When my
husband was in the police academy, something they emphasized was, “Look up,
look down, look all around.” That’s good advice for anyone investigating a crime, real or fictional.
Have you ever
played one of those Search & Find games on the computer? Some of the
objects you’re told to find will turn up in the most unlikely places. That’s
true in life, too. I recently lost my car keys. Thankfully, I had an extra set
of keys. I looked everywhere for those missing keys, including emptying out my
purse (which would frighten a mere mortal) and all of my pockets. I’d had an
appointment that day and finally decided I must have dropped them in the
parking lot without realizing it.
I missed
those keys because there were other things on the keychain besides my car and
house key. The house key is another story. Whoever lived here before had
different locks put on every door. Lots of keys for lots of doors. But I
digress.
About two
weeks later I put on a jacket to wear to the store, stuck my hand in the pocket
and, surprise, surprise, there were the lost keys. I could have sworn I wore a
different jacket the day of my appointment.
In Old Murders Never Die – A Sandi Webster Mystery, Sandi and Pete are
stranded in a ghost town. To the best of their knowledge, no one had set foot
in Wolf Creek for over a hundred years. Without much else to do, the two detectives
started looking things over and they discovered unsolved murders from around
1880. Thus began their desire to solve the old murders. As the pair began
searching houses in the town, they looked for clues, and Pete (an ex-police
officer) offered Sandi the advice my husband offered me. She looked up, down
and all around, and a few clues came to light after all those years.
This looks like a good hiding place.
Readers,
including me, love secret rooms or passages. These things add to the suspense.
So when our protagonists see something that doesn’t look quite right, they take
a second look and generally, in a mystery, they’ll discover something
unexpected. How about a secret room that houses a mummy? (Gin Mill Grill – A Sandi Webster Mystery)
When writing
a mystery, have a little fun. Close your eyes and picture the last place
someone might look for a clue, information, or a body. Of course, there are
times these places need to fall short of offering help. Don’t forget red
herrings. Also, don’t forget that not all mysteries include a death. The
mystery might include a missing person, or as in my case, lost keys.
Speaking of
keys, my grandfather had a key collection. Some of them were pretty old. I had
a very old trunk that was locked and no one could figure out where the key
might be. What’s the fun in calling a locksmith? I dug out Grandpa’s key
collection and after trying several of them, I found one that opened the trunk.
The case of the missing key? Solved, although I have a feeling that this might
have been a skeleton key that would open many things.
So, whether
we’re talking about fiction or real life, remember to look up, look down and
look all around. If that doesn’t work, start checking pockets.
Have you ever
lost something important and found it in a very unusual spot?
Until next
time, take in your surroundings and look for the unusual or unexpected.
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