Definitions
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- noun A
mystery novel ordrama which begins by showing or describing thecommission of thecrime , generally revealing theperpetrator 'sidentity to theaudience , then shows or describes how thedetective proves the perpetrator'sguilt .
Etymologies
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Examples
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A howcatchem (also called a howdunit, reverse whodunit, or inverted detective story) is the complete opposite of the whodunit, a type of detective story where the ultimate goal is discovering who’s guilty of the crime.
The Howcatchem: An Inverted Detective Story - killerthrillers.net Cole Salao 2021
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Poker Face is not a whodunnit, but what Johnson calls a “howcatchem”: a crime-first, solution-later structure in the vein of meat-and-potatoes procedurals like Columbo – except in Poker Face, the guest star of the week could be Nick Nolte or Sevigny.
‘I’m going to start a cult. That’s the long game!’ Natasha Lyonne on crime, crosswords and Macaulay Culkin Sian Cain 2024
tankhughes commented on the word howcatchem
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inverted_detective_story howcatchem vs whodunnit
October 21, 2024