Despite being in a strange frame of mind, you might reflect on a brief list of stories that have perplexed and inspired you at the same time. What have you learned from solving mental puzzels? How have your thought process and assumptions evolved? In which ways have authors manipulated your perception, desires and fears in order to shape your view of particular predicaments? In a world full of material, you might draw from techniques learned from masters. Where might you source inspiration? The following stories are some of my personal favorites;
1) The Others (by Alejandro Amenabar)
2) And Then There Were None (by Agatha Christie)
3) The Lost Ark of the Covenant
4) The Murders in the Rue Morgue (by Edgar Allen Poe)
5) The Cask of Amontillado (by Edgar Allen Poe)
6) Not a Penny more, Not a Penny Less (by Jeffrey Archer)
7) Rebecca (by Daphne du Maurier)
8) Sherlock Holmes Mysteries (by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)
9) Rear Window (by Alfred Hitchcock)
10) The Fugitive (based on The Sheppard Murder Case by Paul Holmes)