 Mystery: January 10, 2024 Issue [#12360] |
This week: Chasing information Edited by: Arakun the twisted raccoon  
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Quote for the week:
"Mystery spread its cloak across the sky.
We lost our way.
Shadows fell from trees.
They knew why."
~From "House of Four Doors" by the Moody Blues |
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Writing a mystery story and investigating a real life mystery have a lot in common. Just like writers, investigators need to put together the story of what happened and who is responsible. Both might encounter red herrings and false conclusions along the way, but in the end, only the true solution should remain.
Writers often spend many hours doing research to determine whether the story they are building is logical. What type of weapon would have made that wound? How could someone have entered an apparently locked room? Do the suspects and witnesses have any skeletons in their closets? What can DNA analysis and other crime scene evidence tell us? What are the symptoms of different poisons? How long does it take to travel from point A to point B?
While some fictional detectives like Sherlock Holmes seem to have all the knowledge they need to solve the crime at the top of their heads, real investigators often need to spend a lot of time doing research to answer some of the same questions writers ask. A detective doesn't need to be an expert on everything, but it helps to know who the experts are and how to contact them. Modern detectives might spend as much time on the computer chasing information as they do on the streets asking questions.
If the investigators in your story are law enforcement officers, they have police databases that might answer some of their questions, but these databases don't contain everything. They still will need to talk to witnesses or individuals who might have knowledge relating to the case.
If your investigators are lay people, there is a wealth of information on the internet, but it is not all reliable and may be incomplete. Amateur investigators might also have more difficulty getting witnesses to talk to them. While police can get warrants to grant them access to a suspect's complete social media accounts or phone records, a lay person will only be able to see what is available to the public.
Some very old or obscure information might not be available on the internet. In these cases, your investigators might need to search through old newspaper files, microfiche, or old books.
Something to try: Write a mystery story that is solved through research.
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