Hide clues by concentrating on the solution to the crime. The reader will notice what you emphasize, so when the sleuth thinks he s found the answer but hasn t, you can sneak in a clue during his discovery of his failure. Your reader will be concerned with how the character is going to handle the setback and will overlook the clue. There are some classic ways to handle clues. The sleuth is looking for information, so he asks questions.
Clues are in the answers.
Red herrings Clues are not red herrings. The sleuth and the reader think it s a clue, but it isn t. The Five Red Herrings the murderer builds a smoke screen of stories for his alibi. The inscrutable Lord Peter Wimsey catches the little lie, a mistake made in haste, and from that is able to strip away the cover-up and nab his man. A clue may become a red herring as the story unfolds.