Adding Supernatural Elements to Cozy Mysteries

by Sierra Cross, @SierraCrossBook

Hi all! I’m Sierra Cross, author of the Blue Moon Bay Witches series, and I’ve been writing about magic since the early 2000s, when the dominant trope in urban fantasy was “The Masquerade.”

Back in those angst-ridden old days, supernaturals were forced to hide their differences from the world and operate in the shadows.

Wow, we’ve come a long way since the first cans of Tru Blood hit the market. Let’s talk about what lights readers up in 2024!

Tip 1: Don’t add supernatural elements to your mystery – instead, ground your story in the supernatural … and add a mystery.

As a reader, when I open a supernatural cozy mystery I long to escape the real world and be immersed in a magical place. Fully. Immersed. I don’t merely wish to visit a normal town where one or two characters deals in a touch of the mystical from time to time. No, I want to be transported to another world … that happens to look like a small town. Spend some time with worldbuilding. A well-thought-out overview and clear storytelling details will logically and sensorily anchor the reader – and make it clear they’re not in Kansas anymore.

Magic in these stories needs to be foundational, not a flavor you sprinkle on, or you risk falling into the crack between two different sets of reader expectations. If it’s not a straight cozy and not quite a para cozy either, who is your reader? (Caveat: if you want to be writing magical realism, and that’s your brand, great. I want to save you the frustration if you simply weren’t aware of a paranormal cozy reader’s expectations.)

Tip 2: Magical or not, it’s a cozy at core.

Remember how I said as a para cozy reader I long to be whisked off to a magical world that feels real? That’s true. But at the same time, because I’m seeking a calm and soothing reading experience, your world can’t feel too realistic in the sense of being chock full of heavy, real-world problems, political conflicts, etc. Instead, you handily replace all those problems with magical ones. Everything from your heroine’s core wound to your murderer’s motive will be related to the supernatural.

Can the magical stuff ever be symbolic of something that happens in our world? Absolutely. It deepens your story’s theme if those magical problems you conjured ring true and meaningful.

Even so, make sure you render them to be lighter in tone (even humorous) and shrink them down to a town-sized scale, from a global one.

What the hex, maybe you can even replace jarring swear words with whimsical, magic-themed “curses.”

Tip 3: Read widely in the genre to understand it deeply.

You probably already know that most paranormal cozies feature a witch protagonist, but does that mean you must have one? (Short answer: no. If you can make a vampire, mermaid, or gargoyle a relatable protagonist, awesome.)

What other tropes are currently popular in this genre, and what is at the heart of their appeal to its fans?

As a reader, I can tell you that some tropes I enjoy in magical cozies (such claiming your power, found family, and small town) induce feelings of vicarious community. Also, I appreciate that the current era of witch cozies celebrates female friendship, sisterhood, and the female self – quirks and all.

Those are my own favorite discoveries, the things I delight in. As you read, you’ll come up with your own observations. Take notes on tropes in your favorite magical cozies the same way you would with other conventions, such as chapter length, pacing, setting, and POV.

It’s 2024 and nobody’s hiding their magic behind a bushel anymore, so don’t hide yours either. Claim your power and write that magical book.

About the author, Sierra Cross

Sierra Cross writes modern magic infused with humor and heart. In a past career,  she wrote traditionally published YA fiction and nonfiction. Her work has been translated into other languages and optioned for TV. In her off hours you can find her flying after her 6-year-old witchling, drinking coffee, or reading while cuddled up with her cat familiar.

Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay