SKU: 92892798280

How to Write a Damn Good Mystery: A Practical Step-By-Step Guide from Inspiration to Finished Manuscript

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How to Write a Damn Good Mystery: A Practical Step-By-Step Guide from Inspiration to Finished ManuscriptEdgar award nominee James N. Frey, author of the internationally best selling books on the craft of writing, How to Write a Damn Good Novel, How to Write a Damn Good Novel II: Advanced Techniques, and The Key: How to Write Damn Good Fiction Using the Power of Myth, has now written what is certain to become the standard "how to" book for mystery writing, How to Write a Damn Good Mystery. Frey urges writers to aim high not to try to write a good enough

Edgar award nominee James N. Frey, author of the internationally best-selling books on the craft of writing, How to Write a Damn Good Novel, How to Write a Damn Good Novel II: Advanced Techniques, and The Key: How to Write Damn Good Fiction Using the Power of Myth, has now written what is certain to become the standard "how to" book for mystery writing, How to Write a Damn Good Mystery.

Frey 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."

Frey 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.

Exploring 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.

This is an indispensable step-by-step guide for anyone who's ever dreamed of writing a damn good mystery.



Binding Type: Hardcover
Publisher: St. Martin's Press
Published: 02/12/2004
ISBN: 9780312304461
Pages: 271
Weight: 1.10lbs
Size: 8.60h x 5.80w x 1.20d

Review Citations: Booklist 01/01/2004 pg. 809
PW Notes and Reprints 01/26/2004 pg. 235
Library Journal 02/01/2004 pg. 103
Publishers Weekly 01/26/2004
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SKU: 92892798280

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D_will
Battle Creek, US
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Pretty good product!!
Color: Dark Brown
This wooden valet tray is exactly what I needed for my new apartment. It surprised me how big it was because I wasn’t expecting it to be that big. Overall, this tray is good and holds all my things!
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Reviewed in the United States on January 5, 2026
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This is very very very small and honestly not worth the money ! I should have returned it but it but was not able to at the time!do not waste your money on this product!!!
Alexandria, US
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Color and quality
Color: Light Brown
Beautiful and wonderfully made just did not work with our color palette
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Reviewed in the United States on April 6, 2026
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Carlos Andrade
Chelsea, US
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Todo según lo esperado
Color: Dark Brown
Todo como lo esperado
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James Turner
Pawtucket, US
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Great for blue collar guys
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Perfect size for dumping pockets, phone, knife and keys after work or when switching pants
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David Pearl
Dallas, US
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Effective & Attractive with Wireless Charging
Color: Blue, Color: Blue
This "valet" organizer, which is the first time I've heard that term for a product like this, is nearly perfect. For me, it checks all of the boxes and in a perfect world, I would have opted for a smaller piece with only three compartments for mobile, wallet, and keys. It's well made and quite attractive, especially the blue (favorite color, so I'm biased). The only feature I'm not a fan of is how the removeable, wireless charging pad was implemented, which sits up on a small lip at a slight incline. However, I'm not complaining one bit as the wireless charging is great, and it's a differentiator that determines the value of the piece. I would have preferred the pad be built into the piece, however the angle of it does make it easy to grab opposed to using your finger(s) to pry it up.
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Reviewed in the United States on September 8, 2024

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