Catherine Dilts
  • About Catherine
  • Catherine Dilts - Blog
  • Short Stories
  • Secrets of the Castleton Manor Library
  • Survive Or Die
  • Rock Shop Mystery Series
  • Map

Can Murder Be a Laughing Matter?

4/23/2013

 
Picture
How do writers handle the serious topic of murder in their laugh-out-loud mystery novels? Five authors gave their insight during the panel discussion A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to LCC. The panelists were all nominees for the Lefty Award, honoring the best humorous mystery novel of the year, as voted on by attendees at the Left Coast Crime convention.

Nancy Glass West, author of Fit To Be Dead, said that the murder itself isn’t funny. The main character in a humorous mystery may have a wry outlook, but he or she must sympathize with the victim. http://www.nancygwest.com/

Mike Befeler, author of Cruising in Your Eighties Is Murder, saw the benefit of combining the murder with humor. “You have to have something to balance the dead bodies.” He believes humor happens when the main character has a sense of humor about himself.  http://www.mikebefeler.com/

Brad Parks, author of the Lefty winning The Girl Next Door, explained how readers balance the laughs with the tragedy. “Humans can code switch. They can go from suspense to humor in a novel.” http://www.bradparksbooks.com/

Jess Lourey, author of December Dread, observed that people with the darkest jobs, such as coroners and undertakers, are often the funniest. They find a natural balance through humor. http://www.jesslourey.com/

Laura DiSilverio, author of Swift Run, said “We all can confront horrible things in our lives, yet still have a sense of humor.” This is true in fiction as well.  http://lauradisilverio.com/

The panelists agreed that humor must be handled skillfully when the subject of a novel is murder. While murder may not be a laughing matter, humor can balance a well-written story.   


Charlene Deitz link
4/23/2013 03:27:55 pm

Catherine,
Enjoyed this post, and now I'm looking forward to reading your book as well as all of theirs!

Jacqueline Seewald link
4/23/2013 10:29:28 pm

Hi, Cathy,

Thanks for sharing with us. Humor is an important component of mystery fiction, particularly true of cozies. I love humor in fiction. With mysteries as you point out, humor balances the darker side. I use that technique myself in the Kim Reynolds mystery series where Lt. Mike Gardner maintains a sense of humor although he's a homicide investigator. He balances troubled Kim quite well.


Comments are closed.

    Subscribe to this blog:

    Enter your email address:

    Delivered by FeedBurner

    Archives

    December 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013

    RSS Feed

Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.