What Grover Taught Me about Writing Mysteries

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I am GenX, first-generation Sesame Street and first-generation MTV. One of my favorite children’s books was the classic, The Monster at the End of This Book.

Here’s what Grover taught me about writing mysteries.

  • You need to build suspense to keep your readers engaged.

  • Your readers need to like or empathize with your protagonist.

  • Everyone is afraid of something, and writers need to tap into fears to build tension.

  • Write strong (and fun) dialog. Make it sound like real speech, slang and all.

  • Use pacing correctly. Slow down the action to build suspense, and speed it up to amp up the excitement.

  • Your protagonist needs a challenge or a problem to solve.

  • Your character should not be perfect. Little (or big) flaws make your protagonist relatable and interesting.

  • Make sure your character is not flat. He or she needs to be a real person (or monster) with all the things that life throws in the way. Your protagonist needs to stumble and make mistakes.

  • When you think your character has had enough and is close to breaking, pile it on. Add more tension.

  • Don’t load up your work with a lot of narrative and back story. Readers want to stay in the action.

  • And most importantly, never forget that reading is fun.

Who’s your favorite Muppet?

Does Pop Culture Influence Your Writing?

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I am a first generation Sesame Street kid and first generation MTV. I watched a lot of 70s and 80s TV (pre-cable). Movies, music, and TV were a staple along with prepackaged food like TV dinners, Kool Aid, Pop Rocks, and Fizzies (which you can still buy). I also watched hours of reruns of shows from previous generations on the other two channels that we had (besides the three major networks). (That’s how I became a Monkees’ fan.) I read fan magazines like Teen Beat and Tiger Beat.

My love for mysteries started out with Saturday morning cartoons: Scooby-Doo, Josie and the Pussycats, and of course, Nancy Drew. When The Hardy Boys and Nancy Drew came out, I was glued to the set weekly for the mysteries and Shaun Cassidy.

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Pop culture appears frequently in my stories, novellas, and novels. My private investigator, Delanie Fitzgerald, is an 80s girl, too. She likes driving her Mustang, 80s music, and gadgets. She is always getting involved in some sort of craze such as larping (Live Action Role Playing), roller derby, Renaissance Faires, or Comicon from today’s social media and techno-flavored world. My ,mysteries are set in present day, so the characters go places, watch TV, and explore social media. That gadgets of 2019 will one day be from “the past” very soon. I like the nostalgia of days gone by. It’s fun to watch movies and see the “technology,” tools, or fads of the day.

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When you refer to copyrighted or trademarked materials, make sure to respect the trademark/copyright with the spelling/punctuation of the name. Also, avoid using a trademark to represent all types. For example, Xerox is a brand. It shouldn’t represent all photocopiers.

I like to use real places and events in my stories. Most of mine are set in Virginia, and I love to share the history, culture, and the places. When I use real locations or events, I do not have the crimes take place there. I always make up the location.

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Happy reading and watch out for the pop culture references.