Mystery International

In the mystery genre, few writers excel at creating likable crooks and imaginative crimes like Donald E. Westlake (1933-2008). Over his career, Westlake offered a who’s who of recognizable characters (including John Dortmunder), award winning titles (including the Edgar Award winning God Save the Mark), and films (including The Stepfather).

Though he began as a hard boiled mystery writer (and maintained this terse style under his infamous pseudonym Richard Stark), Westlake’s forte was in creating sympathetic (more…)

Writing for any genre can prove to be a challenge. However, it is my opinion that writing for the mystery field can be the most difficult. There are many factors to think about when you are considering a mystery story. How you approach each story will differ, depending on the subject matter. Today, we will discuss the murder-mystery.

Murder mysteries are perhaps the most widely read faction of the genre. They are cleverly woven, and if the author is good, he or she can keep the reader guessing right up the very end! (more…)