FICTIONAL DETECTIVES AND HOW TO CREATE THEM

We all love a good mystery—don’t we?

After all, there’s a timeless appeal to following a detective as they sift through a seemingly endless trail of information in pursuit of a single, climactic, aha moment that will unmask a killer. And who better to do that than Sherlock Holmes, Sam Spade, Nancy Drew, Hercule Poirot, or Miss Marple? Or—if you prefer your sleuths on the screen—Harry Bosch, Columbo, Olivia Benson, Adrian Monk, or Jessica Fletcher.

I believe fictional detectives hold a special place in the history of storytelling because they’re so memorable. Unlike their real-life counterparts who do the actual work of crime solving, fictional detectives have the good fortune of being conceived by an author who begins the story with an end goal in mind and a plan on how to get there. Mistakes along the way only fill the proverbial waste basket rather than jeopardizing actual people or complex investigations.

What is it that makes fictional detective stories so unputdownable? Why do we read multiple books in a mystery series or binge watch endless episodes of TV crime thrillers?

There are probably two reasons.

One is that long-running mysteries tend to be well crafted. I didn’t particularly like the lead character in the British TV show “Vera,” and yet I watched all fourteen seasons because I thought the stories were so good. The second reason is that authors and screenwriters of popular mysteries create characters we love to follow. I’ve read most of the Agent Pendergast books co-written by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child mainly because I love the main character so much. He’s weird, completely unbelievable, and yet fascinating.

Iconic fictional detectives, even amateur sleuths, rely on one or more important personal characteristics that not only make them successful but intriguing. First, they’re smart, sometimes brilliant (as in the case of Sherlock Holmes). They have an uncanny ability to separate the wheat from the chaff. Unless the story is a slapstick comedy (Peter Sellers in the ‘Pink Panther’), the detective must have some intellectual chops.

Having a strong intellect, however, isn’t enough. Typically, the best detectives are fueled by relentless curiosity. To them, investigating a crime is like pulling a continuous thread they can’t stop pulling. Why? Because they have a primordial need to see what’s at the other end. And yes, while their curiosity ultimately produces results, it often gets them into trouble.

That’s just part of the story. A good detective must also display a strong power of observation. They see things others don’t see. The fleck of red clay dirt on someone’s shoelace. The photo of the victim’s rowing team picturing a guy who swore he’d never met the victim. The lingering perfume of the killer. Even if the investigator misses the connection in the beginning of the story, they will make that connection by the end.

And finally, believable detectives are plagued with a kind of doggedness. They don’t give up. No matter what. They can get fired, removed from the case, warned off by a death threat, or haunted by a ghost, and yet they’ll keep going. Yep. Just like the Energizer Bunny. After all, I can’t imagine Sherlock Holmes saying, “I can’t figure that out. Let someone else do it.”

If you’re a mystery writer, or an aspiring mystery writer, I’d suggest you spend some quality time with your lead character before you begin writing. What would make your character stand out in the already plentiful field of fictional sleuths? What would make them memorable? Think about the well-known ones like Sherlock Holmes, who, although a heroin addict, has an amazing ability to deduct solutions through logic and reason. Both Adrian Monk and Spencer Reid (‘Criminal Minds’) suffer from forms of neurodivergence and yet, because of those disabilities, can see patterns around them that others can’t. On the surface, Miss Marple is a nosy busybody. Underneath, she has a strong intuitive sense and the ability to identify certain human behaviors that don’t fit the norm.

Once you’ve figured out what might make your character unique, take some time to understand why readers would commit to following this character, especially if it’s an amateur sleuth, through the lengthy machinations of a murder investigation. What is it about their personality that qualifies them for such a role? What makes us like them? What makes us root for them? What is it about them that would motivate us to sit down to read or watch the next episode?

Murder mysteries are puzzles that we willingly invest time and patience in to get to a satisfactory conclusion. Your lead character, then, needs to be good at unraveling the threads of that puzzle that when reassembled will point a finger at the killer. If you can do that, you’ll be one step closer to creating a mystery that people will love.