Lesson 13

[William Whiteford]

Assignment 13

William Whiteford – Misdirects…When Appropriate!

In this assignment, I explored the essence, types, role, and methods of misdirection in thriller story. Unlike clues, misdirection is used to divert the audience’s attention away from the truth, adding elements of surprise and excitement.
Within the context of our Thriller Map, we applied three existing types of misdirection: “the Reality” as a cover-up, the Villain’s Plan, and the Red Herring. I also learned about a fourth type, which involves the writer’s intentional use of misdirection: clue misdirection, character misdirection, and dialog misdirection. These concepts were illustrated with examples from “Chinatown.”

Updated Thriller Map with Added Misdirections
Act 1 (A1)
•Inciting Incident: A mysterious veteran, described as “a man with a rifle,” shoots a bird in the park.
•Clue 1: The sound of a gunshot in the park and the sight of a man with a rifle running through the bushes.
•Villain’s Plan 1: The villain, Jack H., orchestrates a series of animal killings to frame his boss, aiming to have him committed to a psychiatric clinic, so he can escape abroad with the hero’s wife, Grace.
•Life-Threatening Situation 1: The hero finds himself at risk of being shot during the park encounter.
o Mystery 1 (M1): Who is the shooter?
oMystery 2 (M2): Could the shooter be an escapee from a local psychiatric clinic?
•Twist 1 (T1): The villain hacks into the hero’s account and files.
•Turning Point 1: The hero’s wife’s cat is found dead.
oMystery 3 (M3): Is the mysterious veteran responsible, or is the secretary involved?
oLife-Threatening Situation 2: Is this a warning to the hero and his family?
•The hero burns Jack’s manuscript, leading to a physical confrontation where Jack assaults the hero and vanishes. Later, the hero discovers that Jack H. had died three months earlier.
•Twist 2 (T2): The villain forged his references and letter of recommendation.
•Dialog Misdirection: A secretary from the Literary Workshop informs the hero that Jack Hamilton, whom he hired last week, had actually died three months ago.
•Twist 3 (T3): The villain’s true identity is revealed as Roy J., not Jack H.
oMystery 4 (M4): Who is impersonating “Jack H.” and where is he now? How dangerous is he?
oMystery 5 (M5): Will the hero be able to uncover the villain’s identity and capture him?
Act 2 (A2)
•Clue 2: The hero has a heated argument with his neighbor, Sandra.
•Clue 3: Jack contacts the police.
•Character Misdirection: Grace, the hero’s wife, jumps to the conclusion that Jeff is the killer.
•Twist 4 (T4): The hero encounters unexpected challenges as he begins firearms training.
•Twist 5 (T5): Grace conspires with the villain.
•Twist 6 (T6): Grace betrays the hero multiple times.
•Twist 7 (T7): The hero’s brother, Dan, demands a building plot, complicating matters further.
oLife-Threatening Situation 3: The hero is attacked by a masked man during the night.
oMystery 6 (M6): Could the attacker be Dan, who recently had a property dispute with the hero?
•Clue 4: A man dressed like Glen is seen at the zoo.
•Twist 8 (T8): Evidence suggests that Dan might have attacked his brother at night.
•Clue 5: The same cord was used in all the strangling cases.
•Clue 6: The cord was purchased from three different shops.
•Twist 9 (T9): The hero’s friend, John, offers to assist him.
•Clue 7: John claims he saw Jack in a restaurant.
•Twist 10 (T10): The hero’s trust in others proves to be his downfall.
•Twist 11 (T11): The hero chases Jack with a gun but ends up trapped in an empty building.
•Midpoint: The hero pursues Jack once again, but Jack manages to escape.
•Clue 8: CCTV footage reveals someone resembling Jack.
•Misinterpreted Clue: Grace’s book turns out to be a travel guide, not a psychological handbook.
•Clue 9: A TV psychologist suggests that Glen is the killer.
oLife-Threatening Situation 4: The hero engages in a high-speed chase through the city, with both men armed and firing at each other.
•Turning Point 2: The hero is confined to a psychiatric clinic.
•Twist 12 (T12): The hero faces the threat of a long-term sentence and the potential loss of all his assets.
Act 3 (A3)
•Twist 13 (T13): While in the clinic, the hero fears for his life and is attacked by a veteran.
oLife-Threatening Situation 5: The hero faces the threat of electric shock treatment.
oLife-Threatening Situation 6: The veteran launches a violent attack on the hero.
oLife-Threatening Situation 7: The hero escapes from the clinic but is pursued by the police.
•Twist 14 (T14): At the airport, instead of reuniting with Grace, Jack encounters the fugitive hero.
Climax
•The hero confronts the villain in a final showdown and ultimately triumphs.
oLife-Threatening Situation 8: The hero faces off against the armed villain in a dark, confined space, alone.
Resolution
•The hero’s wife, Grace, flees abroad, while the hero hires a new secretary. Meanwhile, the villain begins writing his memoirs from prison. Will he succeed?
# # #