When I’m not writing murder mysteries, I’m teaching (or grading…) mostly first generation college students. To keep my classes engaged and interactive, I incorporate a lot of different games into my lessons. Anything from Jenga to Clue to some more obscure games like MicroMacro (think: Richard Scarry books or Where’s Waldo meets a whodunit) or Sign, which is a cooperative roleplaying game or storytelling game about creating a shared language. I like bringing in these alternative activities to make my classes more dynamic, to meet my students where they’re at, and to get them to apply the ideas we’re talking about onto different texts.
This past week was a double whammy for games. In my lower level literature class, I brought in different versions of Clue and we examined the box art and settings in order for them to consider how they will complete their Clue(re)do assignment in which they modernize the game for their world. We talked about closed circle mysteries (in which there is a limited number of suspects, each with a motive, means, and opportunity to commit the crime: think a class Agatha Christie like Murder on the Orient Express or And Then There Were None). Then my students came up with alternative isolated locations that could serve as backdrops for their own Clue boards. Some suggestions were a summer camp, a movie theater, and a fraternity/sorority house – all excellent possibilities for a whodunit.
In my upper level communication class, we’ve been playing a roleplaying game that requires students to collaboratively tell a story based on prompts they pick. They then need to write letters to each other’s characters, expressing what has happened based on the prompt cards and how their characters feel. After they write their letters, they then create a keepsake, remediating their story into their crafted object. Some draw pictures, some use pipe cleaners, feathers, and felt, some use modeling clay. (My office has become a mini-Michaels chockful of art supplies…) Today, as they were sharing their stories, one student was surprised how quickly she had adopted talking about her character in the first person (e.g. “I did this” instead of “my character did this”). This is pretty common when playing a roleplaying game, but it also got me thinking about how we do this in writing too.
With all of my characters, there has to be some point of empathy, some point of identification where I can understand who they are and what their motivations are. Writing and roleplaying often go hand in hand as we try to understand who our characters are and what makes them tick. Sometimes I get asked how much of myself x,y,z character is. None of them are photocopies of me on the page. They’re more like a kaleidoscope of different characteristics I’ve plucked from people (some who I know, some who I’ve merely people-watched and jotted down a memorable quirk or a phrase…). For example, Wren and I are both pretty loyal to our friends, possibly to a fault. But then again, I’m also very much like Charlie: to the point and a bit more introverted (okay, a lot more introverted). Like Jo, I can be very logical (though I may rush to conclusions faster than her…). And while Esther and I are the most different, I can be pretty blunt just like her (though far less charismatic! And far less extroverted). But each of the characters have shiny shards of this and that, refracting together to form their unique identity.
Aside from playing a roleplaying game, the way Wren and the gang are doing in Murder, She Rolled, another great way to express ourselves or to have some fun trying out a new identity is to dress up in costume or cosplay. With Halloween just around the corner (eeks!), I need to start planning my outfit. Last year I was a sheet of notebook paper (because what could be scarier for a writer than the blank page?). This year I might cut out some felt letters and pin them to my costume so I can go as a work in progress…
What might you dress up as (or roleplay) for Halloween? Are you a more traditional ghost or witch? A Marvel superhero? A classic literary figure ala Sherlock Holmes or Miss Marple? Or do you have a favorite costume from your childhood (Snoopy for me) or one that your children or grandchildren wore?
About the author
Shelly Jones is a professor by trade and a nerd by design. Woefully introverted, their pockets are full of post-it notes and their head is full of (unsaid) witty come-backs and un-won arguments from years past. When they aren’t grading papers or writing new cozy mysteries, Shelly can often be found hiking in the woods or playing a board game while their cats look on.
You can also connect with Shelly on Bluesky, Amazon, and Goodreads!
