“It was a dark and stormy night…’ Remember Snoopy’s famous one-liner that was going to begin his ever- elusive great mystery story? Perhaps you know how Snoopy feels, perched atop his doghouse, typewriter silent. You’ve got that mystery story brewing in your brain. But where to begin. Random nefarious characters, eerie, foreboding nuances, grim settings…all that we love about the mystery genre swirl just below the surface of your consciousness. If visions of King and Christie dance in your head, but you just lack a boost in the right direction, look no farther. Here is my DIY Guide to Mystery Story Writing. Here are 25 of my best mystery story starters, perfect for kids, teens and adults.
The Wishing Well Horror
I hated drawing water from the dank, bug-infested well house to begin with. When the bucket came up heavier and more slowly than usual, I sensed that something was wrong. But I was totally unprepared for the horror that followed…
The Book Seller’s Enigma
I hadn’t remembered seeing the musty old book shop on that street before, but the old peddler beckoned me. When I returned the next day with my brother, shop and shopkeeper had gone. We asked an old-timer passing by, ‘That shop?’ he declared, ‘why it ain’t been around for 50 years!’
The Smell in the Cellar
We kept the cellar door locked. No one went down there. One day when I went by I smelled an odd, familiar smell, like something I hadn’t smelled since I was little. The odor got stronger, until finally I opened the door and went down the rickety steps.
The Missing Photo
I loved to look through our old family photos. One day, I noticed that a certain picture had been removed. I asked the whole family and no one seemed to have taken it. Was someone hiding something?
The Secret Room
Tearing down a wall to build an addition to our home, I discovered a small narrow room hidden between the walls for decades and what was in it gave me the shock of my life.
The Thing in the Pond For years, I’ve visited a pond in the woods near our house. Recently I saw something more than sand, rocks and a few fish and turtles. Something much, much more…
The Prank Caller We thought the odd phone calls were just pranks by some local kids. Until the caller asked me something really scary. ‘Did anybody ever find where you buried the body?’
The Letter from Yesterday The envelope that came in the mail looked really elegant and I was hoping that it was an invitation to a party. It was an invitation. For a party dated, July 30, 1927.
The Silent Boy We were all playing in our fort by the creek. A tall thin boy with dark eyes and long hair appeared silently from the woods. He came out every day for two weeks but he never said a word. Until one day…
The Creature
My cat likes to bring home an odd assortment of creatures. Not that he kills them. I think they are his friends. One day the cat brought home something I have never seen before in my life and I doubt that I ever will again.
Are your creative juices beginning to flow?
