Beyond the Puzzle: Lessons in Subtext from Agatha Christie
If you want to learn plot structure, there is no better teacher than the "Queen of Crime." Christie’s prose is functional and invisible; she never lets her writing get in the way of the mystery she is building.
Why study her: To learn how to plant clues, build suspense, and structure a narrative that keeps the reader turning pages.
Start with: The Murder of Roger Ackroyd or And Then There Were None.
The Five Essential Questions for Christiesque Narrative
If you want to move beyond "plot-driven exposition" and into "psychological trap-setting," ask yourself these five questions:
What is the hidden architecture of this silence? (Christie’s characters rarely say exactly what they mean; what does the sudden pause in conversation, the averted gaze, or the carefully chosen, stiff sentence reveal about the truth they are suppressing?)
How does the environment telegraph guilt? (In a Christie world, a misplaced ornament, a drafty window, or a peculiar stain isn't just set dressing—it’s a confession. How do your physical surroundings betray your characters' secrets?)
What is the social mask vs. the private truth? (Christie’s brilliance lies in the divide between a character’s polite exterior and their internal calculations. How does your character maintain their "civilized" demeanor while their internal motive operates in direct opposition?)
How is the mundane weaponized? (A teacup, a railway schedule, or a knitting needle—Christie turns the domestic into the lethal. How can you make the most ordinary object in your scene feel loaded with potential danger?)
Where is the "blind spot" in the perspective? (Christie often uses limited or biased narration to lead the reader astray. Is your narrator observing the world accurately, or are they blinded by their own prejudices, desires, or ignorance?)
How Agatha Christie can help you write your fanfiction:
The Art of Misdirection: Don’t give away your plot point in the first paragraph. Instead, focus on a character’s obsession with a minor, seemingly irrelevant detail. Let the reader believe that the "truth" lies in one place, while the real emotional or physical stakes are brewing elsewhere.
Character as a Performance: Christie’s suspects are always performing a role for each other. In your high-stakes scenes, have your characters act—they should be polite, helpful, or indifferent, while their internal monologue is frantically rearranging the truth to save their own skin.
Domestic Tension: Your fic doesn't need a high-octane battle to be riveting. A quiet conversation in a sitting room can be terrifying if the reader knows one character is holding a metaphorical knife. Lean into the tension of what isn't being said.
Precision in Pacing: Christie understood exactly when to withhold information and when to provide it. Use rhythm: build long, slow stretches of domestic normalcy punctuated by sharp, sudden revelations that shift the entire landscape of the story.
The Psychology of Motivation: Christie’s villains (and heroes) are rarely evil for the sake of it; they are driven by cold logic, bitter resentment, or desperate love. Make your characters' motivations so logical that the reader can almost—almost—understand why they did something terrible.
A Fandom example:
For Severus Snape in the quiet years of his teaching tenure, show how he manages [the hidden architecture of his silence] in the staff room, where a curt, biting remark serves to deflect any genuine inquiry into his internal state. Use [the environment to telegraph guilt] by describing how he keeps his office impossibly sterile and organized, as if the precise alignment of his ingredients can compensate for the chaos of his past. Contrast his [social mask of the cold, dismissive professor] with the [weaponized mundane] of a simple cauldron stirring or a stack of graded essays, tasks he performs with such agonizing, lethal precision that they become a psychological barrier between him and his students. Build the [blind spot in the perspective] by forcing the reader to witness a student’s fear of him, while simultaneously revealing that Snape is actually terrified that he has failed to protect them. Finally, ground the [psychology of his motivation] in a single, quiet moment: the way he lingers over the preparation of a mundane medicinal potion—a slow, tactile ritual that reveals his entire existence is a penance for choices he can never undo.
Which aspect of your current writing projects do you find most difficult to balance: the technical puzzle of the plot, or the psychological nuance of the characters?
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Coming out of the ether once more to say that ai is not and can never be transformative, the only true fanworks are those made by fans not robots, and I hope that the OTW reconsiders their stance. I saw a post saying the best way to combat this is to reinforce the human connection that makes fandom so special, and I wholeheartedly agree. Leave comments on your favorite fics, send in asks and collaborate with your favorite writers. We’re human beings with real emotions, and we’re happy to keep writing the stories you love, but we can’t do it without support.
To take her mind off of a bad break up and the impending gentrification of her neighborhood, Val Navarro heads out to a club for a night of dancing and forgetfulness. There, she meets the handsome Philip, a man who happens to be sexy, sweet, and nerdy all at the same time. They hit it off, spending the evening talking until the sun rises. Could he be any more perfect?
Actually... no. Philip turns out to be Philip Wagner, heir apparent and lead designer for Wagner Enterprises -- the very company who is buying out her neighborhood and evicting her community. But the betrayal doesn't stop the want. Nor does Philip's insistence that he's not his father or his father's company. It is, in all ways...
A Delicious Dilemma.
Like a decadent tres leches cake, A Delicious Dilemma by debut author Sera Taino is a book you both want to savor and devour in one go. @serataino is also one of us. An author who came from fandom, specifically Hunger Games and MCU fandoms, where she wrote amazing and memorable works underneath the name @titaniasfics here on tumblr but also on Ao3 and FF.net. And now she can add published by one of the big 5 to her list of credits.
The language in this book is gorgeous, decadent, full of tantalizing descriptions that can make your heart ache and your mouth water. I could practically taste the food from the in depth descriptions. I also appreciated that for much of the book, the Spanish wasn't translated but instead was either simple enough to be understood by anyone or could be figured out from context. This is how it should be done. I also loved the casual LGBT+ and non-Latinx representation in this book. Etienne is a bi and Black Haitian. Another character is a lesbian. A+ representation and inclusion. It made the book feel real.
I found the main characters well rounded and complex. There were layers to them. Val was both competent and caring, and I appreciated that her backstory influenced her lack of trust -- which was her fatal flaw and one of the biggest obstacles to the relationship. I liked that she was the older sister and what that meant in her family. I also appreciated how much and how important her Puerto Rican heritage was to the story -- which is honestly not a surprise when you consider that the author is also Latinx. She wasn’t perfect, and she had a hardness to her that I liked. Because underneath that hardness was a soft vulnerable interior. I can relate to that. LOL.
I really really liked Philip as a lead character. I have a thing for beta heroes in romance, and Philip is a delightful cinnamon roll. I could understand his reluctance to reveal his identity... because being judged for things you have not control over sucks -- and he really has no control over who he is related to. I also appreciated his honesty and how quickly he chose to come clean. In a lot of romances/stories like this, the person keeping the secret never comes clean until they are outed. I felt it made the romance stronger. I also liked that he owned his mistake and tried to make it right with varying degrees of success. He’s such a good doobie that I want to snuggle him to be breast and go for a ride in his Alfa Romeo.
The overarching thread of the gentrification of Val's neighborhood was handled well... and in a way I wanted more of it. While there aren't any dropped threads, I do feel that the ending was rushed a bit more than I liked. Honestly, I wanted more of the story over all. I wanted to see Val and Philip geek out more over Star Wars. I wanted to see more of Philip coming into his own as a leader of his company. I just wanted more.
In all, this is a solid debut novel from an author I hope to see more from.
Four Stars
If this is your jam, you can get it here.
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I received an ARC of this book from the author. Opinions expressed are my own.
GUYS LOOK I HIT 100 FOLLOWERS!!! IM SO FREAKING PROUD OF MYSELF!
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I really wanted to tha k you guys, I might lose a follower and have 99 by tomorrow, I could lose you all and be back at the start, but I'm here and I am so proud of myself for getting this far. For doing something I've never done before. I'll be getting on my laptop in a little bit and make a big thank you post for my top fans!
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Colette was a French icon who had a freakish talent for writing about the messy, real-life parts of being human that most people are afraid to touch. You should read her because she’ll teach you how to stop just "telling" a story and start making your writing feel as textured, sharp, and alive as the world around you.
The Five Essential Questions for Colettian Narrative
If you want to move beyond "flat description" and into "sensual immersion," ask yourself these five questions:
How does the body report the world? (Colette’s prose is rarely purely intellectual; how does the weather, a smell, or the texture of fabric register on your character’s skin before they even form a thought?)
What is the specific geometry of this desire? (Whether it’s love, hunger, or ambition, how does your character’s yearning dictate the way they move through a room or interact with objects?)
Is the setting a character or a backdrop? (Colette treats gardens, animals, and furniture with as much psychological depth as people. How is the environment actively responding to your protagonist?)
Where is the boundary between the wild and the civilized? (How does your character struggle to maintain their social mask while their instinctual self pushes against it?)
What is the "weight" of this moment? (Colette finds profound significance in small, domestic details—a cup of coffee, a stray cat, a letter. How can a singular, quiet detail carry the entire emotional burden of a scene?)
How Colette can help you write your fanfiction:
1. Senses Over Syntax Stop telling us the room is "tense." Describe the bitter smell of burnt tobacco, the way the floorboards creak under shifting weight, or the specific shade of light hitting a dusty curtain.
2. The Animal Instinct Colette’s characters are often guided by their instincts. When your characters are in a high-stakes scene, have them react physically—the twitch of a hand, the dilation of pupils, the sudden chill—before they speak a word.
3. Earthy Specificity Don't just write "She looked out the window." Write about the specific way the garden looked, the scent of the rain, the exact feeling of the window latch under her fingers. Make the reader smell the scene.
4. The Domestic Microcosm Your fic doesn't need a multiverse-ending threat to have stakes. A tense dinner, a shared drink, or an afternoon in a garden can be just as earth-shattering if you lean into the intense internal reality of the characters.
5. Honest Hunger Colette is a master of acknowledging what characters want. Don’t be afraid to make your characters’ desires—for people, for freedom, for comfort—palpable and messy.
A fandom example:
For Luna in her twenties, show how [her body reports the world] through the sensory chaos of a creature preserve, where damp moss and humming wings dictate her pulse. Contrast her ethereal calm with [the specific geometry of her desire] for connection, seen in her hesitant, yearning reach toward a colleague. Make [the setting a character] by having the ancient forest whisper secrets only she understands, while [the boundary between the wild and the civilized] blurs as she balances Ministry bureaucracy against untamed creature logic. Finally, capture [the weight of this moment] in the simple, tactile act of cleaning a specimen jar—a quiet ritual that reveals her deep, persistent grief for all things lost.
