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Here, she walks us through how she lays the tracks, starting with the red-herring masters she admires.
Amys diary inGone Girlhas to be one of my favorites because its such a double-back.
According to all the conventions, we should be getting the most intimate possible view of her there.
And then it turns around and pulls the rug out from underneath us.
It gives you an insight not just into Amy, but what it feels like being around Amy.
Every single step that leads you down the wrong path is so necessary for your understanding of the character.
Im always more interested in mystery books where whodunit?
What interplay of characters, or set of relationships, has led to this red herring existing?
What does the detective find out about herself down that sidetrack that furthers the character?
And then it turns out to be a red herring all along.
So its okay that thats the way the book is going.
I know you cant afford anywhere decent, but buy somewhere in the middle of nowhere!
A lot of people went for it, and they were devastated.
The rules turned around and kicked them in the teeth when the housing crash came.
He is the chaotic thing they all fear.
The red herrings are focused around the narrators and, in this case, the victims fears.
Which would lead him down the wrong trail?
Instead, he suspects the victims father.
I think thats quite a good red herring because not everybody would fall for that.
The fact that Rob does tells us a lot about him.
When I realized that Connor wasnt the murderer inBroken Harbor,that was a massive pain.
Otherwise the narrator and the reader arent going to follow it along that trail.
The difference is, the actual solution has to be seeded more subtly.
Now, how about the reader?
Because of this atmosphere, her sense of reality has been sent off-kilter.
In fact, thats where I want the reader to be.
My books are about the characters arc almost more than the arc of the mystery.
You have to respect the audiences intelligence.
So much of this is your subconscious working.
you’re free to maybe do something with it.
