Genre Guide — Mystery

Study materials for the private investigator/hard-boiled genres

Study materials for the police procedural genre.

Remember to read the articles in the Essentials section. These cover all the essential skills you’ll need as a self-published author. They are not just for beginners either. They go in depth on how to successfully write, publish, and market your own books.

Remember to read the articles in the Essentials section. These cover all the essential skills you’ll need as a self-published author. They are not just for beginners either. They go in depth on how to successfully write, publish, and market your own books.

Remember to read the articles in the Essentials section. These cover all the essential skills you’ll need as a self-published author. They are not just for beginners either. They go in depth on how to successfully write, publish, and market your own books.

Some of books in the cozy study materials will apply, as they are usually amateurs.

This genre is what a lot of people think of when they think mystery. It is a classic, but has also been modernized well. Whether you use the old tropes or strike out on your own with a new breed of PI, there's room in these genres for your story.

Police procedural is for the people who listen to police scanners. Who watch Law & Order, The Rookie, or CSI. Barney Miller if they like humor and classic TV. This genre is both character-driven and detail-oriented.

The fog of Victorian London. Jazz emanating from a Chicago speakeasy. A Benedictine monk rides a mule toward a monastery high in the Italian hills. If you think all these settings are missing is a dead body, allow me to recommend the genre of historical mystery.

When you walk into a casino, is your first thought Where is the cash room? How many security guys are on the floor? Do they look competent?

You might be the right person to write a heist.

If you love mysteries but would rather eat paste than research police procedure, amateur sleuth is right there waiting for you. And it accommodates all kinds of sleuth: cozy sleuths, hard-boiled sleuths, historical sleuths. If they're curious (nosy) and unlicensed, they're welcome here.