16 February 2021

When Red Herrings Stink


I'm going to go out on a limb and say something that may be controversial, at least among writers: Readers should understand why a red herring (something that is said or happens in a novel or story that leads the reader to a false conclusion) was not the solution to the puzzle by the time the tale is over.

Until recently I didn't think this was a controversial opinion. I thought it was a standard approach to writing mysteries. Sure, I'd sometimes heard authors say before that they didn't need to explain by the end of their stories why Character X said Y because Y was a red herring, but I thought they were mistaken, and since I wasn't their teacher, it wasn't my place to correct their misguided notion. But recently I edited a story by an author I respect, someone who's a solid writer, and the issue arose. Since I was this person's editor, it was my job to say my piece.

I'm going to talk about the story, but I'm completely changing the names and plot so that you can't identify the author because who this person is doesn't matter. In the whodunit story, Princess Consuella tells Annie the Amateur Sleuth that murder suspect Bad Bad Leroy Brown lied about something, based on personal observation, and therefore, it seems, Leroy must be the killer. Princess Consuella was believable and seemed absolutely certain, so I suspect most readers would have finished that scene believing Leroy had indeed lied and thus must have been the killer. It's what I thought. Yet at the end of the story, I learned I'd been fooled. Leroy may be bad, but he never killed anyone--at least not in that story.

I raised the problem with the author--that no explanation of Princess Consuella's statement about Bad Bad Leroy Brown was provided by the story's end. Either Leroy did lie (which by the story's end didn't seem right, since we never learned any reason Leroy would have lied about the issue in question) or the princess had been wrong (but how could that have been true, since she had seen with her own eyes the thing she was certain Leroy lied about, and it wasn't the type of thing that could have been misunderstood, and she had no reason to lie, either). The reader would be left wondering how to reconcile this situation, so some  explanation should be provided, I said. The author pushed back, saying that no explanation was necessary since it was a red herring designed to fool the reader into thinking the wrong suspect was the killer. The reader learns who the actual killer is by the end, and that's what matters, the author said; we don't need to revisit the red herring. 

That response prompted me to do some research about red herrings. Had I been wrong all these years? Did red herrings, by their very nature, not require explanation? To my surprise, I found nothing addressing this issue. There are a lot of articles about crafting solid red herrings, but I found nothing addressing the idea that red herrings should be explained by a story's end, that the reader should be able to understand how she got fooled. Even now, some time later, I remain quite surprised, because if authors can toss in red herrings without eventually providing an explanation for them, it makes writing too easy. It feels like a cheat.

In the case of Bad Bad Leroy Brown, sure, he could have been lying for reasons the reader never learns, despite seeming to have no reason to lie. Alternately, Princess Consuella could have lied for reasons the reader never learns about or she could have been wrong, despite being so certain and giving the reader no reason to explain how she could have been so mistaken. It certainly would make life easy for authors if they could write red herrings that didn't have to be explained in the end, but I think it would leave readers with a bad taste in their mouths. That is why I believe such scenarios need to be resolved. Did Leroy lie and why? Or did the princess get it wrong and how could that be? Without an explanation, the red herring feels contrived. It makes me feel like the author was playing games with me. 

This is why I recommended the author use a little misdirection when the red herring was introduced. More specifically, I suggested that when the princess called Leroy a liar, the author should use the wiggle word "recall" in the dialogue. Notice the slight difference:

Scenario A: The princess slams her hand on the table, its sound echoing throughout the castle. "Bad Bad Leroy Brown is a liar! I was sitting right next to him in the dungeon cafe last week, and he didn't leave money for his meal on the table when he left. I wonder what else he's lying about. I bet he rips off restaurants throughout the kingdom all the time. He's a rip-off artist."

Scenario B: The princess slams her hand on the table, its sound echoing throughout the castle. "Bad Bad Leroy Brown is a liar! I was sitting right next to him in the dungeon cafe last week, and I don't recall him leaving money for his meal on the table when he left. I wonder what else he's lying about. I bet he rips off restaurants throughout the kingdom all the time. He's a rip-off artist."

In Scenario A, the reader ends the story shrugging, thinking Leroy (who has a reputation for honesty, despite his name) had no reason to lie when he said he paid for his lunch, yet the princess's adamant accusation against Leroy remains unexplained. (She too had no reason to lie and her certainty indicated she hadn't made a mistake.)  In Scenario B, the reader can go back and reread the language of the princess's accusation and think, "Oh. The author fooled me."

Here's why Scenario B works: Because (1) the reader has no reason to think the princess lied; (2) the princess seems so certain, so the reader will believe her account; and (3) the princess distracts the reader by slamming the table, muttering about what else Leroy might have lied about, and declaring that he's a rip-off artist, the reader easily could read right past the key words--the princess didn't recall Leroy leaving his payment. When the reader gets to the end of the story, she could flip back to reread the princess's accusation and think, "Oh! It was right there. She merely didn't remember it. I was distracted by her certainty. I was fooled fair and square." That's the way to make a red herring work. That's the way to make the reader feel satisfied rather than feeling played.

Alternately, the reader could learn by the story's end that Leroy did lie for reasons unrelated to the murder. If there was a good reason for his lie, especially something that worked well with the plot, then revealing both the lie and the reason for it could have elevated the story. It also could have left the reader feeling satisfied because, while she was fooled, she wasn't played for a fool. Distracting the reader into missing a key word is playing fair with the reader. In contrast, dropping a lie into the story to fool the reader without any ultimate explanation isn't playing fair,  not to me, at least.

So that's my advice about red herrings. If you're going to use them,  make sure they're explained by the end so they don't seem contrived. Otherwise, you're taking an easy way out and you're not playing fair with the reader. Just like fish that sits out too long, that approach stinks.

I welcome your comments on this issue. And if I'm wrong and there are tons of articles addressing this subject and I need to brush up on my research skills, please share that information too.

***

In other news, here's a little BSP: I recently had a new short story published. "An Inconvenient Sleuth" appears in issue eight of Black Cat Mystery Magazine. In this whodunit, Kendra Silver, Dogwood Valley's celebrated amateur sleuth, is murdered. Who saw that coming? Certainly not anyone who thought  Kendra was invincible because she led a cozy life in a cozy town. But now that someone has killed Kendra, her best friend, Whitney, feels compelled to help the police unmask the culprit.  

Black Cat Mystery Magazine is available in trade paperback and ebooks from all the usual sources. You also can buy it directly from the publisher, Wildside Press, by clicking here.

66 comments:

  1. Wow, it never occurred to me that a loose end like that could be left hanging. I sure hope I haven't done it myself! Thanks for pointing this out.

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  2. You are 100% correct. If I were reviewing the book you are talking about, I'd ding the author for leaving a few things hanging. It absolutely drives me up a wall when things like that are left unresolved.

    In a book I read recently, a big deal was made about something that could be a potential motive for half the suspects. And then that motive was dropped with no resolution to it. Again, I felt cheated.

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    1. Thanks, Mark. If someone has a motive, the sleuth definitely should follow up on it--unless the sleuth is going to overlook it, in which case the discerning reader will know it's going to be a twist at some point later in the story, at which point the sleuth will realizes her goof.

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  3. Excellent piece, Barb, and delightfully written! (I never realized castles were so appealing to you Americans.) I've too often read mystery novels that failed in this respect. A real bummer. In fact, a couple of times I shoved an author aside after reading one of their disappointing tales. I hope the authors of these books are regular visitors here, and glued to your advice!

    As I'm a writer myself, your blog-post is a good reminder of being careful with my own red herrings swimming around in my plots. Yes, they must be caught in the nets, too!

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    1. Thanks, Anne! (And I love castles! They seem so romantic.)

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  4. No argument here, Barb. I pull my hair out when I feel an author, screenwriter, or teleplay writer has cheated. Don't get me started on Your Honor.

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  5. I've never really thought about this before, Barb, but you're right. By the end of the story, we need to understand why the red herring really WAS a red herring. Otherwise, the story's logic falls apart.

    I don't use as many red herrings as I probably should because I find them hard to set up (plotting is very hard for me because my thought process isn't very linear). But leaving a big fake clue out there unexplained is as bad as keeping information from the reader until the very end when someone "finally" reveals it.

    Modern crime stories have moved away from the intricate plots of the Golden Age, but we still have to play fair. That's one of the reasons people still read them: because they make sense in an otherwise messy and chaotic world.

    I'm definitely going to think about this issue some more. Thanks for raising it. And congratulations on your Black Cat story.

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    1. I'm glad to be helpful, Steve. And thanks about the Black Cat story.

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  6. Love this, Barb! It's why you are such an amazing editor.

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    1. You're welcome, Tracy. Thanks for stopping by.

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  8. Totally agree, although I lean more on the side of explaining why Leroy lied. Explaining the lie requires Leroy to be motivated to lie, and explaining that motivation means more backstory and fills Leroy out more as a character. Better characters make more satisfying books.

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    1. This is a good point, Peter. Short story authors, however, might need to rely on the overlooked word in order to keep their submissions within those darned desired word counts.

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  9. Oh, I couldn't agree more. Loose ends woven into the story wave in the air for me, feeling unsettled until I can put them to bed at some point. Information must be revealed that makes them seem plausible, tucking them into the finished pattern, tying off that waving flag, subconscious or otherwise.

    Thank you for sharing these insights, Barb.

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    1. You're welcome, Joslyn. Thanks for stopping by.

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  10. Thanks Barb. Your article is really interesting and could not have been more timely as I am writing a rare "who done it" myself presently and am pretty inexperienced with the form. Now, I'll double check those red herrings and I like the "recall" example. My who done its (all 2 of them) always end up so wordy with the sleuth explaining everything, so I was tempted to leave some red herrings unaddressed. But you've shown me the error of my ways while still in the drafting phase! Can't thank you enough.

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    1. Thank you, Bill. Wordiness at the end as you deal with all the holes can be a problem. Using so-called tricks like the "recall" example can allow the author to know that the red herring has been addressed without having to ultimately explain it because the careful reader can figure it out for themselves. That said, there are readers who won't know why they were fooled, who won't realize the word play involved, so if there's room, it's always nice to explain in such instances too: "The princess might have felt certain, but she shouldn't have," Annie said. "After all, she herself said she merely didn't recall him putting money on the table. Memories can be wrong." Anyway, good luck with your story. I'm so happy to have been helpful to you.

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  11. Not tying up all the loose ends is disrespectful to the reader who has invested time and money in the writer's work. Lately, I've also noticed mistakes in series books where the writer is producing work too quickly to look for inconsistencies. An attentive reader notices when an author doesn't care enough about her to do good work. I don't buy additional books from that person. Yes, we can all slip up, but that is what good editing is for. Thank you for the clear examples, Barb.

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    1. You're welcome, Mary. Thanks for stopping by.

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  12. I totally agree. Nothing worse than reading a mystery with red herrings left hanging. I always want to know "why."

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    1. I have one client who used to be a pantser. But after getting back several edits full of "Why did this happen?" and "Why did that happen?" she started plotting out the big things in advance to make revisions easier.

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  13. Excellent reminder, Barb. I just finished a novel by nationally acclaimed writer who slipped in a "clue" that I watched for in the next 100 pages but it came to nothing. I'm still wondering why she introduced it. Did she forget about it? Did I miss its importance? The Golden Age writers wrote their stories with a respect for attentive readers who expected all the details to make sense and fit together. Nothing left dangling. Thank you for taking on this subject and being so clear about it.

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    1. You're welcome, Susan. I remember a book by an author I loved--had read all her books--and in one book the main character, who knows she has a stalker, comes home at night and the phone is ringing as she opens the door, so she run for the phone, closing the door but not locking it. I figured the stage was set for that stalker to easily break in that night while she slept, but nothing ever came of the door. I think the author planned to do something with it and forgot. Why else set something like that up?

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  14. I rarely use the term cheat (I'm in academia - it's quite a SERIOUS matter), but I like your use of it. Frankly, to any writers not 'feeling' the point you make --- let's look at this as basic communication AND as the magic writers want to create. From a communication standpoint, an audience responds to the credibility of a communicator due in part to perceived "good will." One at least dampens that if one doesn't treat one's audience with some intelligence; it's similar to the reason we hate to be left 'hanging' without answers at all. Red herrings should be misdirection in the classic sense of magic - something writers want to create for readers. Remember that misdirection is about illusion and attention in focus, not about 'cheating' the audience. Thank you, Barb, for helping writers.

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    1. You're welcome, Angela. It's my pleasure. And thank you for stopping by.

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  15. This is why you are such a well-respected editor and author - a clear and lively explanation of a writing issue, and a clear and lively explanation of why and how to fix it. Thanks, Barb!

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  16. Sharp thinking, Barb. I too am left thinking, Oh dear, I hope I haven't done that!

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  17. Interesting that this hasn't been addressed before. Couldn't agree more that I, as a reader, don't like to be cheated. And I surely don't want to do it as an author!

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    1. I was surprised too. There are a lot of articles about the role red herrings play in a mystery, but nothing on this point. Thanks for stopping by, Terry.

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  18. I'm with you, Barb. Even if some readers may be satisfied, or may not even notice the loose threads, I wouldn't want my observant readers to feel cheated. On the other hand, endings with long, drawn-out explanations can be tedious. Your simple solution solves both issues. Thanks for your wisdom.

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    1. Thanks, Gay. It can be hard to find ways to fill all the holes without having long drawn-out endings. I've found myself in that predicament. Having seen reviews that dinged authors for holes that I knew had been filled--the reviewer had simply missed the clue--I often want to point out everything near the end so readers will realize, "Oh, that was explained by that clue."

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  19. Love the blog post. I hate loose ends and BS red herrings, too. Now if the Princess had been presented as a big gossip, for example, then whatever she said about LeRoy could be taken with a grain of salt without having to go back and wonder why did she say that...

    I have no problem with hiding nuggets - and I'll use an example I've used before, in my story, "No Fences", there are 3 deaths mentioned in one page, and if the reader doesn't notice that because I've really emphasized the probable affair between a librarian and a student, well - I've done my job. But just having someone lie or make an accusation without any explanation - ever - no, I don't like that at all.

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    1. Thanks, Eve. Gossips can be so helpful in many ways!

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  20. Play fair - that's the key to a good mystery, whether it's a story or novel.

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  21. Thanks, Barb, for your analysis and suggestions for avoiding a pitfall.

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    1. You're welcome, Maya. Thanks for stopping by.

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  22. It would drive me crazy as both the reader and the writer to have a loose end like that.

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  23. Great post - totally agree! And I love how one word, "recall," gives the author an out.

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  24. Great post! They should absolutely be explained and all loose ends tied up! For me, playing fair with the reader is gospel in writing mysteries. When I was younger and would read Agatha Christie, I'd actually go back and re-read where the clues were and how she'd (fairly) misdirected me. I loved being bested by her.

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    1. Gotta love a discerning reader. Thanks for stopping by, Korina!

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  25. Spot on, Barb. Great analysis. Misdirection is a big part of the fun for both reader and writer. Of course, sometimes we *think* we've made a connection or explanation clear when we haven't, and sometimes the reader can gloss over things. That's why we need editors like you!

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    1. Thanks, Leslie. It certainly can be hard deciding when you've made something clear enough. What's clear to one reader goes right past another.

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  26. Barb, great post. I completely agree. For example, in the book I am currently writing, I have an alibi that seems a little suspicious for two of my characters. But at the end of the book, I'm going to explain why the two of them were together (alone) for a period of time, thus tying up that "loose end" of the story. The more of those "ends" you can tie up, the tighter the story/book is.

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  27. Definitely fishy non-explanation. I agree with you.

    The problem isn’t so much the red herring (making the red herring a red herring), but one of logic. The situation sounds ungrounded, unanchored in reality. And that’s a sin in fair-play mystery writing.

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  28. Barb, you're so right that this is an under-covered topic -- so thanks for doing it! And I'm with you, as a reader, I feel cheated when a red herring is not explained or justified in some way. As a writer, I try to do my best to deal with those red herrings in a satisfying way -- although it's not always easy!

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    1. You're right, Adam. It's not always easy without burdening the ending down with a lot of explanation. Thanks for stopping by.

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  29. Congratulations on your sale to Black Cat!

    "Short story authors, however, might need to rely on the overlooked word in order to keep their submissions within those darned desired word counts." Boy is that ever true!

    Great article, Barb.

    I completely agree with nearly everybody on here, about tying up all loose ends -- including any dangling red herrings -- BUT...there is also this niggling thing in the back of my mind that reminds me: I really love the book (and the film) The Big Sleep. And, the plot was so convoluted that even the author supposedly claimed not to know who killed a certain character. That's clearly a herring left dangling (or lying in an automobile fished out of the Pacific, as the case may actually be), yet I've never felt cheated by the ending of that particular story. So ... maybe ... it has something to do with an extremely confusing plot line??? I have no idea. Yet, the idea still niggles.

    --Dixon

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  30. Thanks, Dixon! I think The Big Sleep is an anomaly, and it works for you despite the plot hole--not because plot holes are okay when paired with confusing plots but simply because on the whole you think the movie is that good. (I've never seen it.)

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  31. Right on point. Well written blog...and nary a red herring in it.

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  32. Excellent blog post, Barb. I totally agree with you. And now when someone researches red herrings, they'll find this post.

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    1. Barb; I totally agree with your red herring assessment, it gives the storyline continuity. Nice post!

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