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Lesson 6
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Alfred Dunham: Mystery Sequence (Mystery)
What I learned doing this assignment:
a. Mystery Definition: “Anything that is kept secret or remains unexplained or unknown.”
b. While it is a mystery to us, it is a secret for the Villain.
c. When the Villain hides a secret, and sells it as fact, it becomes a cover-up.
d. The audience experience is the cover-up, then the secret.
e. The writing strategy is secret, then cover-up.
Mystery Sequence:
What is the big secret that the Villain is covering up?
One cannot call Maximus’ desire to “own” Isabella, love, but whatever it was. Her rejection of him has become an intense hatred that he keeps nursing. Now he wants revenge.
How many ways can they cover that secret? Those become the mysteries.
Isabella’s mother was mentally ill, and Maximus was using that knowledge to blackmail Isabella. Isabella felt her only way out of this situation was to leave Ryan on the pretext of finding herself and her career. Ryan never understood that fully but accepted it. That injury was almost reopened when Silas hit on Isabella – Silas’ boss knows Maximus. In fact, his boss’ firm is a secret subsidiary of Maximus, but Silas knows nothing of this. Maximus’ secret is buried deep.
The first mystery must engage the Hero in solving it.
When things begin to happen in The Valley, both Ryan and Isabella are stumped, but as Isabella begins to weaken, her secrets begin to expose themselves: first, Silas, then her mother’s mental illness, then Maximus.
Ryan is no fool. He is finely able to get inside the mind of Maximus and plan an escape from The Valley they are now trapped in.
Sequence the mysteries so that each one leads us to the next one. Include ONE Red Herring mystery if you can.
a. Select a Red Herring character and give them a hidden reason to feel guilt or to be scheming about something else.
Silas is set up as the perfect Red Herring, by Maximus via the CEO of one of Maximus’ secret subsidiary companies. Silas’ involvement with Isabella proves to be an embarrassment, re: Ryan, to both Isabella and Silas, so they pretend to not know each other.
b. Create a mystery around them — Did they do the real crime?
No. Silas’ encounter with Isabella was accidental but potentially embarrassing to her.
c. Create a trail of clues that leads us to believe they did it.
We already know that there was some sort of incident between Silas and Isabella.
Silas proposes this rather extravagant gift of a honeymoon in The Valley.
Silas takes them there.
Silas boasts of how wonderful The Valley is. He’s been there.
Ryan and Isabella’s experience is quite different – terrifying, in fact.
Silas’ hit on Isabella hints to her, of Maximus (whom she’s quite moved past) and his blackmail scheme years earlier, and she suspects Silas of being dishonest and doing the same thing.
And it all spills out with the focus on Silas, not Maximus.
d. Lead us up to the moment that we are going to bust them.
Ryan has put all his skills to the ultimate test and has saved Isabella and himself from the flames engulfing The Valley. They have reached the lake at the top of the ridge when Silas comes running up to meet them, yelling, “I did not know.”
e. Discovery — They didn¹t do it.
As Silas claims his innocence in what has happened, Maximus flies in and tries to land his helicopter in an already dangerous location. With the firestorm below them causing fierce updrafts, he crashes it but escapes long enough to hurl vindictive threats at Isabella for destroying his valley.
The helicopter explodes, killing Maximus. Silas is off the hook.
f. This either becomes a clue that someone else did it, or it leaves us having to rethink the previous clues pointing in another direction.
Both Silas and Ryan question Silas’ boss’ involvement.
The sullen, but wiser, threesome makes their way back to Silas’ helicopter.
Create a Mystery Chain for each main mystery.
Mystery Chain
Secrets/Mysteries
Bella’s mother had a history of mental illness.
In college, Maximus hits on Ryan’s girlfriend, Bella.
Maximus is not exactly in love with Bella but sees her as an asset to his intended career. He wants to “own” her for his own selfish intentions.
Maximus finds out about Bella’s mother. Uses it as a threat to blackmail Bella.
Bella breaks up with Ryan and drops out of sight to ostensibly pursue her career = a cover-up for everything so Ryan doesn’t find out about her mother. She’s still in love with him.
Years later:
Bella meets Silas, and Silas hits on Bella, but she has already met Ryan, again, and…
She and Ryan decide to resume their relationship = Mystery: Bella’s mother, Bella and Maximus, and Bella and Silas, plus Bella’s continued silence–keep all of this as a secret. Her career claim = the cover-up.
Bella’s mother is now dead, and Bella’s career in art is quite successful.
Ryan and Bella decide to marry.
Ryan and Bella accidentally meet Silas.
Ryan knows Silas and has occasion to introduce Silas to Bella.
Silas and Bella pretend not to know each other = a cover-up for his attempt to seduce her.
Silas represents to Ryan a gift from his firm as something of a quid pro quo for his loyalty to the firm’s products – the use of a company-owned wilderness area valley for his and Bella’s honeymoon.
Silas’ firm is a secret subsidiary of Maximus’ firm, but Silas does not know this. Thus, he can be set up as the perfect Red Herring if anything should go wrong.
The secret is Maximus’ festering anger over having been refused by Bella years before, together with the news of Silas’ interest in Bella, and especially her decision to marry Ryan; Maximus’ mindless anger boils over, and he vows to get even. Maximus is still an infantile genius who throws tantrums when he doesn’t get his way.
Via Silas’ boss, Maximus is the one who sets up the honeymoon. The secret is Maximus’ wrath, combined with Silas’ boss’ knowing Maximus, and it is both Silas and Ryan’s innocence that keeps the cover-up looking sincere. Silas and Bella’s secret of not knowing each other further leads them into the trap – but only for just so long before it all starts to unravel, turning Silas into the perfect Red Herring.
During their stay in The Valley, the secrets begin to unravel, one by one, as the cover-ups are exposed – the haunting part in the cabin.
Ryan begins to think that somehow, maybe it is that weird guy back in college doing this, not Silas, and…
Thus, it proves itself out.
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Brenda Clarke Creating the Mystery Sequence. I am learning that working backwards has its benefits when writing a THRILLER, in that you can then lay out the Mysteries and Cover Ups with more intrigue than usual manner of writing a drama from beginning to end.
6. CREATING THE MYSTERY SEQUENCE
1. What is the big secret that the Villain is covering up?The Villain seeks revenge on his father’s killer and will leave no stone unturned until he slowly tortures to death, the person responsible.
2. How many ways can they cover that secret up?
The Villain must find out who is his father’s killer, information points to successful import/export businessman from Australia, presently working in China.
The Villain murders some of his opposing Triad leaders and plants false information to blame John.
John, the Red Herring looks guilty and goes deeper into hiding.
The Villain establishes false alibis for these killings, to put the police off his track. 3. The First Mystery Must Engage The HERo into solving it.Whilst on a video chat with her mother (Johns wife) the daughter witnesses the Villain’s soldiers enter the apartment looking for John. The mother hasn’t seen him and says he has been away on business. They don’t believe her and instantly abduct her.
4. Sequence the mysteries so that each one leads us to the next one.
- Daughter sees mother’s abduction whilst on video chat
- Daughter contacts retired Martial Arts instructor to get some help
- Martial Arts teacher recognises tattoo on one of the Triad soldiers
- Daughter goes to Casino in City in hope to find some connection
- Villain kills triad opposition and lays blame on John
- Martial Arts instructor suggest daughter come straight away to China and not involve the
- police.
- Daughter arrives in China and begins training with her instructor to get her skills up to
- “combat ready”. They see TV news of the death of one triad leader with the suggestion
- her father did it.
- Daughter struggles to understand what is going on.
- Two women must first find mother
- John also sees the report and goes deeper into hiding, which makes him look guilty (red
- herring)
- Daughter and Martial Arts instructor find mother and before killing one of the remaining
- soldiers, find out who their leader is – the Dragon.
- The Dragon, finds John and takes him to a warehouse where he begins to sadistically torture him
- The Dragon was informed the daughter was onto him and has moved John up into the Mountains into a remote village. (house that belongs to his grandfather) John’s injuries leaves a trail of blood.
- The Daughter now follows leads/clues to get to warehouse, but too late. John is not there but much blood remains. (Martial Arts Instructor stays with mother to keep her safe)
- The Dragon now reveals why he is after John, for the revenge of his father’s death. John
- says it was all in the line of duty and nothing personal.
- • Daughter finds them, a fight to the death ensues, wins, killing the Villain and rescuing her father.
- Father explains to daughter he is a secret agent whose job it was to unveil the business of the Triads operating both in Australia and China and years ago he shot his father during a raid when uncovering a large Heroin shipment, into Australia.
- Family reunited, daughter grateful to Martial Arts instructor
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1. The Big Secret:
While the protagonist believes the clandestine organization is just stealing abilities for wealth and power, the true objective is even darker: a full-scale military coup of the government. The head of this organization, the main Villain, is a covert leader with a personal vendetta against the retired spy from a past betrayal.
2. Main Mysteries/Cover-Ups:
1. The Targeting Mystery: How and why was the retired spy, our protagonist, specifically targeted for ability extraction?
2. The Tech Mystery: How does the muscle memory extraction device work? Who created it?
3. The Red Herring – The Financier: A mysterious billionaire suspected of financing the evil organization. He has been funding several covert projects and is very secretive about them.
4. Hidden Training Facilities: Locations where agents with stolen abilities are trained, but for what purpose?
Red Herring Steps:
1. The Financier is found at locations where the extraction incidents occurred.
2. The Hero uncovers monetary ties between the Financier and the scientists believed to be behind the technology.
3. Evidence found in the Financier’s office seems to hint at knowledge of the extraction plots.
4. As the Hero is about to expose the Financier, it’s revealed that the billionaire’s interest was in a completely different illicit tech venture and not the extraction process.
3. The Engaging Mystery:
The retired spy wakes up feeling weak, realizing his abilities are not as sharp. He needs to understand how he became a victim and why he was targeted, drawing him deeper into the rabbit hole.
4. Sequence of Mysteries:
1. The Hero’s quest begins with understanding The Targeting Mystery, trying to fathom why he, among all elite spies, was chosen.
2. This curiosity leads him to The Tech Mystery, wanting to uncover the mechanism of his ability loss.
3. While investigating, suspicious financial transfers bring the Hero to The Financier.
4. After the Red Herring is cleared, the protagonist stumbles upon Hidden Training Facilities, which slowly unravels the military coup intention.
5. Mystery Chains:
– The Targeting Mystery:
1. Protagonist finds a strange mark on his body, a possible sign of the extraction.
2. He recollects a past mission where he crossed the now-Villain, hinting at the personal vendetta.
3. Flashbacks show a failed mission, a betrayal, and the Villain swearing revenge.
– The Tech Mystery:
1. After being targeted, the protagonist discovers a small discarded piece of equipment near his home. It’s intricate and obviously a part of a more significant apparatus. It appears to be a failed or older version of the device used on him.
2. Dr. Verne, a neuroscientist known for his cutting-edge research on memory and muscle reflexes, had disappeared months ago. Rumors had surfaced that he was working on a revolutionary project, but details were scarce.
3. The protagonist, utilizing his connections and skills, finds that Dr. Verne might be held in a secret facility in the Alps. A high-risk mission ensues to locate and hopefully rescue him.
4. Once rescued, Dr. Verne is initially reluctant to speak, traumatized by his abduction and forced work. However, with time, he reveals the magnitude of his findings. He had been working on a way to transfer muscle memory to help patients with muscle degradation diseases or paralysis. But the tech was weaponised by the Villain.
– The Financier (Red Herring):
1. Dissecting the questionable financial transfers.
2. Infiltrating secretive high-profile events hosted by the Financier.
3. Finding covert project details in the Financier’s assets, leading to a false climax.
– Hidden Training Facilities:
1. Surveillance captures training sessions of agents showcasing abilities not their own.
2. Decoding a secret communication between rogue agents about a big upcoming event.
3. Unearthing blueprints of a fortified base, suggesting preparations for a significant assault – the military coup.
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Diane Phelps: Mystery Sequence
What I learned doing this assignment:
Always the biggest idea is to start with the end then brainstorm on how to cover it up… here is what I have for the Mystery…. so exciting!!!
Big Secret: Mayor Evelyn Monroe and the “Enlightened Circle” are covering up their plan to harness the supernatural energy source beneath Port Paradise for their own gain.
Ways to Cover the Secret:
1. Misdirection: Create diversions and crises to divert attention away from the supernatural energy source.
2. False Altruism: Present the mayor as a benevolent leader dedicated to improving the town.
3. Control of Information: Monitor and control investigations and potential whistleblowers.
Mystery Chain 1: The Unexplained Disappearances
Mystery: Residents of Port Paradise have been mysteriously disappearing, and the mayor’s office seems uninterested in investigating these cases.
Hero’s Engagement: Alex Turner becomes involved in the investigation when he discovers that his sister, Lindsay, was the first to go missing. He suspects a connection between Lindsay’s disappearance and the other cases.
Clues Leading to Red Herring: Alex discovers that some of the missing residents had personal conflicts with Lindsay, leading him to believe that there may have been a motive for her to be involved. He uncovers emails and messages that suggest Lindsay was researching the supernatural energy source.
Busting the Red Herring: In a tense confrontation with Lindsay’s former friend, who had a motive to harm her, Alex discovers that the friend had no involvement in the disappearances and was genuinely concerned about Lindsay’s safety.
Discovery: Lindsay’s disappearance was unrelated to the other missing residents. This leaves Alex having to rethink his initial theory.
Mystery Chain 2: The Hidden Research
Mystery: Alex stumbles upon Lindsay’s research notes and realizes that she was investigating the supernatural energy source beneath Port Paradise before she disappeared.
Hero’s Engagement: Alex becomes determined to continue Lindsay’s research and figure out if there’s a connection between her investigation and the town’s mysteries.
Clues Leading to Mayor Monroe: Alex’s investigation into Lindsay’s research leads him to Mayor Monroe’s office, where he discovers documents related to the energy source and a trail of financial transactions linked to the “Enlightened Circle.”
Busting the Red Herring: Just as Alex is about to confront Mayor Monroe, he receives an anonymous tip suggesting that someone else may have been using her office to access the documents. He realizes that the mayor might not be directly responsible for the disappearance of his sister.
Discovery: The mayor’s involvement in Lindsay’s research was a red herring. While she had knowledge of the energy source, it wasn’t her who orchestrated Lindsay’s disappearance.
Mystery Chain 3: The Phantom Accomplice
Mystery: Alex uncovers a series of encrypted messages exchanged between Lindsay and an unknown person just before her disappearance.
Hero’s Engagement: Driven by the need to find his sister, Alex attempts to decode the messages and track down the mysterious accomplice.
Clues Leading to Red Herring: Alex deciphers the messages and identifies a local resident who had been assisting Lindsay in her research. He believes this individual may have had a motive to harm her.
Busting the Red Herring: Alex confronts the resident, only to discover that they were genuinely helping Lindsay out of curiosity and had no involvement in her disappearance. They were also unaware of the “Enlightened Circle.”
Discovery: The mysterious accomplice was not responsible for Lindsay’s disappearance. Alex is forced to reconsider who might have had the means and motive to target his sister.
Mystery Chain 4: The Mayor’s True Intentions
Mystery: Alex uncovers evidence linking Mayor Monroe to the “Enlightened Circle” and their plans to harness the supernatural energy source.
Hero’s Engagement: Realizing that the mayor’s involvement is more significant than he initially thought, Alex becomes determined to expose her true intentions and the extent of the society’s power.
Clues Leading to Mayor Monroe: Alex gathers evidence of the mayor’s financial ties to the “Enlightened Circle,” secret meetings, and correspondence with other influential members of the society.
Busting the Red Herring: Just as Alex is about to confront Mayor Monroe, he receives a message from an anonymous whistleblower within the society, revealing that the mayor is a mere puppet in a much larger conspiracy.
Discovery: Mayor Monroe’s power and influence within the “Enlightened Circle” was just the tip of the iceberg. The true orchestrators of the supernatural energy plan remain hidden, and Alex must now dig even deeper to uncover the real villains behind Port Paradise’s dark secrets.
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Judith’s Mystery Sequence – L6 – Homework
What I learned doing this assignment is it’s a challenge to connect all the mysteries. I am still working on sequencing everything to fit together.
Create your mystery sequence. Give us the answer to these questions.
The first mystery must engage the Hero into solving it. Students discover the coed’s bodies, and one is Chip’s sister.
1. What is the big secret that the Villain is covering up? He is impregnating coeds to get them pregnant and then have them abort their babies for a youth giving serum.
2. How many ways can they cover that secret? Those become the mysteries.
1. He helps Chip with his nightmares.
2. He is a well-liked Professor at the college.
3. He is an awarded Professor at the college.
4. Chip tells Professor Mimosa about the old man.
5. Chip tells the Prof he is going to the college to check on the drama professor, but the prof knows he will be checking on him. He knows they won’t give out any information. However, a woman does help Chip and shows him the picture of Mimosa and tells him the story of a woman that got away, her best friend, Chip’s Mom.
6. Chip and his friends investigate Prof Mimosa and get evidence on him.
7. Chip’s friend is kidnapped by Mimosa and he rescues her and sees the old man in Mimosa’s lab. He sees the old man drink a substance and turn into the Professor as a young man.
8. The Prof recognizes Chip as his son, the baby that got away and he asks Chip to join him in everlasting life. Chip refuses and they fight. He succeeds in stopping Mimosa.
Who is the old man with the bloody bag?
Chip runs into an old man carrying a bloody bag when he goes on his run to shake off his nightmare.
The old man disappears in one of the buildings.
Who killed Chip’s mother?
At the parent’s day – the mother runs away when she sees the professor, but Chip things she ran from the Drama professor, the red Herring. He was standing near Professor Mimosa and Chip misunderstood.
Afterwards Chip gets a call from his mom that it is time she came clean about who Chip’s real dad is.
Chip overhears from a coed (who is seeking revenge on the Drama professor) that the drama professor is friendly with the coeds.
Chip spies on the drama professor and sees him being friendly with the coeds.
Chip checks out a rumor about the professor at his former school getting into trouble with the coeds. However, he went to the wrong college.
Chip goes to investigate and the college refuses to tell him anything, but one woman does secretly, however, when he shows the woman the drama professor’s picture, she says that’s not the man. In the yearbook she shows him the picture of Professor Mimosa.
Why does Chip have these nightmares around his birthday every year?
Trauma of mom passed onto the fetus.
Chip has a hallucination during the Halloween hunt that says, “The past holds the key.”
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Diane Phelps’ mystery chain
Mystery Sequence: The Villain’s Cover-Up
Big Secret: Mayor Evelyn Monroe and the “Enlightened Circle” are covering up their plan to harness the supernatural energy source beneath Port Paradise for their own gain.
Ways to Cover the Secret:
1. Misdirection: Create diversions and crises to divert attention away from the supernatural energy source.
2. False Altruism: Present the mayor as a benevolent leader dedicated to improving the town.
3. Control of Information: Monitor and control investigations and potential whistleblowers.
Mystery Chain 1: The Unexplained Disappearances
Mystery: Residents of Port Paradise have been mysteriously disappearing, and the mayor’s office seems uninterested in investigating these cases.
Hero’s Engagement: Alex Turner becomes involved in the investigation when he discovers that his sister, Lindsay, was the first to go missing. He suspects a connection between Lindsay’s disappearance and the other cases.
Clues Leading to Red Herring: Alex discovers that some of the missing residents had personal conflicts with Lindsay, leading him to believe that there may have been a motive for her to be involved. He uncovers emails and messages that suggest Lindsay was researching the supernatural energy source.
Busting the Red Herring: In a tense confrontation with Lindsay’s former friend, who had a motive to harm her, Alex discovers that the friend had no involvement in the disappearances and was genuinely concerned about Lindsay’s safety.
Discovery: Lindsay’s disappearance was unrelated to the other missing residents. This leaves Alex having to rethink his initial theory.
Mystery Chain 2: The Hidden Research
Mystery: Alex stumbles upon Lindsay’s research notes and realizes that she was investigating the supernatural energy source beneath Port Paradise before she disappeared.
Hero’s Engagement: Alex becomes determined to continue Lindsay’s research and figure out if there’s a connection between her investigation and the town’s mysteries.
Clues Leading to Mayor Monroe: Alex’s investigation into Lindsay’s research leads him to Mayor Monroe’s office, where he discovers documents related to the energy source and a trail of financial transactions linked to the “Enlightened Circle.”
Busting the Red Herring: Just as Alex is about to confront Mayor Monroe, he receives an anonymous tip suggesting that someone else may have been using her office to access the documents. He realizes that the mayor might not be directly responsible for the disappearance of his sister.
Discovery: The mayor’s involvement in Lindsay’s research was a red herring. While she had knowledge of the energy source, it wasn’t her who orchestrated Lindsay’s disappearance.
Mystery Chain 3: The Phantom Accomplice
Mystery: Alex uncovers a series of encrypted messages exchanged between Lindsay and an unknown person just before her disappearance.
Hero’s Engagement: Driven by the need to find his sister, Alex attempts to decode the messages and track down the mysterious accomplice.
Clues Leading to Red Herring: Alex deciphers the messages and identifies a local resident who had been assisting Lindsay in her research. He believes this individual may have had a motive to harm her.
Busting the Red Herring: Alex confronts the resident, only to discover that they were genuinely helping Lindsay out of curiosity and had no involvement in her disappearance. They were also unaware of the “Enlightened Circle.”
Discovery: The mysterious accomplice was not responsible for Lindsay’s disappearance. Alex is forced to reconsider who might have had the means and motive to target his sister.
Mystery Chain 4: The Mayor’s True Intentions
Mystery: Alex uncovers evidence linking Mayor Monroe to the “Enlightened Circle” and their plans to harness the supernatural energy source.
Hero’s Engagement: Realizing that the mayor’s involvement is more significant than he initially thought, Alex becomes determined to expose her true intentions and the extent of the society’s power.
Clues Leading to Mayor Monroe: Alex gathers evidence of the mayor’s financial ties to the “Enlightened Circle,” secret meetings, and correspondence with other influential members of the society.
Busting the Red Herring: Just as Alex is about to confront Mayor Monroe, he receives a message from an anonymous whistleblower within the society, revealing that the mayor is a mere puppet in a much larger conspiracy.
Discovery: Mayor Monroe’s power and influence within the “Enlightened Circle” was just the tip of the iceberg. The true orchestrators of the supernatural energy plan remain hidden, and Alex must now dig even deeper to uncover the real villains behind Port Paradise’s dark secrets.
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What I learned is…
The big secret that the Villain, Mayor Evelyn Monroe, is covering up is the existence of a powerful and potentially dangerous supernatural energy source beneath Port Paradise. She aims to harness this energy for her own purposes, even if it means sacrificing innocent lives.
Mystery Chain 1: The Mysterious Disappearances
Mystery 1: The Disappearance of Lindsay, Megan, Emily, and Their Friend Alex
– The hero, Alex Turner, investigates the sudden disappearance of his sister Lindsay and her friends during their getaway in Port Paradise.
– What I learned is that the friends’ disappearance is the catalyst for Alex’s involvement and sets the story in motion.
Mystery 2: The Odd Symbols and Whispers
– Alex discovers strange symbols etched into the town’s architecture and hears whispers in the wind that seem connected to the disappearances.
– What I learned is that these eerie occurrences are the first clues leading Alex deeper into the mystery.
Mystery Chain 2: Unmasking Mayor Monroe
Mystery 3: Mayor Monroe’s Charismatic Facade
– Alex becomes suspicious of Mayor Monroe’s charismatic leadership and begins to investigate her background.
– What I learned is that Mayor Monroe is hiding her true intentions and her affiliation with a secret society.
Mystery 4 (Red Herring): The Wealth Discrepancy
– Alex stumbles upon a mystery involving a significant wealth gap in the town, suspecting that this might be the key to uncovering Mayor Monroe’s secrets.
– What I learned is that this wealth gap, while intriguing, is not directly connected to the supernatural energy source or the disappearances.
Mystery Chain 3: The Supernatural Energy Source
Mystery 5: The Underground Chamber
– Alex, with the help of Dr. Rebecca “Beck” Martinez, investigates underground chambers beneath the town and uncovers strange, otherworldly symbols.
– What I learned is that these chambers hold clues to the existence of the supernatural energy source.
Mystery 6: The Targeted Victims
– Alex realizes that Lindsay, Megan, Emily, and his friend were not random victims but were specifically targeted due to their connection to the supernatural energy source.
– What I learned is that Mayor Monroe is willing to sacrifice innocent lives to harness this power.
Mystery Chain 4: Alex’s Redemption and Showdown
Mystery 7: Alex’s Redemption
– As Alex delves deeper into the mystery, he confronts his own past mistakes and seeks redemption for his actions, realizing his role in the unfolding events.
– What I learned is that Alex’s personal growth and redemption are integral to the resolution of the story.
Mystery 8: The Final Confrontation
– Alex confronts Mayor Monroe, leading to a heart-pounding showdown that will determine the fate of Port Paradise.
– What I learned is that the climax of the story hinges on Alex’s determination to save the town and his friends from impending doom while battling Mayor Monroe’s sinister plans.
These interconnected mysteries and their resolutions drive the plot forward, keeping the audience engaged in the unfolding drama as Alex unravels the dark secrets hidden beneath Port Paradise.
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Kelly’s Mystery Sequence
What I learned? I learned that once I thought about the cover ups generating the mystery sequence was fairly easy. I just kept thinking step by step and I was able to come up with several mysteries that are all connected.
Big Secret: use mind hack system to hack social media users and get them tp perform terrorist acts and pin it on Connor a former partner.
Kickoff Mystery: What made her brother take a gun to his wor?
Mystery 1: Who was her brother talking to online?
Mystery 2 Who is this soccer mom lady?
Mystery 3: Who is this Greystorm character?
Mystery 4: What is this group planning?
Mystery 5: Who is unleashing this code?
Mystery 6: Is Connor the leader?RED HERRING
Mystery 7: Who is really behind this?
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This reply was modified 1 year, 9 months ago by Kelly Joseph.
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This reply was modified 1 year, 9 months ago by
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Jamie Stegner Mystery Sequence
What I learned is: Doing small steps at a time will get it done and get it more complicated for the audience than trying to craft it as one piece. The ending is most important – be sure it’s strong.
Create your mystery sequence. Give us the answer to these questions.
What is the big secret that the
Villain is covering up?Mother has falsified financial papers to look like she received $10MM. She left the papers in the house where her children will find them. They will fight over the money, assuming that she hid it in the house or gave it to the other sibling. Each sibling suspects the other of getting the money from Mother before she died and not sharing it.
Mother’s false documents will only hold up until S can get to the bank to check and enquire about how she took the cash and do they have any info about what she did with it? Was there anyone with her? Etc. The bank personnel will immediately recognize the forgery, esp for such a large amount. S will see it herself when she’s in the sunlight.
For the purposes of our story, which takes place over a weekend, this won’t matter. Mother’s plan serves its purpose well for the time of your story – a day and a half. Mother’s purpose is to have the children kill each other and stay in the house with her forever. She has built this hatred between them all their lives.
How many ways can Mother cover
that secret? Those
become the mysteries. The
children and their spouses search the house, nooks and crannies, lift rugs
to examine floor boards, empty closets and cupboards. They come across many
family secrets but not cash. 1. Father’s corpse falls thru the ceiling
from the attic. The roof is leaking and the floor / ceiling rotted. How
did he die in the attic that no one knew?
2. S may have been snatched at age four. Mother is not a mother at
all. Same for B? yes. <div>The first mystery must engage the
Hero into solving it. Hero S wants the money to quietly settle a law suit
at home. It’s important to save both their careers and their financial
status. She must find the money before the other sibling does because she
knows from experience that he won’t share. `Sequence the mysteries so that each
one leads us to the next one.a. S finds the (false) bank papers and believes there’s a lot of cash hidden in the house. B overhears her tell her husband and is furious that she didn’t tell him. He tells his wife, setting up a rivalry to find the cash before the others do.
b. Father falls thru the ceiling onto the wife. Horrifying! How did he die in the attic? Who locked him up there to freeze in the cold winter? Why didn’t Mother find him when he went missing? S accuses B. B accuses S. (yelling)
c. Spouses retreat from the inside fight to the veranda as the terrible thunder storm approaches. Will they fall in love? Will their spouses see that they are attracted to each other? What rage will that inspire?
d. S goes up in the attic to find out how Father died and why he’s falling thru the ceiling now. While there she finds an old photo album with a news article about a snatched girl age four. The photo could be her. “This explains a lot.”
e. The spouses have gone off to the store and are stuck in the mud of the heavy rain storm. Will they fall in love? Will they return to the spooky old house and the fighting siblings?
f. Each sibling makes friends with the other’s spouse as they explore the house for the cash. Plans to kill the other fall into place. Will B enact his plan to kill S? Will S be able to kill B before he kills her? Of course all killing has to look like an accident to avoid police entanglement.
Include ONE Red Herring mystery if you can. As S and B continue to search for the cash, each becomes increasingly frustrated with not finding any. They suspect each other of finding and re-hiding to keep the cash for themselves. Each becomes a Red Herring for the other as nobody suspects Mother’s trick. (yet).
Create a Mystery Chain for each
main mystery. </div><div>To B, S looks guilty of stealing the money
because:1. She’s an accountant and knows how to manipulate financial accounts.
2. She and her husband need the money for their problem at home. She’ll feel she deserves it because of the current misfortune.
3. She’s always been a “nasty bitch” and Mother’s favorite.
b. To S, B looks guilty because:
1. He’s always been a thief and murderer.
2. He always been Mother’s favorite.
3. He’s sly and treacherous.
4. S thinks he feels he deserves the money because S and H are well off.
c. Father fell thru the ceiling from the attic after being missing for 9 years because:
1. Mother left him up there to freeze. His corpse dried out and didn’t rot.
2. After years of leaky roof – probably why he went up there – the floor and ceiling are rotten.
3. He couldn’t get out because he was trapped in one of his squirrel traps, nailed to the floor. Mother’s ghost admits she heard him call for help but she turned down the furnace instead.
</div>
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Tim Barley’s Mystery Sequence
What I learned from doing this assignment is that it’s actually quite fun to create the cover up to the secrets and mysteries.
Big Secret cover up:
Nocturne is actually The Courier future self, attempting to stop a cataclysmic event triggered by the package’s successful delivery.
Covering up the secret/mysteries:
– THE PACKAGE [THE Mystery] is a metal box with no markings save the numbers “0008” etched into the metal, a triangle key hole.
– Dispatch casually mentions that The Courier wasn’t the first choice, suggesting it was due to availability or skill set.
– Sabotage: The Courier discovers an issue with his primary vehicle that may indicate sabotage, causing him to take his secondary, less equipped vehicle.
– False allies in the form of fellow couriers and other “night travelers” who at first appear to be genuinely helpful, but may be trying to hinder or steal the package.
– Night Authority – may be infiltrated by Nocturne’s influence to stop The Courier (also regular authorities – Highway Patrols, sheriffs, etc. – may be turned as well
– Denizens – night denizens, creatures of night myth, usually uninterested in the goings-on of the Night World, suddenly come out of the literal dark to try get the package
– The Future Key – presented by Nocturne himself who near the end, while never showing his face to us, alludes that he is the future self, giving The Courier the key to open it and stop what will happen
Sequence of mysteries & Mystery Chains
The Package – what it is and who wants it and why do they want it?
1. What is the package?
2. Why the courier wasn’t the first choice. Which couriers wouldn’t/couldn’t pull this off? Why was he chosen?
– Where is everyone?
– Why can’t he contact some of his connections?
3. Why the courier’s primary vehicle was sabotaged?
– Vehicle not start.
– Discovery of sabotage elements (it’s not a regular malfunction).
– Clues hinting at insider knowledge of the courier’s vehicle – where it was stored and how to disable it.
4. Who the false allies are and why they’re interfering?
– Introduction of seemingly helpful characters Astra, Griffin and other couriers.
– Inexplicable failures or setbacks while they’re around, especially Griffin, a great mechanic who knows The Courier the longest/most.
– Griffin offers to take the route, noticing The Courier is using his secondary vehicle.
5. Why mythic night denizens are interested in the package.
– Strange encounters with mythic creatures, normally no interaction.
– Them having knowledge of the package.
– Discovery that someone has been leaking information to them.
6. Why Nocturne gives the courier a key to the package.
– Presentation of a key by Nocturne.
– The discovery that it’s an aged version of a key the Courier already owns.
– The realization that his own key doesn’t work on the package lock.
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This reply was modified 1 year, 9 months ago by Timothy Barley.
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This reply was modified 1 year, 9 months ago by
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Miller’s Mystery Sequence
What I learned is to start with the end in mind and brainstorm back. And, I saw how simple the plan can be, and to keep it simple. I love that it will not appear simple, but it is and, I believe, should be. I say that particularly after modeling the thrillers and using the chart, as I can now see more clearly, precisely where to put my energies, MIS. This focuses me, which give me more energy, and I need that. Piece by piece, one leads to the next and the next, and away we go!
Big secret: Jessica is the kidnapper.
The mysteries and cover ups:
Mystery 1: Who took Emily?
Secret: Jessica kidnaps Emily
Cover Up: Emily goes missing after secretly meeting Liam.
Mystery 2: What is Liam hiding?
Secret: Jessica pins the crime on Liam, uses crime to increase social media followers.
Cover Up:
A) Jessica deletes Emily’s dating profile.
B) Jessica knows from Emily that Liam used fake profiles to ask her out on the app.
C) Jessica tells Hazel that Emily was involved with Liam.Mystery 3: Who is Mandy Dearwood?
Secret: Jessica recovers Emily’s profile and gives it to TREVOR.
Cover Up: Trevor links the fake profile dates from Emily’s account back to Liam, further implicating Liam.Mystery 4: Is Jessica the killer?
Secret: Jessica is an ex-patient of Hazel’s and she is out for revenge
Cover Up:
A) Jessica changed her name to hide something. Her real name is Mandy Dearwood.
B) Trevor was investigating Emily’s dating profile, tracks down a fake profile that contacted both Emily and Hazel. He tracks those to an account M. Dearwood. He searches and finds that M. Dearwood is none other than Jessica Burnside. This revelation terrifies Trevor,And, he is murdered, making it look as though Liam did it.
The first mystery involves the hero because her daughter is missing.
Act 1:
Opening:
Introduce Dr. Hazel Ferguson, a former child psychologist turned bookstore owner, and her strained relationship with her college freshman daughter, Emily, because Hazel can tell she is keeping a secret from her.
Inciting Incident (Mystery 1: Who took Emily?):
Emily vanishes mysteriously after secretly meeting Liam, one of the app’s co-founders.
Hazel goes to her dorm room and discovers Emily did not sleep there. Her roommate tells Hazel she looked all dressed up for a date, she is always going out, but Emily told Hazel she had to work late at the dating app.
Hazel calls her friend, Officer Mike Griffin, who promises to look into it.
Act 1 Turning Point (Mystery 2: What is Liam hiding?):
Hazel goes to Emily’s internship, maybe she is there, but she discovers from Jessica that Emily did in fact lie about working, they did not work last night. She meets with Liam and Valerie Harding, the app’s co-founders, and begins to suspect their involvement in Emily’s disappearance when she learns her dating profile has been deleted.
The Hardings are secretive, and want to protect their business and reputation.
Hazel starts investigating Emily’s disappearance, uncovering subtle hints that suggest Liam’s potential involvement.
Hazel teams up with investigative journalist David Remmington, who is there doing an expose on the enigmatic Harding twins, to uncover the truth.
Act 2:
Midpoint:
Trevor’s investigation reveals that Mandy Dearwood is Jessica Burnside, a former patient of Hazel’s seeking revenge.
Jessica, using Emily’s dating profile, sends Hazel and Trevor cryptic messages, further deepening the mystery.
Act 2 Turning Point (Mystery 3: Who is Mandy Dearwood?):
Jessica kidnaps Liam to frame him for Emily’s murder and increase her social media following.
Climax:
Hazel and David uncover Jessica’s true identity as the mastermind behind Emily’s abduction and Trevor’s murder.
They confront Jessica, exposing her deep desire for revenge and unraveling the connection between their pasts, all while Emily’s life hangs in the balance.
Act 3:
Resolution (Mystery 4: Is Jessica the killer?):
Hazel reconciles her protective instincts with allowing Emily to pursue her own path and dreams.
Liam and Valerie’s dating app faces public scrutiny but remains operational, emphasizing genuine connections and personal growth rather than manipulation.
Hazel and David’s romantic relationship deepens as they share a newfound sense of responsibility and understanding.
Emily and Liam are in love.
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Peter Saltzman’s Mystery Sequence
What I Learned:
Even though Fugue is not remotely in style or on the topic of Basic Instinct, I was able to use that template (literally going through the sequences Hal has here as examples and replacing them) to get me started. Even with the vastly different tone and topic, the basic template applies. In going through this process, I discovered a lot about my story and filled in many plot holes.
What is the big secret that the Villain is covering up?
Howie, insanely jealous of the far more talented Mile Coles, is out to destroy him on both personal and professional levels.
How many ways can they cover that secret? Those become the mysteries.
Howie has inherited a great deal of money, and he uses it to manipulate Miles’ career and life. Specifically:
• Negative Publicity: Howie creates multiple fake social media and regular media accounts to question the validity of Miles’ work, suggesting it was stolen or is irrelevant.
• Personal Destruction: Howie and Miles were friends in music school and they “shared” the same girlfriend, who later became Miles’ wife. Howie is convinced he stole Ella from him so he creates AI videos that show Miles getting into it with women and men. He again posts these via believable fake accounts. Howie defends Miles to Ella Cole and consoles Miles when Ella breaks it off with him.
• Paying Audience Members to Disrupt the Shows: Miles’ shows face disruptions by paid audience members. Howie chastises the disruptors publicly, posing as a defender of Miles’ performances.
• Paying off Concert Promoters: Miles secures a potential performance opportunity, but Howie intervenes behind the scenes, preventing him from playing in a serious venue. Howie writes a piece about how Miles should aim for better venues, adding doubt to Miles’ choices.
• Stalking and Threats: As Miles’ confidence wanes, he begins receiving anonymous threats. Howie offers to assist in handling the threats, further manipulating Miles’ emotions.
The first mystery must engage the Hero into solving it.
Miles is on the verge of a major comeback after years of toiling in obscurity. Out of the blue, just before a major concert, a wave of media accusations (accusing him of plagiarizing, cultural appropriation, etc.) derail his comeback, puts his marriage on the rocks, and even threatens his livelihood playing at the club. Miles must act to save his career and marriage.
Mystery 1: Is Miles guilty of plagiarism and deceit?
• The composition that is gaining Miles all the new attention seems to have been stolen from a now obscure Black jazz musician. An underground, never-released recording shows up. He is thus accused of both plagiarism and cultural appropriation.
• Miles has been a promoter of the man’s work and…
• He even wrote an essay in college about this work, which referred to many legendary missing recordings
• Mile’s essay went into intricate detail about the artist’s unique style.
• Miles acts indifferent about the whole thing as everyone steals from everyone all the time..
• He makes fun of his critics while claiming he didn’t steal anything.
• He even composed a new piece based on one of the artist’s KNOWN compositions.
• Musicologists claim he is outright stealing.
Mystery 2: What is Missy hiding? (Red Herring)
Missy, the club manager/owner, is evasive, avoiding Miles’ questions about how she became the club owner. She is hiding something. In fact, her efforts to keep Miles in her club are meant to protect him. She knows if Miles breaks out into bigger venues and opportunities, he could be killed. But Howie is blackmailing Missy—he has some dirt on her past. She was involved in a scandal as a record company exec (or manager) for apparently cheating artists out of funds. She changed her name and moved to Chicago from NYC (or LA). She opened a series of boutique clubs, all of which failed. Then, out of nowhere, became the owner of this big new club. She doesn’t even know who Howie is—he is literally the silent partner. But her every action seems to be hiding something, so we suspect her from the beginning.
• She is dismissive of Miles’ requests to upgrade the club, leaving the piano untuned, the sound system low-budget
• When Miles ask her how she came to own this weirdly high-end club with low-end features, she is vague and evasive
• She appears to have a ton of money but didn’t inherit it and couldn’t have made it from her failed boutique clubs
• When people complain about the low quality of the club in a high rent location, she dismisses them, “I want that keep that street vibe.”
• When Miles has an important showcase in front of industry execs, the club sound system goes haywire, and audience members are strangely loud and rude.
• When Miles threatens to quit the club, she threatens him, “Your place is here. You won’t survive out there.” She is trying to keep Miles’ career from taking off.
• Miles Google’s Missy, and she appears to have no past.
• He digs deeper with an image search and finds that she changed her name and has a troubled past within the industry.
• He then finds that she was at the same university, in the artist management program. And that she briefly managed the short-lived music career of Howie Spikes!
Mystery 3: Who is the silent partner?
Throughout the first half of the film, Missy takes calls or responds to text messages with vague commands and warnings. But they come from someone labeled, “The Man.” We have no idea who this is, but clearly, she is doing his bidding.
• Missy is seen taking calls and responding to commands.
• The makeup of the crowd varies wildly from day to day; sometimes high-end, sometimes vagrants, and it seems connected to commands Missy is receiving
• Money is tight, then free-flowing
• Missy can spend it on high-end booze but not on making the music features of the club better (“It’s what the boss wants.”)
• Need more here!
Mystery 4: Is Howie manipulating everyone?
• Howie shows up at the club, appears to be a fan of Miles
• But then talks loudly during his performances
• Miles asks him to help promote his shows, which he promises to do, but then only makes slight mention in columns about other artists
• Howie throws money around to impress the Chicago elite when they come to th shows. He’s loaded.
• But then, when Miles asks him for support, he says he can’t afford it.
• As Miles’ marriage comes apart due to financial stress, Howie watches, smirking, then speaks to Ella (Miles’ wife.) “I’m here for you. “You have always been here for yourself alone asshole.”
• As Mile’s marriage deteriorates further, we find out about the love triangle gone bad in Miles’, Ella’s, and Howie’s past.
• And how they were best friends in college until Miles “stole” Ella and his talent obliterated Howie’s.
• They’ve stayed in touch, but Howie has always refused to help the struggling Coles, even though he’s loaded through an inheritance that is revealed.
• Miles, always a tech wizard, is able to trace fake reviews and AI accounts to Howie
• Miles discovers the composition he apparently plagiarized was AI-generated to sound like the guy he didn’t copy. He traces the account back an employee of Howie’s
• When Miles is about to break out, thugs rough him up, which is too much for Missy, who exposes Howie as the source.
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Barbe’s Mystery Sequence
What I learned is that in order to reverse engineer one must ask the right questions to begin with. This was a tricky assignment.
1. What is the big secret that the Villain is covering up?
· Volkov needs the manuscript as a way to launder money.
2. How many ways can they cover that secret? Those become the mysteries.
The Mysteries:
· Why did Max really shoot the intruder?
· What is Max hiding?
· Who is Volkov?
· Why does Volkov need the manuscript?
3. The first mystery must engage the Hero into solving it.
· The Mavens rush to Max’s aid when he is arrested.
4. Sequence the mysteries so that each one leads us to the next one. Include ONE Red Herring mystery if you can.
· Max is the red herring.
5. Create a Mystery Chain for each main mystery.
Mystery Chain #1 – Why did Max shoot the intruder?
· Max wakes up in the middle of the night to a disturbance in the shop below.
· When he investigates, he finds a body in his office.
· He goes to grab his gun, but it’s gone.
· He hears a disturbance in the alley and finds another person shot. Does he recognize him? Max picks up the gun, the man lunges. Max shoots.
Mystery Chain #2 – What is Max hiding?
· Max purchases a manuscript
· Max puts in his safe
· Max does not tell the police or the Mavens about the manuscript.
· Max is ex-FBI.
· Max hides the fact that the intruder is an ex-FBI agent with whom Max worked.
· Max turned in the other agent for illegal activity.
Mystery Chain #3 – Who is Volkov?
· Volkov’s thugs “visit” Max’s store.
· Max goes to an auction to purchase a manuscript – that he cannot afford.
· Max purchased the manuscript for Volkov.
· Max hides the manuscript in the safe.
· Max plans to double-cross Volkov.
Mystery Chain #4 – Why does Volkov need the manuscript?
· Volkov’s thugs threaten Max.
· Volkov’s thugs pursue, intimidate, threaten, and harm the Mavens.
· Volkov’s life is threatened by the Oligarch he is working for.
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<b style=”font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit;”>Subject: Monica’s Mystery Sequence
What I learned is to just relax and brainstorm – it can always be changed later!
Create your mystery sequence. Give us the answer to these questions.
What is the big secret that the Villain is covering up?<div>
The Villain wants to be in charge of the “glass”
society.How many ways can they cover that secret? Those become
the mysteries.Mystery 1: Who
killed the council member?Mystery 2: How
was it done with transparency camera’s everywhere?Mystery 3:
Where was the council member’s personal robot?Mystery 4: Is
the Administrator the murderer?The first mystery must engage the Hero into solving it.
A senior member of the ruling council is murdered. In
a society with transparency camera’s everywhere – how is that possible?
The Hero must launch an investigation.Sequence the mysteries so that each one leads us to the
next one. Include ONE Red Herring mystery if you can.Secret 1: The Villain murdered the council member.
Cover up 1: The transparency cameras must be glitching.
Secret 2: The Villain is trying to pin the murder on the Hero.
Cover up 2: He offers to help her with the investigation.
Secret 3: The Villain is working each member of the council separately to discredit the system and the Hero.
Cover up 3: With the investigation going nowhere fast, the Villain stands up for the Hero saying the investigation is complex.
Secret 4: The Villain murders another council member.
Cover up 4: The Hero starts investigating without the Villain.
Secret 5: The Hero goes for help to a community that lives outside the transparency community.
Cover up 5: The person coming to help her poses as her brother from another transparency community.
Create a Mystery Chain for each main mystery.</div>
Mystery 1: Who killed the council member?
The Hero had a personal relationship with the council
member.
The Hero had dinner with the council member that
night. Did she do it?
In the archives is an obscure text that suggests how
you can get away with murder in a transparency society.
The Hero is in such shock she acts guilty.
In reviewing the camera feed, the Hero discovers a
person running from the scene – is it real?Mystery 2: How
was it done with transparency camera’s everywhere?The Hero pulls up the code behind the transparency
cameras – but doesn’t see anything unusual.
Discovers the person running from the scene is a
manipulation of the code.
The Hero shows the code to the Villain and he
confirms there is no problem with the code – someone’s lying.
She tries to contact the inventor of these types of
cameras but discovers he’s dead.Mystery 3:
Where is the council member’s personal robot?Everyone who lives in the transparency society has a
personal robot, so what happened to the council member’s?
Did the robot do the deed and covered it up?
Why does the surveillance camera not have the robot
in it for 24 hours?
If the robot has gone rouge what will it do next and
who else is at risk?Mystery 4: Is
the Administrator the murderer?The Administrator (Hero) believes deeply in the
ideals of the transparency society, making it easy to manipulate her,
which the Villain does using sex, which she declines, and then drugs.
When she challenges the Villain, he produces tech
experts to “demonstrate” that there has been no tampering with the code.
As more and more council members look at the
Administrator suspiciously, she must seek help from an unlikely source
to help her prove her innocence. -
Michael L Harris’s – Mystery Sequence
What I learned is that mapping your mysteries can help you better understand your story and define its direction.
What is the big secret that the Villain is covering up?
That he is using the young patients in his nursing home as a ready source of organ replacements for his rapidly failing son (who is already thought to be dead.)
How many ways can they cover that secret? Those become the
mysteries.
The first mystery must engage the Hero into solving it.
Sequence the mysteries so that each one leads us to the next one.Mystery #1: What happened to Simon’s mother? And did “the man” of Simon’s visions play a role in her disappearance?
a. Simon’s mother disappeared one night two years ago when she went to see her employer.
b. Simon was in the car with her the night she was killed. He remembers voices and noises from that night and occasionally a bit of memory will surface but he can’t see faces clearly.
c. Simon went to live in a series of foster homes but has been misunderstood because of his visions.
d. Simon has recently seen a vision of the man who knows what happened to his mother the nigh she disappeared.
e. Simon determines to find the man and tries to enlist his new foster mother, Elise’s help.
f. Elise is skeptical at first but reluctantly agrees to help look for the man. While driving Simon sees the building where he “sees” the man.
g. Elise and Simon tour Dr. Whitcombe’s facility under false pretenses.
h. Simon sees a picture of his mother in the nurse’s office.
i. Simon and Elise find a secret basement where Simon sees horrific visions of the past.
j. They meet Whitcombe who offers to give them a private tour.
k. Elise’s boyfriend Kevin discovers clues about Whitcombe. Eventually going to investigate them while,
l. Simon and Elise return covertly to the nursing facility, are caught and are locked in a subbasement where Simon sees the night his mother was killed. They must find a way out to save their lives.
m. While searching for a way out, they discover more secrets about Whitcombe and his operation.
n. They meet Tommy, Whitcombe’s presumed dead son.
o. Kevin finds Simon’s mother’s car and this mother’s remains, in a lake on the Whitcombe property.
p. They run for their lives and Whitcombe is arrested.
q. Simon’s mother is laid to rest, mystery solved.
Mystery #2: Does Simon really see visions? Or are these the fantasies of a young boy to garner attention.
a. Simon meets Elise in the cemetery and gives her a button… “She wants you to have it.”
b. Simon is removed from his foster home when he calls his case worker telling her that his current foster mother is going to kill her husband. (Mr. Malbree)
c. The caseworker places Simon in Elise’s home as an emergency placement. Elise still thinks she will be getting a girl when the emergency is over.
d. The case worker confides in Elise that Simon’s foster relationship has been rocky because of his claimed visons. Including his “vision” of his Mr. Malbree’s death… but he is still alive.
e. Simon confides his vision about the Man who knows what happened to his mother.
f. Elise’s boyfriend warns her about the baggage inherent in foster children.
g. To foster the relationship Elise agrees to pursue the man only to find a well-respected surgeon.
h. Elise remains skeptical of Simon’s gifts but after the morning paper arrives with a notice of Malbree’s murder, she gives Simon another chance to explain his “gifts.”
i. Elise is still conflicted. Simon runs away in pursuit of the man. His visions lead them through a near brush with death to Whitcombe’s secrets.
j. While Kevin discovers Debra Daniels body.
k. Elise now accepts Simon’s gifts are real.
l. In the closing scene Elise recognizes the visionary glint in Simon’s eyes and the possibly that this may not be a one-time experience for she and her new “son.”
Mystery #3: What will Simon find out about “the man” of his visions? When he finds him? What are his secrets?
a. Simon sees the man in vision.
b. He convinced Elise to help find him.
c. Simon sees a picture of his mother in Whitcombe’s nurses’ office.
d. Simon and Elise find a subbasement where visions of the facility’s past are revealed.
e. Kevin’s research reveals that Whitcombe is a highly respected surgeon and a world leader in organ transplants.
f. Simon and Elise witness an organ sale though they don’t recognize it as such at the time.
g. Simon and Elise get too close to the truth and are locked in a subbasement where Simon sees the events of his mother’s last hours.
h. While escaping they find a secret room that reveals secrets about Whitcombe’s and Simon’s relationship to him.
i. They hear a conversation with a young patient who is about to undergo his “last” surgery.
j. They find Tommy, Whitcombe’s long presumed dead son.
k. They find that Whitcombe is willing to kill one child to save another.
Mystery #4: What is Simon’s Relationship to Dr. Whitcombe?
a. Simon’s mother worked for Dr. Whitcombe soon after graduating from nursing school. She was young, without family and struggling.
b. Whitcombe’s wife was unable to have children.
c. Whitcombe and Daniels made an arrangement whereby Whitcombe took one of Debra’s twins, Tommy.
d. After the Whitcombe family was in an accident Whitcombe arranged to meet Debra proposing a transplant from Simon to Tommy, who was about to die.
e. Debra refused and threatened to expose Whitcombe, and he killed her.
f. Simon was bounced from foster home to foster home until he met Elise and convinces her to help him find “the man’ in his visions (Dr. Whitcombe.)
g. Simon sees Whitcombe on TV while shopping at the mall and gets a glimpse of his facility though not enough to identify the location. Elise, who is more concerned with new clothes and lunch, misses it.
h. Simon also has a vision of the building; at the end of a long search they find it.
i. Meeting with Whitcombe’s nurse Simon sees a picture of the nurse and Dr. Whitcombe with his mother.
j. Escaping from the basement they find Dr. Whitcombe’s private office where Simon finds a copy of his birth certificate showing that Whitcombe is his father.
k. Simon has a vision of Tommy and bolts upstairs to find he is Simon’s identical twin.
l. Whitcombe discovers them in Tommy’s room and is willing to kill one son to preserve the other.
m. At the death of Tommy Whitcombe is overcome with sorrow and reaches out to Simon.
n. Whitcombe goes to Jail but there is reason to suppose that this might not be his last interaction with Simon.
Include ONE Red Herring mystery if you can.
This particular script does not have another character that is a Red Herring, but rather Dr. Whitcombe is almost his own red herring. Is he the world-renowned surgeon doing miracle work in organ transplantation that the world thinks he is or a ruthless killer who will do anything to accomplish his goals.
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Gisele Frazeur’s Mystery Sequence
What I learned doing this assignment is: how many gaping holes were in my script! This class is saving my project’s life!
– What is the big secret the Villain is covering up?
Hank is covering up the fact that his wife (Livie) was murdered by the drug lord he his beholding to – – in order to keep Hank in line and compliant.
– How many ways can he cover that secret?
He puts his sniffer dog (Pookie) on leave since she has been acting out after failing a to scent drugs at a bust – – because he intentionally set her up to fail.
He continuously manipulates evidence to point to Leff-T as the prime suspect.
He gets Darin drinking again to keep her compliant so that he can continue mining her for scientific secrets that throw scenting dogs off.
He repeatedly seduces Darin to shame her – – thus keep her drinking.
He leaks footage of her drinking to her boss to get her put on leave – – in order to keep her isolated.
He has her friend Dharma overdosed when she gets too close to the truth about him.
He kills the officer willing to share footage of Pookie’s failed drug bust with Darin and Dharma.
– The first mystery must engage the hero into solving it.
Upon arriving home after a lovely night at the Fifi awards, Darin’s sister, Livie, is gunned down and dies. Darin has been receiving threats. She thinks her sister was killed because of her – – or that the bullet was intended for her. She must uncover who the killer is and enact justice upon them.
Mystery Chain
Mystery #1 – – Who actually killed Livie?
A toe is cut off of a man who is being restrained. We cannot see his face.
Leff-T hands envelope of money to thugs and tells them to “Get is done.”
Darin receives another threatening phone call in the limo enroute to the awards ceremony.
There are agitated protestors harassing Darin outside of the ceremonial hall where awards take place.
Livie is served an appetizer with a human toe embedded in it.
Hank unearths intel that the gang Leff-T belonged to in his youth removed toes as a rite of passage ensuring continued loyalty.
Gun used in Livie’s death is same caliber as gun Leff-T committed murder with in his youth when a part of a gang.
Leff-T has a limp and apparent recent foot injury.
Mystery #2 – – Why did Pookie suddenly begin failing to scent contraband at drug busts – – and what is she trying so fervently to communicate?
Pookie goes berserk when Darin applies her violet perfume.
Darin receives condolence flowers – – which Pookie attacks.
Pookie digs up flowers in Darin’s flower beds.
Pookie growls at stranger she and Darin encounter who is sporting Darin’s Violet perfume.
Pookie attacks flowers growing in the dog park.
Mystery #3 – – What is the mystery of Leff-T’s sordid past – – and what does it have to do with Darin? Leff-T is the Red Herring.
Leff-T pays an envelope of cash to “Get it done.”
Leff-T calls for boycott of Darin’s perfumes because she declined the request of a commission from him.
Leff-T limps – – has sustained a recent foot injury – – does he have a toe missing?
Leff-T was gang affiliated and committed a murder in his youth.
Leff-T maintains gang affiliations.
Gun used in Livie’s murder is same caliber as Leff-t’s gun – – which is MIA.
Gang Leff-T was in removed toes as a rite of passage and symbol of loyalty.
Mystery #4 – – Is Hank involved in his wife’s murder? Is he the killer?
Hank encourages Darin (a recovering alcoholic) to resume drinking.
Hank seduces Darin.
Hank meets with drug lord.
Hank has Darin surveilled. He leaks footage of her drinking to her boss to get her laid off or fired.
Hank has Darin’s juvie record unsealed. He leaks it to the tabloids.
Hank kills officer willing to share footage of Pookie’s failed drug bust with Darin and Dharma.
Hank has Dharma overdosed.
Hank is missing a pinky toe.
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Lynn Vincentnathan’s Mystery Sequence
What I learned is so much here that my story is changing and evolving for the better. It is really beginning to look like a thriller. I especially appreciate learning how I need to keep various mysteries connected to the big one flowing, which has me doing more coverups, etc.
CREATE YOUR MYSTERY SEQUENCE. GIVE US THE ANSWER TO THESE QUESTIONS:
1. WHAT IS THE BIG SECRET THAT THE VILLAIN IS COVERING UP?
___Trevor is buying out houses in a low-income community in LA to build an upscale resort.
2. HOW MANY WAYS CAN THEY COVER THAT SECRET? THOSE BECOME THE MYSTERIES.
___ 1st (near last in script) he had created several LLCs under hidden ownerships so as not to cause suspicion to his plan (or the property values might go up with homeowners dickering)
____2nd he has created the rumor that the adjacent area has been zoned for heavy industry and some heavy industry is planning to build there and cause a lot of pollution and noise, greatly lowering property values (so people will be eager to sell to his companies at below market price); even other realtors have gotten wind of the rumor and are pulling back from buying there.
_____3rd he has henchman Gint do some drive-by shootings to scare people into selling. A little boy dies in the process.
_____4th he has Gint torch the last hold-out’s home during the 2025 LA conflagration so they will think it is from natural causes, not arson. The handicapped old lady dies in the blaze, and her beneficiary is agreeable to sell. The house is uninsured since the lady couldn’t afford the insurance.3. THE FIRST MYSTERY MUST ENGAGE THE HERO INTO SOLVING IT.
_____ Who slashed and rolled Jace, leaving him for dead? After torching the home Gint goes to a local bar where drunken, depressed protag Jace falsely claims to nasty ruffian Pike that he’s in that bad neighborhood to do research for his next screenplay… about who is setting these LA fires. A man later rolls and slashed Jace in the back alley. Jace and the audience doesn’t see who it is.4. SEQUENCE THE MYSTERIES SO THAT EACH ONE LEADS US TO THE NEXT ONE. INCLUDE ONE RED HERRING MYSTERY IF YOU CAN.
____ 1. Who slashed and rolled Jace, leaving him for dead?
____ 2. Did Pike do it? Any of the others? RED HERRING 1
____ 3. Did someone torch Howie’s grandma’s home?
____ 4. Who is following Jace or looking into what Jace is doing? (his ex-wife hates him and wants him dead — RED HERRING 2).
____ 5. Why would a petty criminal attacker follow, surveil, look into what Jace was doing? Wouldn’t he just try to kill him? Or, is there more than one thing going on here?
____ 6. Why does big real estate developer Trevor want to talk to Jace?5. CREATE A MYSTERY CHAIN FOR EACH MAIN MYSTERY.
____ 1. Who slashed and rolled Jace?
________ a. The police note different MO and say Jace will be in danger if he comes back to finish the job before Jace can regain his memory.____ 2. Did Pike do it? Any of the others?
________ a. the police question people at the bar that night, focusing attention on roughneck Pike who was arguing with Jace. Seems Pike is also a petty criminal just out of jail. RED HERRING 1
________ b. Gint (who did it) gets off the hook somehow, as a well-paid agent for Trevor, the rich real estate developer.
________ c. Jace is unable to ID any of them – he as drunk as a skunk and it was dark, but a doctor claims he may have amnesia and might remember later (alert for attacker and more danger for Jace).____ 3. Did someone torch Howie’s grandma’s home?
________ a. Jace meets Howie in the hospital, gets interested in his situation (now thinking of actually doing a screenplay about arson and the LA fires); he asks Howie if it could be arson. Howie gets to thinking…
________ b. Jace does a bit of inquiry and finds authorities suspect that several of the disconnected fires might be arson (from pyromaniacs, or other into fraudulent insurance claims, etc. the usual cases).____ 4. Who is following Jace or looking into what Jace is doing? (someone has alerted him to someone asking or investigating him).
_______ a. Jace’s ex-wife is pathologically jealous, said she wanted Jace dead, and Jace suspects her. RED HERRING 2.
_______ b. Or the man who attacked him was not hired by his wife, but a low-life, lone wolf. However…____ 5. Why would such a guy follow, surveil, look into what Jace was doing? Wouldn’t he just try to kill him? Or, is there more than one thing going on here? The slash/roll and his new screenplay ideas. Could they be connected?
____ 6. Why does real estate developer Trevor want to talk to Jace?
________ a. Some cover, like he is dating Jace’s ex-wife, or wants to get Jace to talk to Howie, or??_____ 7. What is Trevor up to and how is he going about it?
_________a. Jace talks to people who work with (or worked with) Trevor, starts investigating him. They police won’t touch that avenue. More Qs arise, needing answers.
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