Red Herring
Red Herring: A deliberately misleading clue planted to draw the reader's suspicion in the wrong direction.
The red herring is misdirection with a paper trail: it must be plausible enough to chase and fair enough that, after the reveal, the reader admits they fooled themselves.
Red Herring examples
"Severus Snape spends the first book behaving exactly like the villain, so the real one goes unnoticed."
— Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, J. K. Rowling
"Christie seeds And Then There Were None with suspects who each look guilty in turn."
— And Then There Were None, Agatha Christie
"The locked shed everyone avoided turned out to hold nothing but the previous owner's rusted bicycles."
— original example
"The phrase comes from the strong-smelling smoked fish once said to be dragged across a trail to throw hounds off a scent."
— common usage
Spot the Red Herring
Score: 0/0A deliberately misleading clue planted to draw the reader's suspicion in the wrong direction.
"Severus Snape spends the first book behaving exactly like the villain, so the real one goes unnoticed."
Which work is this from?
Explore every literary device in the poetic devices hub.
Red Herring: common questions
What is red herring in literature?
A deliberately misleading clue planted to draw the reader's suspicion in the wrong direction. The red herring is misdirection with a paper trail: it must be plausible enough to chase and fair enough that, after the reveal, the reader admits they fooled themselves.
What is an example of red herring?
A classic example is "Severus Snape spends the first book behaving exactly like the villain, so the real one goes unnoticed." (Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, J. K. Rowling).
Browse the full literary devices glossary or everywriting tool and word bank.
The writer's edit
One practical writing tip, a new tool, and a fresh contest deadline, every Thursday. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.