Mystery Dinner Parties

Mystery dinner parties are the ultimate in dinner party games! What a great Halloween party idea, birthday party, or creative theme party!

We've got the clues on how to host a murder in style, from dinner menu suggestions, where to get mystery games you can print instantly, and even how to make your own mystery game.

Best Ideas for Mystery Dinner Parties

• Sit Down Dinner Menu Suggestions
• Buffet Dinner Menu Suggestions
• Purchase Mystery Games: Our Favorite Picks
• Mystery Board Games
• How to Play Mystery Games at Your Next Party
• Hollywood Themed Murder Mystery
• Types of Mystery Games
• Write Your Own Mystery Script - Here's How!

You can host mystery dinner parties by creating your own mystery script or by using a mystery game someone else created.

If you create your own, start with a mystery theme, such as the Hollywood murder mystery party below. You can use these techniques to create a mystery party for any theme.

For a book on how to write your own murder mystery, we suggest this mystery writer's course that comes with a 60 page step-by-step guide and monthly conference calls to help you finalize you plot! This course will help you develop the skills to create complex mysteries with exciting plots and unforeseen twists.

Mystery Dinner Parties: Hollywood Themed Murder Mystery

Invite 8 to 10 friends to your dinner, and let them know you're having a Hollywood themed murder mystery dinner. They can dress as a starlet or leading man.

At dinner, play your mystery game. Create envelopes with a variety of Hollywood characters descriptions on the envelope. Examples of Hollywood characters could be: the "big shot movie director" or "the rising star" or a producer, leading man, cameraman, lead grip, paparazzi, etc.

Allow each guest to select an envelope of their choice. This can be very funny because the contents of the envelope will reveal interesting traits about the character they've chosen to be.

Finally create a character who has been murdered, such as the director's wife. Don't create an envelope for this person because this character wouldn't be able to participate.

Place clues inside each envelope to help your guests solve the Hollywood murder. None of guests should know who the "murderer" is, even if he or she is the murderer.

Write the identity of the murderer on a separate sheet of paper. Put it in a different envelope to be revealed after everyone has a chance to determine the murderer.

Be as creative as possible when making up clues for mystery dinner parties. Here are some examples:

• The camera man has incriminating footage of the leading man
• The leading man was locked in a closet with the director's wife
• The rising star will do anything for a staring role
• The lead grip wants the camera man's job

Create several clues for each envelope that would lead players to identify which character has a motive. Number the clues.

Each player reads one clue in turn. After everyone has read the first clue, each guest gets a turn to guess who the murder is and the motive. Guests can say who they think it is aloud. They write down murder's identity on a clue card number #1.

Then the second clues are revealed one by one, and guests can change their minds or stick with their original selection. With each round of clues, they write the murder's identity on the corresponding numbered clue card or stick with their previous selection.

After the last round of clues are read, players cast their final votes.

The envelope holding the murder's identity is revealed. The guests search their clue cards for the name of the murdered they wrote down at each turn. This makes it easy to identify who was able to detect the villain first.

If writing your own mystery is a bit daunting, you can purchase entire mystery party kits for your next party.

These mysteries usually involve a certain number of "actors" (guests), but additional guests can participate in solving the murder. They are very interactive with complex plots and fun playing strategies. Complete mystery kits cost less than $40 and offer much more entertainment than any other type of party game!

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