I was Googling 'writing' and came across an interesting question -
What is the best writing skill
It intrigued me so I read on.
- Grammar.
- Vocabulary.
- Spelling.
- Sentence construction.
- Structure.
- Research and accuracy.
- Clarity.
- Persuasiveness.
An interesting list and the very last item 'persuasion' sparked my interest. I have just finished a whodunnit that provided the oddest twist I think I've ever come across. The book is well written, characters are solid, the plot is somewhat predictable, but the twist came out of the blue.
It was always my belief that a good twist required some preparation, even a modicum of deception. You have to grab the attention of the reader and lead them, by the nose if needs be, up garden paths until you bamboozle them with you craftily constructed false trails and reveal the culprit in the end. Not in this story. The culprit turned out to be an unnamed character that only appreared in the last three pages.
You might wonder if this matters and I don't suppose that technically, there isn't anything against this ploy. However, it left me feeling unsatisfied that I'd been cheated out of a few mental gymnastics in trying to out think the author. Needless to say I'm not tempted to repeat the experience.
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