: Re: How far apart can the dots be? I've written enough to know the kind of writer I am, my voice, my style. I am often accused of making the reader work too hard to put the plot points together.

@Pierce369

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Twilight Zone had an episode similar to this scenario, but they covered a wide array of the bizarre.

The issue of lost time - one night covering the months or even years it takes for conviction and appeals to be exhausted - that is one you might need to explain a trifle.

Supernatural agency in the form of the devil as barkeep does explain it, but that might be something you want him to realize later.

Stories that begin in a bar set the reader up for a variety of possible directions for the plot to go. Is there an assassin two tables over who can solve all of the MC’s problems - maybe out of generosity.

If you want to drop a hint, you could have a barfly mention he had just watched a marathon of Twilight Zone or saw a Night Gallery episode on YouTube. Maybe the bar has photos of old TV personalities including Rod Serling.

Maybe the more interesting question is, does your MC remember the night of the murders? Did he do it?

Your MC wakes up in prison - last thing he remembers is that last drink he ordered from Nick. Or is it? Perhaps he starts to tremble as memories flood him that he hadn’t lived - or thought so. Alternate life with Abby was hell and driven to desperation he murdered them all. Or, comes home from the bar and finds them all dead - minutes before the police arrive.

The bartender being named Nick is a hint, but you might need to play with it a little to make him less some random guy named Nicholas and more something very strange about this man whoever he is. A few lines of dialogue could accomplish this.

The tv show American Gothic created a town sheriff who turned out to be a supernatural force and, while not exactly the villain as his mission was keeping the peace in his town and protecting his people, he still came off like Satan’s second cousin.

I prefer stories where the hints are light and realized later - being spoon fed tends to annoy me. Be subtle with your hints and have some faith in the intelligence of the reader.

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