Watch this series from the beginning: kzread.info/head/PL3KL6Jqx65DjZcAKroahZ3eP5mo-D2u1S

Holy moley! This is the concise and clear plot structure specifically for cozies that I’ve been dreaming of! Thanks Jane!!

@janekalmes

3 жыл бұрын

You're so welcome, Sidni! I'm really glad it was helpful!

It’s so nice that you are sharing all these tips, and I understand there have to be certain elements in all cozy mystery books to make them work, but lately I’ve noticed that so many of them follow almost the exact same formula and feel very derived and inorganic (if that makes sense). I’ve been reading cozies for my whole life, many decades, and I absolutely love them, but I’m dying to find some that are different and not as formulaic in nature! ❤️

Seriously : i want to publish a book just so that I can thank you on the acknowledgment page XD

@janekalmes

2 жыл бұрын

Wow, way to make my day! Thank you so much!

This is the BEST outline tutorial I have ever seen! Thank you so much!

@janekalmes

3 жыл бұрын

Yay, I’m so glad you like it!

I've been trying to fit my story in the 3 Act Story Structure, but this outlining method really fits well. Thank you so much for creating this series!

@janekalmes

3 жыл бұрын

You’re so welcome, Farah , I’m glad you’ve been getting so much out of it!

This series has helped me so much. I got a lot of crochet done while watching it. But I have most everything now. And I can't wait until later when I have a bit more time to sit down and start my outline.

@janekalmes

Жыл бұрын

Awesome, so glad it is helping!

Hello. I found your channel several days ago, thanks to a video by Michelle Schustermann, and even though I am not writing a cozy, I am delighted to be learning from your content. Your clear teaching and easy-to-follow exercises are very helpful. Thanks so much and please keep up the good work.

@janekalmes

2 жыл бұрын

Thank you so much!

Just discovered your channel and I’m bingeing all your videos. I also love that your book is on kindle unlimited, feel like I can try so many more new books that way. Thanks for all the great content! PS this is the first time I’ve found such clear information about cozy mysteries specifically. Usually the internet is so vague and we’re expected to apply the same outline to every genre. This is SO HELPFUL.

@janekalmes

2 жыл бұрын

Welcome aboard, I'm so glad you're enjoying it!

Hi Jane - You've got me hooked. I've been doing a course with Melissa Storm and now I'm absorbing your videos. Thank you!

@janekalmes

3 жыл бұрын

Awesome, I am so glad you’re liking them!

I am so glad I found you! This is what I have been looking for forever. Everything is laid out and so easy to understand. Thank you!

@janekalmes

2 жыл бұрын

Yay! I'm so glad you found me, too!

Love this series. Thanks.

@janekalmes

2 жыл бұрын

You’re so welcome!

This is absolutely BRILLIANtT.

I’ve really enjoyed this series, Jane, and I’m excited to get writing!

@janekalmes

Жыл бұрын

That’s awesome, Martha! Happy writing!

thank you for laying it out so clearly

@janekalmes

Жыл бұрын

You’re so welcome!

Very helpful! Thanks very much!!

@janekalmes

2 жыл бұрын

You’re so welcome!

Thank you ❤

Here's the outline for my Vampire game: Act 1: Each player writes up their character, complete with a history, contacts, retainers and allies. This is a built-in part of the game and fairly fun and easy to do. Act 2: The group of vampires, the Coterie, is given a job. They are to shuttle various other vampires from out of town to meet the Vampire Prince of the city. These other vampires will each have some motive to dislike the Prince. This will be the "cozy". Act 3: The Vampire Prince will be killed by some time-delayed device, like a bomb. Act 4: The Vampire players will be presented with a clue that links the "bomb" to them, and the other vampires that they shuttled around. Act 5: This is the tricky part. I have to anticipate what sort of inquiries the players will make. I have to present clues that will implicate some vampires and clear others. I have to present clues that the players will not overlook. I have to present clues that will not seem like I just gave the players the solution. Act 6: The Vampire coterie will finally uncover who the murderer is. They have to decide whether they even want to turn him over to "authorities", deal with him themselves, maybe blackmail him, maybe join him, or maybe let him go. (How's that for a twist? Well, it is a vampire game.) Act 7: Resolve the game according to which decision the players made in Act 6.

Hmmm, my husband and I are 60% through our cozy mystery and we used a very different structure. Anyway, we’re happy with the sequence so all is well 🤞

@janekalmes

2 жыл бұрын

Cool! I can’t pretend this is The One and Only Way to write a cozy. Glad your book is going so well!

I've really enjoyed this series. However, I have a question regarding the last bit here (denoument). You mentioned celebrating the sleuth's overcoming her chronic issue; how does this make starting the second and later books harder, if she's overcome the chronic issue in book one? It seems like it would make better sense series-wise if she had made some steps towards it, but still had a long way to go, thus setting up the continuation of the chronic issue in book 2 (and on). Am I misunderstanding? Thanks.

@janekalmes

2 жыл бұрын

I definitely think that in your first book, your character should have a Chronic Issue that gets solved. It doesn't mean she winds up with no character flaws going forward, or that there aren't more Chronic Issues for her to deal with in the future. But solving an issue is just a huge cathartic moment for the reader; it makes it feel as though a story has happened and a life has been changed. Very frequently, the issue they get over in Book One allows them to step into a new role as a sleuth. Perhaps they needed to find a home to commit to, or they needed to trust another person, or they needed to open their heart up to love, or they needed to embrace their true talents. At the end of the book, they'll solve that issue, and it will set up the situation they'll remain in for several subsequent books. For example, in my book, The Black Rose Murders, my sleuth gets over being a self-obsessed adventure seeker and begins valuing other people over herself. The people she comes to value (her love interest and her young cousin) become the core of her "sleuth support staff," and she'll be solving mysteries with them from here on out. Frequently, I think later books in the series can have "quieter" Chronic Issues that allow your sleuth to put her character fully on display, while staying largely stable in her situation. I did a video on this topic here: kzread.info/dash/bejne/aX2ms7iPYbq6XbA.html I hope this helps! Shaping your character's growth is definitely an area where you have a lot of choices about what feels right for your series and for you as a writer.

@angelleh

2 жыл бұрын

@@janekalmes That definitely helps, and it actually fits what I’ve been doing (solving an issue that establishes them in a place and sets them up going forward). I think I was struggling semantically; I was considering that bit as the subplot of the first book, with another DIFFERENT longterm ‘issue’ that she strives towards in multiple books. So, yes, I’m totally onboard with this now. Thanks for the reply.

Another interesting way to write the "Challenge Accepted" part of the outline is where the sleuth is implicated as a possible suspect and is forced to try to solve the crime to exonerate himself.

@janekalmes

10 ай бұрын

You bet!

I know this video is over 2 years old and not sure if anyone told you, but the link to the 3rd video (Sleuth) in the description section is mis-linked. It links to the 2 part about plot premise. The other links are correct.

@janekalmes

Жыл бұрын

Thank you very much for the heads up! Fixed now!

@lifeafterforty007

Жыл бұрын

@@janekalmes 🙂 I didn't want to come off as rude, its just something I'd want to know. I've been binge watching your videos and series and had the whole series opened in tabs, and I couldn't figure out why I had repeats open lol

If I want to plan for a series of books how do I plan for the next set of books after the first? I know for a good book you need a chronic issue they need to solve within the first book, but unless you want them to have a lot of issues they have to solve for each book it is really unrealistic. Planing for a series is different than standalone books, especially if you have the same characters and it is continuing on the same timeline. I have seen and read plenty of advice on how to write the first book, but there is not much about how to plan the growth of the characters through out a series and trying to solve the bigger mystery that can not be solved within the first few books. How can we keep the reader interested enough that they want to buy the next book of the series the moment they finish the last page?

@janekalmes

Жыл бұрын

I completed agree-you need quieter issues in subsequent books, lest your character be forced to change so thoroughly, so often, that they become unknowable. My best advice is to watch very episodic tv shows, in which the writers (1) want to tell character driven stories but (2) want to leave the characters relatively static, so viewers can come back to them week after week thinking of them as the same characters they know and love. I broke all of this down in this video: kzread.info/dash/bejne/aX2ms7iPYbq6XbA.html

Can you please recommend young adult male protagonist cozy mystery books ?

@janekalmes

Жыл бұрын

Hmm... I can't really think of any! They certainly may exist, though--there's a lot of cozies out there.

@sergel02

7 ай бұрын

I was pretty curious myself too, since there doesn’t seem to be too many. As a guy though it would be neat, just for something different. Maybe you could write one!

Would it be possible to have a male sleuth in a cozy?

@janekalmes

4 ай бұрын

Absolutely! It’s less common, but it definitely happens.

@JamesSedgwick-jp6hh

4 ай бұрын

Hi Jane. Thanks for your reply. It's me under my cell KZread account. The original post was from my laptop KZread account.

@JamesSedgwick-jp6hh

4 ай бұрын

I wanted to use a male sleuth for my first time mystery and I want to write a cozy. I have the killer, the victim and the motive so far.

@janekalmes

4 ай бұрын

@@JamesSedgwick-jp6hh That sounds great!

@JamesSedgwick-jp6hh

4 ай бұрын

@@janekalmes Would it be possible to cross genres? Like say a mystery meshed with the supernatural? I have an idea for a series of mysteries with human characters and supernatural characters. It takes away from the cozy idea because my sleuth works for a secret special agency which he solves cases that involves both human and supernatural beings. I don't wish to elaborate too much. If there's a way to message you I would go into more details