  Mystery
This week: Edited by: Kate - Writing & Reading  
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Welcome to this week’s edition of the Mystery Newsletter. A mystery by nature is a question in search of an answer. The Mystery Writer poses the question in prose or poetry, and then proffers clues in the scenes, conversations and actions of believable characters. A microcosm of life and living, but one that the writer controls by taking pen or keyboard in hand and designing a world of solvable riddles and clues, perhaps by transporting them for a time to an ‘otherworld.’
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I would like to explore this month the True Crime Mystery. I see this as the dark side of a Historical Mystery. One key difference in the two forms is the reliance in the True Crime Mystery on actual historical criminal facts. An actual crime is explored, the scene is set where the reader is transported into an actual crime scene and the events that surround it. True Crime Mystery readers are likely familiar with the known facts of the case and would quickly poke holes in a cursory exploration by the Mystery writer. Historical accuracy becomes not only relevant, but mandatory to hold the reader’s interest. If the crime has been solved, the writer is perhaps devising a believable prequel, or exploring the life of the victim or one of the investigators in the case.
Perhaps your True Crime Mystery will offer the pieces of an alternate puzzle where the perpetrator was really framed or was the unwitting accomplice. The facts of the case are still relevant, and knowledge of criminal terminology and standard police procedures is paramount. For example, were the accomplice to be convicted of manslaughter (un-planned murder, or one not connected with a felony), he/she would not need to plea bargain down from life in prison or the threat of capital punishment, but if an active accomplice, then the threat of conviction and sentencing for homicide (murder with malice and forethought) may elicit a false plea bargain and frame job There are numerous websites which offer basic definitions of criminal terminology, some of which could incite possible alternate plots for actual crimes, either solved or open. Some local police departments have ombudsmen who may be willing to read through a final draft of a story to punch holes in obvious procedural or technical inaccuracies. The more accurate your knowledge as a writer, the more believable the mystery will be for your readers.
Setting a believable scene is also key, laying out the puzzle pieces (a developing crime scene) to elicit reaction and perception from all the senses, so the reader can find the clues, and arrive at the writer’s solution at or near the time the crime is solved, or un-solved, as the case may be. Not all true crime stories explore murders, I simply use those as examples, as they are the most well known and verifiable.
So, if you have an idea what might really have happened to Jimmy Hoffa, or where Danny Green might be, or was the Black Dahlia one person, or why choose St. Valentine’s Day for a Massacre – all potentially intriguing mysteries, try weaving it into a True Crime Mystery.
A couple of publications that welcome emerging writers, and invite well-plotted mysteries of crime real and/or devised, are Alfred Hitchcock and Ellery Queen – check out their publishing guidelines here - http://www.themysteryplace.com/
I invite you to take a look at some of the true crime mysteries penned by writers in our Community for our sleuth-ful reading and review.
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I asked for some good reads over the winter, and the following Novella I think is both a Historical and True Crime Mystery ~ see if you agree with the Author's Tag (also included here) ~
The Unspoken Consensus is set in rural Louisiana in 1964 and is not just another 'civil rights atrocity' story. The story takes a close look at what the murder did to anyone connected to it. Thanks,Dave Jones
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I believe I mentioned Jimmy Hoffa ~ check these out
Or perhaps a 'connection' to Mr. Capone or his 'family' here ~
Or perhaps you will ponder this puzzle in verse
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I would like to share some comments (and additional recommended mystery reading) by some of our members
Submitted By: Vivian 
Submitted Comment:
Kate, you give much information about historical mystery that can help writers manage the genre. One of my favorite authors is Anne Perry, whose mysteries take place in Victorian England, usually in the London area. ~~ Viv
I will take you up on the suggestion and journey for a time to Victorian England as the snow and sleet seal my windows near shut- thank you
Submitted By: twyls
Submitted Comment:
I’m so glad you brought up historical mysteries! I haven’t written one – yet – but I can highly recommend one. Interrupted Aria is the first in the Baroque Mysteries by Beverly Graves Myers. I wasn’t interested in Venice, the opera, or mysteries, but I try to support local (Louisville) authors, so I picked this up. I can tell you I learned a lot, but mostly I was just entertained.
Then your author, Ms. Myers, wove a historical mystery ~ if it transported you to her world in Venice for a time ~ and thank you for the reading tip ^_^
Submitted By: alanscott
Submitted Comment:
Hi, Manga Kate! Great newsletter! As mystery writers, we like to put different elements of murder and mayhem into our stories to keep them from stagnating. Do you have any resources or web-sites where we could get information on poisons or explosives?Thanks,Scott
Thank you for writing ~ and you've firmed up my theme for next month's issue (March 5th) ~ until then ~ Keep Writing! and Reading ~ Next week's Editor is Tehanu 
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Mystery: February 06, 2008 Issue [#2206]
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