{"product_id":"how-to-write-a-damn-good-mystery-a-practical-step-by-step-guide-from-inspiration-to-finished-manuscript-9780312304461","title":"How to Write a Damn Good Mystery: A Practical Step-By-Step Guide from Inspiration to Finished Manuscript","description":"\u003cp\u003eEdgar award nominee James N. Frey, author of the internationally best-selling books on the craft of writing, \u003ci\u003eHow to Write a Damn Good Novel\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eHow to Write a Damn Good Novel II: Advanced Techniques\u003c\/i\u003e, and \u003ci\u003eThe Key: How to Write Damn Good Fiction Using the Power of Myth\u003c\/i\u003e, has now written what is certain to become the standard \"how to\" book for mystery writing, \u003ci\u003eHow to Write a Damn Good Mystery\u003c\/i\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eFrey urges writers to aim high-not to try to write a good-enough-to-get-published mystery, but a damn good mystery. A damn good mystery is first a dramatic novel, Frey insists-a dramatic novel with living, breathing characters-and he shows his readers how to create a living, breathing, believable character who will be clever and resourceful, willful and resolute, and will be what Frey calls \"the author of the plot behind the plot.\"\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eFrey then shows, in his well-known, entertaining, and accessible (and often humorous) style, how the characters-the entire ensemble, including the murderer, the detective, the authorities, the victims, the suspects, the witnesses and the bystanders-create a complete and coherent world.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eExploring both the on-stage action and the behind-the-scenes intrigue, Frey shows prospective writers how to build a fleshed-out, believable, and logical world. He shows them exactly which parts of that world show up in the pages of a damn good mystery-and which parts are held back just long enough to keep the reader guessing.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThis is an indispensable step-by-step guide for anyone who's ever dreamed of writing a damn good mystery.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eBinding Type:\u003c\/b\u003e Hardcover\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e St. Martin's Press\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 02\/12\/2004\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN:\u003c\/b\u003e 9780312304461\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 271\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 1.10lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 8.60h x 5.80w x 1.20d\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eReview Citations: \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003ci\u003eBooklist\u003c\/i\u003e 01\/01\/2004 pg. 809\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003ePW Notes and Reprints\u003c\/i\u003e 01\/26\/2004 pg. 235\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eLibrary Journal\u003c\/i\u003e 02\/01\/2004 pg. 103\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003ePublishers Weekly\u003c\/i\u003e 01\/26\/2004\u003cbr\u003e","brand":"Frey","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":36635824685212,"sku":"9780312304461","price":29.75,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0473\/0804\/6492\/products\/img_2f060c48-9ef1-4c9d-8b22-1ba03c6702c9.jpg?v=1603840630","url":"https:\/\/pastforward.org\/products\/how-to-write-a-damn-good-mystery-a-practical-step-by-step-guide-from-inspiration-to-finished-manuscript-9780312304461","provider":"Past Forward","version":"1.0","type":"link"}