Are Ronald Knox’s 1929 Rules on Detective Fiction Still Accurate?

~ ladyjabberwocky ~ 2 Comments

Hello amateur sleuths!

Did you know that one famous author actually wrote rules for writing detective stories in the 1920’s?

Ronald Knox was a prominent figure in the Golden Age of Detective Fiction. As a mystery loving priest, he published the Ten Commandments on Detective Fiction. Are the rules still relevant or outdated? Let’s investigate, shall we?

The criminal must be someone mentioned in the early part of the story, but must not be anyone whose thoughts the reader has been allowed to follow.

True enough. If the author introduces the real killer towards the end, readers will feel cheated. How can they suspect a character that came out of nowhere? The criminal needs to be introduced within the first couple chapters of the story. Also, the audience, usually, isn’t allowed to enter the thoughts of the murderer. Their inner workings should remain unknown to the audience, until the very end.

All supernatural or preternatural agencies are ruled out as a matter of course.

Now, I disagree with this one, just a smidge. If done right, multiple genres can be featured in a single story. Maybe a sprinkle of supernatural could work in a murder mystery. It’s all about balance. As long as the integrity of the whodunit remains solid, other genres can join in. A little fantasy and magic never killed nobody.

Not more than one secret room or passage is allowable.

I mean, he has a point. A second secret passage won’t garner as much surprise as the first secret passage. One hidden room is enough. Don’t push your luck.

No hitherto undiscovered poisons may be used, nor any appliance which will need a long scientific explanation at the end.

Fair enough, Mr. Knox. Basically, this rule applies to all made up devices. Hard to acquire poisons from foreign lands or complex inventions are far too unlikely plotwise. Using an unusual method cheats the readers from unraveling the mystery themselves. Remember, detective fiction is meant to challenge the reader mentally, like a puzzle.

No Chinaman must figure in the story.

No, we’re not talking about those of Chinese descent. The term ‘Chinamen’ refers to evil mastermind character, maniacal laugh included. Antagonists need real motives. Their reason for committing a crime must be plausible. No sinister villains are welcome in a detective story.

No accident must ever help the detective, nor must he ever have an unaccountable intuition which proves to be right.

Frankly, this rule reminds me of those classic Scooby Doo cartoon, where clues fall into their laps. As tempting as it sounds, coincidences, chance happenings and bizarre hunches are just too easy. Every clue must be discovered on purpose, with purpose. Don’t just hand over clues on a silver platter. Make your detective, and the reader, work for every scrap of information.

The detective must not himself commit the crime.

Where’s the fun in that? Listen to Knox, it’d be a disaster to have the detective be the culprit. Plus, you’re killing any chance for a sequel. No pun intended.

The detective must not light on any clues which are not instantly produced for the inspection of the reader.

For fairness, the detective and the reader must have equal opportunity to solve the case. However, the sleuth can keep some less obvious clues to himself. Just collecting the insignificant clues in his/her pocket until the big reveal. The reader knows every hint, but just isn’t sure how important each piece of information is.

The stupid friend of the detective, the Watson, must not conceal any thoughts which pass through his mind; his intelligence must be slightly, but very slightly, below that of the average reader.

I object to this one. Although he wasn’t smarter than Holmes, I wouldn’t consider Watson an idiot. Seriously, Watson could pull his own weight. The sidekick can have brains too. Heck, they may even become as asset for a detective during an investigation. Instead of being slightly below the reader’s intelligence, why can’t a sidekick’s intelligence be slightly below the detective’s brainpower?

Twin brothers, and doubles generally, must not appear unless we have been duly prepared for them.

See, I feel like nowadays, audiences are thrilled by surprise doubles. Not all doubles or twin need a heads up in advance.

Yes, all of these “commandments” have been broken in detective fiction before. However, some of these rules are still relevant by today’s standards. Murder mysteries are complicated games, whether you choose to take note of the rules or break them is up to you. You’re the writer.

What do you guys think of Knox’s rules from 1929? Do you think they still hold up to today’s whodunits? Let me know in the comments.

Write with Heart,

Lady Jabberwocky

Camp NaNoWriMo: Progress is Progress (Week 4 Update)

~ ladyjabberwocky ~ 1 Comment

Hello Writer Bees!

We are coming on the last few days of Camp NaNoWriMo. Hope you all have had a productive time while at camp.

Overall, it was a great experience. Made some serious progress on editing my mystery WIP. I can finally start to see the light at the end of this dark, editing tunnel. Starting to feel like this project will be finished soon. Also, It was lovely connecting with the writing community during Camp NaNoWriMo. Especially during that virtual write-in last week. Hearing everyone talk about their projects and word counts was awesome and inspiring. I’ll be on the lookout for other NaNoWriMo events throughout the year.

During this crazy month, I learned something about the editing process. In editing, you will find tangles. Bits of story that don’t make sense, aren’t working as planned. Fixing them can feel like you are unraveling a knot. For me, I was so fixated on iron out some scenes, I didn’t realize I was making things more complicated that they needed to be. Perfectionist bug? Maybe. Or maybe It’s a pick and choose your battles kind of thing. If you’ve ever felt the same way, ask yourself this. Does this little detail you are fussing over have a significant impact on the story? What is this part’s purpose? When in doubt, take a step back and look at the whole plot. Doing so can bring some clarity to the writing process.

Thank you all for joining me on my Camp NaNoWriMo adventure. Your kind words and support mean the world to me. As a reminder, next month is May of Mystery, when all prompts and post celebrate detective fiction. I’ll be sharing my favorite mystery themed posts from previous years with you. Get ready amateur sleuths, there’s mystery afoot!

How was your Camp NaNoWriMo experience? What progress, big or small, have you made on your creative endeavors? Talk to me in the comments. As always, I love hearing from you.

Write with Heart.

Love,

Lady Jabberwocky

Camp NaNoWriMo: Virtual Write-In + WIP Research (Week 3 Update)

~ ladyjabberwocky ~ 3 Comments

Hello Writer bees!

Hope you and your creative endeavors are doing well. Welcome to week three of Camp NaNoWriMo!

I’ve been burning the candle at both ends lately, so I was looking forward to an upcoming break. Despite a hectic week at my real job, I’ve scheduled some time off this week to write and to relax. Mental health day from work turned into an all-day editing extravaganza. Made a lot of progress on my editing to-do list. Honestly, feeling a little proud of myself. It’s refreshing to spend a day doing what you love, an excellent way to recharge the spirits.

Random sidenote: Anyone else feel like their search history is questionable when writing? If so, you’ll find this funny. Something hilarious happened a few days ago. My partner, Michael, has always been my biggest supporter. Even though he’s not a writer, he likes to check in and offer encouragement. The other day, he asked how editing was going and what I was working on. My answer? “Oh, I researched how to clean blood stains from a crime scene.” The strange search history of a mystery writer. Guess that’s part of writing a murder mystery, things can get dark.

Also, last night, I participated in a write-in event for Camp NaNoWriMo, hosted by Kelley Tai. That was so much fun! I didn’t realize how much I missed hanging out with other writers. We all talked about our current projects and did writing sprints and prompts together. And guide Kelley was a delight. Would definitely join another write-in for NaNoWriMo in the future. Highly recommend joining a write-in if you are feeling stuck in your writing or if want to interact with other writers. The writing community is truly amazing, I’m lucky to a part of it.

That’s my update for week three of Camp NaNoWriMo. Sorry for the short update. It’s been a busy week, but I’ve made serious headway with my WIP. Let’s see if I can keep this ball rolling!

What’s the strangest thing you’ve search for fiction writing purposes? Let me know in the comments!

Write with heart.

Love,

Lady Jabberwocky

Camp NaNoWriMo: Renaming Characters + Writer Breaks (Week 2 Update)

~ ladyjabberwocky ~ 4 Comments

Hello Writer bees!

Hope you all are staying well and staying creative.

It’s been a rough couple of days for me. Remember how in my last Camp NaNoWriMo update, I told you I’m working on keeping a more positive mindset? Maybe I jinxed myself. Maybe the universe heard me, and thought, ‘let’s throw some hardballs.’ Life stress plus work stress equals one stressed lady! Writing this post has been one of my few fleeting breathers this week.  

But, writing and editing my WIP still need to be done. So, I carry on, as best I can. Take breaks when I can. Overwhelmed and overload, I stopped and made myself some fried rice in my cozy sweatpants. My preferred method of decompressing. After that break, I went back to tackling the big editing giant that is my mystery WIP. Breaks are important. Even just taking a rest, or cooking a meal, or watching a movie can do wonders for your mental health. Don’t forget to take care of yourselves, writer bees.

In other news, changes to my characters are happening this week. What’s a sure sign of writer insanity? Naming and renaming characters. Yes, I’ve fallen into that trap, constantly scrolling through first and last names. I can’t help it. I’ve been meaning to change two of my characters names for a while. Embarrassing enough, but one of the suspects has had a temporary last name for years. Yikes. So, I took the opportunity while at Camp NaNoWriMo to look through names and finally making those changes.

How do I go about naming a character? Baby naming websites have come in clutch. Also, if you’re like me and writing historical fiction, the Social Security Administration website is a gift. You can search through the most poplar names of a specific decade. Super helpful!

Anyone else feel like naming a character is a lot of pressure? Or is that just me? I mean, I know people name children and pets, but fictional characters feel different. Picking the right name that fits perfectly with the story and isn’t the name of someone you know is a unique challenge. It’s all in those pesky, tiny details, right? The tedious work of a writer.

That’s it for week two of Camp NaNoWriMo. Nothing exciting writing-wise, I’m afraid. Just renaming characters and ticking off items from my editing to-do list. Hoping to join a NaNoWriMo virtual write-in or event next week. We’ll see what happens, stay tuned!

How do you name characters? And how are your creative endeavors going? Share your progress. Talk to me in the comments. As always, I love to hear from you guys.

Write with heart.

Love,

Lady Jabberwocky

Camp NaNoWriMo: Editing is Hard (Week 1 Update)

~ ladyjabberwocky ~ 5 Comments

Hello Writer Bees!

Welcome to week one of Camp NaNoWriMo! Hope you are all out there creating amazing things.

How’s my WIP coming along? Glad you asked.

In the wise, relatable words of my blogger buddy Jai Lyn, writing is hard. Fact. Here’s another fact I’ve recently learned; editing is also hard.

In my experience, the editing process has its peaks and valleys. There are days when everything I’ve written is awful and it’s a soul-crushing low. The ‘maybe I should give up’ voice creeps in. Other days, chin raised, I face the storm of editing head on and afterwards, feel like some progress was made. A small, fleeting victory.

Honestly, I’ve never had to edit a piece this size before. I think that’s why it’s taken me so long to edit this story. And mysteries are a beast. Lots of fine tuning is involved with this genre. From the subtleties of suspects to leaving behind crumbs of clues. It’s meticulous. It’s difficult. But it’s not impossible.

When I began editing, I tried to fix everything all at once, hopping from scene to scene. With no direct focus, I was taking shots in the dark. My lack of editing experience and ability was showing. Even so, I wasn’t giving up. I could learn and practice and become better at editing. Just had to find a method to the madness that worked for me. One thing that’s helped me tackle a large project is writing a list. A list of items that need to be edited. From the big plot points to the small details. It kept me on track, it gave me a to-do list. Also, it showed me just how close I am to finishing this WIP once and for all. Which is exciting.

Long story short, that’s my Camp NaNoWriMo update. Compiling a to-edit list and knocking each item out one by one. Hey, that’s what works for me. Also, maintaining a positive attitude through the editing process. There are dark moments. I question if the never-ending editing cycle is all worth it. It will be, I have a feeling.

To all my fellow creatives out there who have edited before, how was the editing process for you? Vent in the comments. Consider it is a safe space to scream. If you have any advice on editing, please share with the rest of the class.

Write with heart.

Love,

Lady Jabberwocky