I'm writing this horror story where 26 kids go to this birthday party in an abandoned building and mysteriously get locked in. They're killed off one by one, leading up to my protagonist's nearly-escaped death. Lots have told me that this sounds like it would be a great story and that they can't wait for me to publish it online, but… there are some major holes in my plot.
Why is the murderer targeting these kids?
Why is the murderer killing them? There has to be a reason.
How does my protagonist and a handful of survivors escape?
Hmm… this is a very interesting concept! Maybe the murderer is just plain insane and likes killing, maybe they’re psychipathic, or— Wait, have you read Misery by Stephen King? Because the villain in that basically hunts down an author because she hated the ending to his last book, maybe try for something like that? Or, someone could be forcing the murderer to do this, blackmailed them, etcetera.
I have a few suggestions:
-There is something hidden in the abandoned building that the murderer wants, and he/she fears that the kids might find it. (To keep a secret)
-Maybe revenge/ Personal Vendetta (crimes of passion) against one of the characters, but the situation goes out of hand, and since there are witnesses, the murderer is force to kill them all.
-Kill them as sacrifice to a mysterious deity (Go down the psycho route!)
I hope you found them helpful! :)
