The amateur sleuth setup quietly requires a closed community where everyone is a plausible suspect

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Hobby-themed amateur sleuth series use baking and knitting as an excuse to put a body on page three Being the prime suspect is the only honest reason an amateur detective starts poking around A village shopkeeper hears more confessions than the police station does and that is the entire premise of the amateur detective The retired schoolteacher in a small town is still the default amateur sleuth setup and it still sells Cozy and noir readers buy from the same shelf and never the same author An unlicensed amateur detective has no authority to question anyone so why do suspects keep answering? Amateur sleuth stories are really about class: who gets listened to when they ask questions When the amateur detective is a nosy neighbour the reason to meddle has to be personal The amateur sleuth convention only holds if the police are competent but too busy to help Why does the amateur detective always have a day job that hands them the case?