Amazon.com: The Elements of Mystery Fiction: Writing a Modern Whodunit (9780871161765): William G. Tapply: Books

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The Elements of Mystery Fiction: Writing a Modern Whodunit
 
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The Elements of Mystery Fiction: Writing a Modern Whodunit [Paperback]

William G. Tapply (Author)
4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)


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Product Details

  • Paperback: 150 pages
  • Publisher: Writer, Inc. (June 1995)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0871161761
  • ISBN-13: 978-0871161765
  • Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.4 x 0.4 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces
  • Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,415,404 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

2 Reviews
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Average Customer Review
4.5 out of 5 stars (2 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars Read this before..., March 9, 2004
By 
cammykitty "cammykitty" (Minneapolis, MN United States) - See all my reviews
This review is from: The Elements of Mystery Fiction: Writing a Modern Whodunit (Paperback)
Read this before.... you start floundering on your first attempt at a mystery. This book won't teach you to write well, nor does it try to. Tapply assumes you will read other books on writing, maybe take classes, and will put in the elbow grease required to learn how to write well on your own.

What he offers in this book is an insightful overview of writing issues peculiar to the mystery genre. Such as how to approach a plot that is very much two-fold. To the reader, the plot is how will the protagonist unravel this mystery. But there is also the plot of how and why did the murderer/villain etc commit the crime. He discusses different types of slueths, and characterization points to consider if you are potentially developing a series slueth. He also goes into an in depth discussion of dialog since much of mystery is driven by conversations in which the slueth gathers information. He discusses structure and tension. He also mentions several common pitfalls that every writer has committed in a first draft at some point.

On the whole, a very useful book for someone who already has a good start at becoming a writer but just needs a little more direction on how to approach mysteries. My copy has yellow highlighter all through it now, and I intend to go back to it because I know I'll need the information I highlighted again someday.

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9 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Always a Winner, May 16, 2000
By A Customer
This review is from: The Elements of Mystery Fiction: Writing a Modern Whodunit (Paperback)
Several years ago, Mr. Tapply was kind enough to give me some much needed criticism. This book reminded me fondly of his comments ( sometimes written in the margins; other times typed neatly on a seperate sheet of paper ) which were always well-reasoned and compassionate. Read this book. Often. Mr. Tapply's advise and tactics on writing inspired me to finish my college degree and re-enter the writing life.
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