. This is especially true when the narrative is told in the first person.

2. Be sure to write a plan. List the main characters, define their relationships, draw a clear storyline. This will make writing a detective story much easier, so you can finish all the chapters to the end without forgetting anything.

3. You should not create many names so as not to confuse the reader. 3-5 main characters are enough, as many secondary and 10-12 episodic ones. Decide right away which one negative character, so that during the course of the presentation periodically avert or strengthen suspicions against them.

4. Carefully choose first and last names for your characters. Detective heroes have a clear division into positive, negative, neutral and comical. Based on their qualities, give them a last name, which should either emphasize their merits or intrigue until the end of the work.

5. Do not correct anything in already completed parts until you describe the outcome. At the end of the process of writing a detective story, a revision begins, during which it turns out that the work is too short, and the beginning will have to be rewritten, or an additional storyline must be introduced, etc.

6. Include characters’ dialogues in the text; they are perceived more easily by the reader than continuous exposition. Try to keep it at least 50-70%. At the same time, the heroes should not always have conversations about who killed whom and who is to blame for what; they can choose other topics for conversation.

7. Don't neglect details. Any little thing can matter, even the curtains on the window, rust on the gate, smells and much more. As if by the way, describe all the evidence as you describe the plot.

8. Introduce love and love into the story. This is interesting to many, but there shouldn’t be many such inserts, yet it’s not love story And readership These genres very rarely coincide.

9. Don't make children victims of criminals. People are sensitive to such stories. Besides, most of The readers themselves are parents and it will be extremely unpleasant for them to read such a work.

10. Write daily, otherwise you will get stuck in work forever. Determine the minimum that must be worked, even if the neighbors caused a flood in the apartment.

11. Send full text works. The chances that someone at the publishing house will be interested in part of the detective story are small.

16. There is no need to demand a report from the editors, in addition, there is no need to express indignation. Reviewers carefully read everything that comes to the publisher. And if they did not give an answer, then the detective will not be accepted by them, that is, the answer is negative.

17. You can post a detective story on the Internet, where an editor from a start-up book publishing house can read it and contribute to the speedy release of a limited series.

18. You can contact a literary agent, who, while you are writing your work, will look for a way to release it. There are our own here. The good thing is that sitting at home, you are not puzzled by the future of your detective. The downside is that you have to share your own fees.

19. Having finished the first book, immediately - before the reader and publisher forgets you - start writing the second.

20. Work constantly, so the chances of publishing at least one of your works will increase, and the success of even one book can pay off all the time spent on work.

Choose in which era the action will take place. This could be any time from Ancient Egypt to the distant future, and even a fictional planet in a new galaxy.

• Do a little research about what happened in a particular country - murders, mysterious cases. If the crime has not been solved, you can come up with any solution.

Create the image of a detective. He can be cool guy, an intellectual, a victim of circumstance, or even the source of trouble in your story. It is not necessary to answer all of the questions below. However, being thorough at this stage will help you write a believable story with a lively and complex central character.

• Come up with the most basic things. Is it a man or a woman? Name? Age? Appearance (skin color, eyes, hair)? Where is he or she from? Where does the hero live at the beginning of the story? How did he get involved? Should he be the victim? Is he the cause of what is happening?
• Give the hero a family. Parents? Brothers and sisters? Significant other? Children? Other relationships? Social groups? Someone who mysteriously disappeared... Let the circumstances be as real or as unusual as you wish.
• What kind of life does the hero lead? Is he a celebrity or is he still a newcomer? Does he have an exceptional mind? What crimes does it solve - murders, thefts, kidnappings?
• Think about what your hero loves. What's his favorite phrase? Favorite color, place, drink, book, movie, music, dish? What is he afraid of? How practical is it? Do you use perfume, and what kind – strong, weak, pleasant or not so pleasant?
• Think about religion. Is your main character religious? If so, what faith does he belong to? Perhaps he came up with it himself or chose from different religions what suited him personally? How do beliefs influence his actions? Is he superstitious?
• Decide how the hero behaves in relationships. Does he have many friends? Whether there is a best friend? Is he a romantic by nature? What first impression does he make? Does he love children? Does he read a lot? How do you feel about smoking?
• How does the hero dress? If this is a woman, does she use cosmetics or dye her hair? What about piercings or tattoos? Is your character attractive, and how attractive does he consider himself? Is there anything he would like to change or something he is particularly happy with? How much time does he devote to his appearance?
• It may seem that for short story this is too much, but it is necessary to work out the image of the main character as deeply and in detail as possible for a good story.