Deceit

Read Genesis 34-36

Genesis 34:23 "Shall not their cattle and their substance and every beast of their's be our's? only let us consent unto them, and they will dwell with us."

Deceit will be an important ingredient in our plot. We want to raise story questions to keep the action going and the readers engaged and deceit can help.

It can be deliberate and two sided like Israel’s sons vs. Hamor and Shechem. It can be one sided—the villain against the protagonist or the protagonist against the villain. It can be done with good intentions, for instance one character deceiving another for protection.

 

It can even be done by the writer—trying to trick the reader into not noticing certain clues to a mystery or hiding foreshadowing before a surprise ending. But writer vs. reader deceit needs to be done carefully, skillfully, and purely to enhance the reader’s enjoyment of the story.