I'm not writing a genre mystery, but there is a murder mystery that is sort of the backdrop of my novel. I'm only halfway through this story at best and I'm making it up as I go with no outline. However, I've started to sort of brainstorm on how this story might end. I'm not committed to anything and I surely don't have it all figured out yet. I'm wondering if I should leave the murder mystery unsolved. Whoever did it gets away with it and nobody ever finds out who the culprit is. The thing is if I solve the mystery or leave it unsolved, it has no real effect on the actual story. I could go either way with it. I've got some time to figure this out, but have any of you ever played around with the idea of an unsolved mystery or crime in your story? My novel is not a crime story or mystery when it comes to genre so I'm not worried about following any sort of genre protocol. I don't think it would piss readers off if my murder mystery goes unsolved. I'm actually thinking that readers might expect it not to be solved. But if I do choose to solve this mystery, I don't feel like I have to wait for the end of the book. I don't want this to become a bigger part of the story than it already is so I'm not looking for this to be any sort of big reveal at the end. It's not the conclusion for this story. The murder is sort of the catalyst that puts things in motion at the beginning. I like how things are shaping up and coming together. I feel as good as I can about a first draft of a half finished novel. I just feel like I'm at a point where the focus is important. If I am going to solve this murder, I feel like I need to drop some clues and whatnot. At the same time I'm wondering if solving the mystery might kill my story. I guess it might depend of how much weight I give it. I just don't want this to turn into a murder mystery book. It's a book with a murder mystery of sorts in it. Does that make sense? Does any of this make sense? Maybe there's just something about the halfway point that makes every writer a little crazy. I was told by a great writing teacher once to always choose option C. He said when you are at a crossroads there are always two obvious choices, but it is the third and less obvious path your story should take. I don't see an option C when it comes to this. Your thoughts on this are much appreciated. Thanks in advance.
I know ‘it depends’ is a rubbish answer, but… yeah. I think a lot depends on how the mystery is treated in the novel. If it’s just a catalyst and isn’t really mentioned after that, I’m pretty certain as a reader I don’t care if I get a resolution because your main plot should be pushing me toward wanting its resolution instead. The same’s true even if it is mentioned a lot - e.g. if you’re writing a character-driven story about a detective and their partner and the story is about their relationship, the murder investigation is just why they keep seeing each other, I don’t think I care much if it’s solved or not at the end. If the investigation turns into a sub-plot, then I’m probably going to want closure. From your description, it sounds like you’d just be making extra work for yourself and possibly diluting the story you really want to tell, so I’d be inclined to leave it open. But as noted, hard to judge without seeing what you’ve got.
I took this crime fiction / thriller class at a workshop. The instructor showed us this quote at the beginning of class. "If you novel has a crime and the crime is solved, it is a mystery. If your novel has a crime and the crime goes unsolved, it is literary fiction." lol
If it does not change the story then I would not worry about it. You might cause more harm adding clues into a story that is not about the crime.
I agree with the above. There will be a burden of having the solving of the mystery make sense. I think an unsolved crime is ultimately a bit more interesting if it is not the center of the story.
