Finally… Hosting a Murder Mystery Party

Let’s set the mood for you, shall we?

It’s 2016…. Little ole me is sitting at my computer, headphones on, fully immersed in Escape the Night on YouTube. Costumes, reality TV, mystery, horror. I am enthralled. And thus, a desire to host a murder mystery party was born. Fast forward to 2024. Nearly eight years have passed, and life has kept me busy – but that dream has never left me. This year, I finally took the plunge. I hosted my first murder mystery party.

Now, it wasn’t nearly as immersive as Escape the Night. I couldn’t recreate an entire historical era or concoct elaborate challenges. Really, it was just me hosting a dinner party where we wore costumes and followed a pre-made template, but that didn’t take away from the fun one bit.

I spent the entire afternoon making three different versions of the same dish – one vegan, one gluten free, and another how I would regularly make it. And as we sat around the table eating my mediocre spaghetti bake, drank non-alcoholic and alcoholic wines, I couldn’t have been happier.

After dinner, we sat around my living room (some of us with funny accents that were very inconsistent haha), swapping theories, and accusing each other of being the culprit brought is a memory I will cherish forever.

In the end, it wasn’t about the level of immersion or the production quality – it was about seeing this dream come to life and sharing it with friends. The costumes, the thrill, the mystery, the pure joy of experiencing it together… it was everything I had hoped for back in 2016. And I hope to host one again in the future… perhaps picking up my own pen and paper to write my own story and characters.

So, if there’s a “someday” dream of yours you’ve been holding on to, let this be a sign. Even if it doesn’t turn out exactly as you imagined, the memories you make are worth every bit of the wait.