Writing a mystery is doing a lot of just supposin’. Come with me a moment into the mysterious realms of the fourth Ned McNeil mystery. Just suppose that it was part of Ned’s job to take a picture of an old farmhouse for her boss, Daisy. But, suppose that when Ned goes inside the dark house, she sees a dim shape in the shadows. The shape comes down the stairs toward her. What would you do?
Just suppose that Ned finds a torn scrap of a note written by a woman who once lived in the house. The note leads her to think that the woman was keeping a deadly secret, something that lay in the house or on the farm, somewhere. Would you try to investigate? Why?
Oh, and by the way, fifty years ago, a murder took place in the farmhouse. In fact, the blood stain is still on the floor. The person accused of the murder is no longer around, so he can’t defend himself. But, this person’s son is convinced his father is innocent and asks Ned to look into it.
Just suppose that all this swirls around the fact that the moon was full on the night of the murder, and is full again, now. Would you continue to investigate? Would you leave town until the dust settles? And, would you title the fourth mystery, Murder By Moonlight?
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