Mystery fiction: What makes a good detective?

A good mystery book would be nothing without a good detective, but is there a secret formula for creating the perfect fictional detective or are they all as unique as they crimes they investigate?

For a start, all mystery stories need some sort of central investigative figure. It helps to anchor the story and provides a platform for other strands of the story to come together on. Of course, different writers will take a different approach. Detectives can be young or old, male or female, professional or amateur.

There are many different components to making up a fictional detective. In more classic mystery writing, such as Agatha Christie, sleuths were trusted, yet eccentric, like Miss Marple or Hercule Poirot.

There are often some common tropes of more modern detectives. Hard drinking, unconventional yet driven to do the right thing and prepared to go to great lengths to solve the mystery, even going against the best advice of superiors or friend and family. Cracking the case is all that matters and a good writer will show this gradually comes to consume our hero. Oh, it also helps that he or she has few skeletons in their closet too.

Of course, a detective must have a high degree of intelligence and a slavish devotion to detail. They won’t let anything be glossed over and frequently notice things that others don’t. That’s what sets them apart. Often the main investigator and the supposed culprit may share some things in common and the culprit may relish pitting their wits against the person investigating them.

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