Free Writing the Cozy Mystery by Nancy J. Cohen

 

     

Copyright Page
     
    Writing the Cozy Mystery
    Published by Orange Grove Press
    ISBN-13: 978-0-9914655-0-7
    ISBN-10: 0991465504
     
    COPYRIGHT © 2014 by Nancy J. Cohen
     
    Cover Design by Boulevard Photografica
    Digital Layout by www.formatting4U.com
     
    All rights reserved.
    This book is licensed for your personal use only. If you wish to share a copy, please purchase an additional book to give as a gift. No part of this work may be used, reproduced, stored in an information retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means whatsoever (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without prior written consent by the author. Any usage of the text—except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews—without the author’s permission is a violation of copyright.
     

     
    WRITING THE COZY MYSTERY
     
    Nancy J. Cohen
     
    How to Write a Winning Whodunit
     

Table of Contents
     
    Copyright Page
    Introduction
    Chapter One - Defining the Genre
    Chapter Two – World Building
    Chapter Three - Creating the Sleuth
    Chapter Four - A Web of Suspects
    Chapter Five - Heightening Suspense
    Chapter Six - Solving the Puzzle
    Chapter Seven – The Grand Finale
    Chapter Eight – Series Continuity
    Chapter Nine – Organizational Tools
    Chapter Ten - Final Words
    Writer’s Resources
    Author’s Note
    About the Author
    More Books by Nancy J. Cohen
     
     

     
Introduction
     
    One of the best ways to get started writing mysteries is to read them. If you gravitate toward a certain type of story, likely that is the subgenre you’ll pursue as a writer. Are you attracted to bright, cheery covers with funny titles or to more serious works?
    Despite marketing fluctuations, cozy mysteries have always been popular. These stories satisfy our need for justice, and they do so in a manner that allows readers to finish the book with a smile. Most cozies don’t contain foul language or graphic scenes and so can be read by all ages. If this kind of story appeals to you, how do you get started writing one?
    This book will help you develop your characters, determine your setting, plot the story, add suspense, and sustain your series. But first, let’s take a look at genre definitions.
     
     

Chapter One - Defining the Genre
     
    A cozy mystery can be defined as a whodunit featuring an amateur sleuth, a distinctive setting, and a limited number of suspects, most of whom may know each other. These stories contain no explicit sex or violence. While murder is usually the basis for the story, the focus of a traditional whodunit is on the solution rather than on forensic details of the crime scene. The story presents a puzzle that challenges readers to solve the mystery.
    These novels center on the relationships among individuals, and not on large, impersonal groups like global terrorists, international drug cartels, or secret government agencies. Psychological studies of the criminal mind or profiles of serial killers don’t play a big role here.
    The amateur sleuth is your average Joe or Joanne. He’s not professionally engaged in hunting down or prosecuting criminals. The sleuth may run into serious danger but isn’t physically damaged to any great extent. Occupations of today’s protagonists range from bakery owners to antique dealers to dry cleaners to caterers.
    Agatha Christie stories offer prime examples of a traditional mystery. In television, consider Murder, She Wrote with Angela Lansbury, who played mystery writer and amateur sleuth Jessica Fletcher. She lived in the small town of Cabot Cove, Maine and solved murders on a weekly basis. Then there’s the entertaining Mystery Woman series of Hallmark TV movies starring Kellie Martin as bookstore owner Samantha Kinsey. An avid mystery fan, Samantha gets caught up in solving crimes as much as bookselling.
    Look to the classic Clue game for another example of a murder happening in a confined setting with a limited number of