When you plan to add mystery in your epistolary novel, follow these tricks to keep your audience interest alive. Writing an epistolary novel becomes more fun and allows your readers to make guesses about the story.
1. People Who Don’t Tell the Whole Truth
- Sometimes, the people writing the letters might not tell the whole truth. They might leave out important details or say things that aren’t completely true. This makes readers wonder what really happened and why the person didn’t tell everything.
2. Lost or Hidden Letters
- Imagine if a letter got lost, or if someone found an old, torn letter with pieces missing. The readers would have to guess what was in those missing parts. This makes the story more exciting because not everything is known right away.
3. Different Points of View
- Different characters might write letters about the same event, but their stories don’t quite match up. This could make readers wonder who is right and what really happened. It’s like a puzzle where each person’s story is a piece, and readers have to put it together.
4. Clues Hidden in the Letters
- The letters might have small hints or clues hidden in them. Maybe a strange word, a secret message, or a comment that doesn’t make sense until later. These clues can help readers figure out the mystery, but only if they pay close attention.
5. Anonymous Letters
- What if someone received a letter, but it didn’t say who it was from? The reader and the characters would be curious to find out who sent it and why they are keeping their identity a secret.
6. Out-of-Order Letters
- Sometimes, the letters might not be in the right order, or they might be written at different times. This can confuse the reader at first, but as the story goes on, it becomes clearer and the mystery starts to unravel.
7. People Hiding Their True Feelings
- The people writing the letters might not always say exactly what they feel. They might hide their real emotions or have secrets they’re not ready to share. This makes readers curious to learn more about what’s really going on.
8. Foreshadowing
- Some letters might hint at something that will happen later in the story. These hints are like little breadcrumbs that lead readers to the bigger mystery. It makes them excited to see what’s going to happen next.
9. Secrets and Surprises
- As the characters write more letters, they might slowly reveal secrets that they’ve been keeping. These secrets can change everything the reader thought they knew, making the story even more mysterious.
By using these tricks, you can turn an epistolary novel into a mystery that keeps readers hooked until the very end, making them eager to discover the truth hidden in the letters.
