What’s the best Reveal scene you ever saw or read? For some, it may be Darth Vader’s “I am your father.” For others, the first time they saw The Wizard of Oz and realized that the wizard was just a con man and not a, well, wizard (“Pay no attention to that man behind the curtain!”). And what about Who Shot J.R.? Talk about building up momentum and then – wham! The Aha moment peaks and chills run down your spine!

Want to write a Big Reveal?

Tread Carefully

When my eldest son was about eight, he and my husband had The Talk. My son apparently puzzled over their conversation for a few days, then came back to my husband with two follow-up questions. “So you and Mom did that three times?” My husband: “Er, yes, son. That’s exactly right. Three times.” (We had three children at the time.) Second question: “How do porcupines do it?” My husband: “Very, very carefully.”

I thought of that when I was puzzling over how to plan the Big Reveal for The Long-Lost Jules. As an avid mystery reader, I always resent when an author presents a Big Reveal at the very end, drawing on information that the reader never had. No fair! I want to shout. But I also get cranky when I nail the whole plot on page 3. (Oh I see, it’s the husband and the nanny; and the parrot saw them getting it on…)

So while Jules isn’t exactly a mystery, there is a Big Reveal—and I could see I had to do it very, very carefully. Drop bread crumbs along the way, but not so many that the reader susses it out before Chapter Three.

The Best Reveal Ever

The best Reveal I ever read was in Mary Stewart’s classic, The Ivy Tree. (Spoiler alert: If you plan to read this marvelous book, skip to the next paragraph.) The plot revolves around a heroine who is impersonating a lost heiress who had the ability to “whisper” to horses. Around two-thirds of the way through the book, she slips away to the stables and calms a restive horse and all of a sudden – bang! – I realized that she actually was the heiress!

It’s the perfect Reveal because you shiver with pleasure, but also because it resonates perfectly with every other tiny piece of the puzzle. You recall previous moments in the book that now fit together seamlessly. Oh, so that’s why she did that. . . said that. . . knew that. But then why is she. . . ? Stewart ties up lots of loose ends with the Reveal, but raises even more questions. I dare even the most languid reader to put down the book at this point!

And then there’s that perfectly crafted moment at the end of Wicked (spoiler alert again) when Elphaba comes back to life and your lightbulb flashes on—Aha! Of course she couldn’t melt; in fact, they hinted at that earlier and no one paid attention.

I am always inspired by Stewart and other authors who execute the Reveal so flawlessly. For me, writing is always a work in progress. So for those of you who may be strategizing around a plot Reveal, here are my Top Ten Tips:

The Top Ten

1. Picture those Reveals in your reading and viewing life that made your toes curl with pleasure, like mine in The Ivy Tree. What made those realizations so compelling? What clues did the author plant along the way? Agatha Christie and Gillian Flynn are masters of the Reveal; what did they do that was so right?
2. On the other hand, think about would-be Reveals that disappointed rather than tantalized. What made them fall flat? What pitfalls do you want to avoid? Who can forget that awful last episode of Lost, when the mega-hit TV show totally lost its mojo? They’re in heaven, or purgatory? Seriously? We weighed that possibility by the end of episode one! (It’s also a good idea not to leave your readers hating you, as every woman in America hated the writers of Grey’s Anatomy when Derek was killed off.)
3. Figure out where in the book you want the Reveal to occur. Last page? Middle of the book? First third? In my upcoming book The Spy’s Wife, the major Reveal occurs on page one when the heroine discovers that her husband is not a dull consultant but a high-level CIA officer. So there are no right-and-wrong rules here; it just has to be right for your
4. Decide how many Reveals you want: One huge lightbulb moment, or a bunch of smaller Ahas! along the way. Wicked is chock-full of plot twists and surprises, right up to the very last scene; while The Ivy Tree has one giant Reveal. Which approach works for your book?
5. Do you want to really shock your readers with the Reveal? If so, I suggest doing this early-ish in the book so they don’t get that resentful you-should-have-given-a-few hints feeling. I read one mystery in which the murderer wasn’t even introduced until the final chapter—where’s the fun in that?
6. Or do you want to give readers enough clues to pretty much figure it out by themselves, so they can take pride in their smarts when the Reveal comes? Reading is an intuitive, interactive experience; readers like to think and speculate throughout the book, and sometimes it’s a gift to let them get it right.
7. What happens after the Reveal? Make sure there are some hanging chads; ideally, the Reveal should resolve some questions, but raise even more. Pique the reader’s curiosity until the very last page!
8. Take great pains to ensure that the Reveal makes sense. I read one book where the heroine was Revealed as being in the witness protection program – Aha, I thought. Interesting. But then, wait a minute: So why would she be using her real name? Why is she still living in her hometown?
9. Enlist a group of trustworthy early readers. These readers are responsible for telling you what works and what doesn’t work—is the Reveal too early? Too late? Too obvious? Impossible to comprehend?
10. Every writer’s process is personal, but I like to do a pretty detailed chapter-by-chapter plan so that I can scatter clues (or red herrings) at the right points throughout the book. Remember: you want the reader to be surprised, but not blindsided.

Most important: Feel free to ignore any and all tips! Always remember that you’re the writer, so you’re in charge—this is your world to create, to toy with, to manipulate. So there are no rules (otherwise my page one Big Reveal would violate all of them); or if there are, they’re made to be broken. As the author, have faith in your instincts; that’s the only Golden Rule that matters.