Writing a noir mystery should be a unique experience, because it's a change of pace from modern writing styles. It offers an author more freedom of expression without being encumbered with a long list of ideologies. If you write noir it's best to write in the first person with linear plotting. It's good to have a lot of the setting outdoors, as nature is the ultimate form of art. The shadows of night and all the shades of light from dawn until dusk are especially suitable for the noir mystery. What could be a more natural setting for an Art Form?
If you'd like to try noir writing, be carefull, you might get hooked on it. Many writers like it so well that they refuse to return to modern styles of writing. You might get hooked on it too. To start out, think about the natural setting in your own state and place your story in a small town in the middle of it. We call that, "The Heartland." Put a few main characters in the town and let the plot evolve around them. People like to read about strange things happening to others, and they might even like to have a murder happen about then, if it already hasn't taken place. That's a noir mystery and you could write one.
You don't have to be an expert on murder. When things are slowing down some you can decide to have one then. It's even a good idea to have one before you start out, as you can always go back to it and fill in the rest of it. Put in one or two more characters. You might have to kill off some of those you started with. The reader is going to chastise you if you don't have enough characters, but don't have too many either. That's the touchy spot.
The purpose of this article is to get more people to write in the noir style. Some authors think we are not producing enough of these writers, and they may even be dying out.
