How to Make a Murder: Writing Your Own Murder Mystery Party With Abi Inman
This course has already started! However, you can still join if you’d like to (and we hope you will!). Students enrolling after the course start date and time will have access to a recording of the first session (which will be emailed to participants within 72 hours) as well as the option to attend remaining sessions live. Please select the “Join Late” ticket type to enroll after the course has begun.
In this five-part lecture series, Abi Inman will walk you through researching, writing, and hosting your own murder mystery party.
Course Description
Nothing brings people together quite like donning period costume and trying to solve an elaborate, fictional murder by framing friends and family. Murder mystery games have been around since the early 20th century, and are infinitely adaptable; they can be made for players of all ages and take on a multitude of forms. While some are available for purchase online, they tend to be poorly written and often rely on one of a few classic, overused plots. Luckily, murder mysteries are just as fun to write as they are to play.
Over the course of five sessions, we’ll look at the history and structure of murder mysteries before creating our own. We’ll discuss what types of events and settings make good inspiration for a successful party, and which format works best for you. You’ll learn about the different pieces you need to create for each phase of the party, how to write characters that anyone can play, and what clues to put in place to ensure your murder is solvable without being obvious. By the time the course is finished, you’ll have a complete murder mystery party written and will be equipped with the tools you need to host it in person or online.
Syllabus at a Glance
This course includes five total sessions, each lasting for one hour on Thursdays beginning September 26.
Session 1 (Thursday, 09/26, 8–9:00 PM ET): Inspiration, research, and structure
Session 2 (Thursday, 10/3, 8–9:00 PM ET): Setting, cliques, and characters
Session 3 (Thursday, 10/10, 8–9:00 PM ET): Conflict and clues
Session 4 (Thursday, 10/17, 8–9:00 PM ET): Physical evidence and speeches
Session 5 (Thursday, 10/24, 8–9:00 PM ET): Hosting a killer party
Pricing Options
This course is available at three ticket prices. This tiered pricing model is designed to increase access for a wider range of students as well as to support our instructors. In addition to tiered tickets, we offer a limited number of no-pay spots for students who would not otherwise be able to take this course. No-pay spots are selected via a randomized drawing two weeks before each section begins. For more information and to apply for a no-pay spot, please click here. To learn more about our pricing model and randomized selection process for no-pay spots, please visit our FAQ page.
Community Guidelines for Students
Please take a moment to review our community guidelines for students, which aim to share our classroom ethos and help set the stage for the best possible learning experience.
Atlas Obscura Online Courses
Atlas Obscura Courses offer opportunities for participants to emerge with new skills, knowledge, connections, and perspectives through multi-session classes designed and taught by expert instructors. To learn more about our current course offerings, please visit www.atlasobscura.com/online-courses. For answers to commonly asked questions, check out our FAQ page here.
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Once registered, you’ll receive a confirmation email from Eventbrite that will provide access to each class meeting. Please save the confirmation email as you’ll use it to access all sessions of your course via Zoom.
Abi Inman is a murder mystery writer and hostess who has held events everywhere from New York City to Belgrade. Her company Exquisite Corpse puts a new twist on the classic murder mystery party format, basing parties on historical events and hosting them in historic venues.
Photo by Stefano Giovanni.
This lecture series is designed so students can participate live or watch a recording of each session, after it airs, at a time that is convenient for them. Sessions will take place live over Zoom, with dedicated Q&A segments for students to ask questions via video or chat. Within 72 hours after each session meets, students will receive access to a recording of the live session, which they can watch for up to two weeks after the course concludes.
Instructors may use Google Classroom to communicate with students outside of class. While students aren’t required to use Google Classroom, instructors may use this platform to post resources, discussion questions, or assignments. This platform also offers a space for students to connect with one another about course material between sessions.
We provide closed captioning for all of our courses and can share transcripts upon request. Please reach out to us at experiences@atlasobscura.com if you have any questions, requests, or accessibility needs.
