Simple steps to add suspense to your writing

Use of short sentences in suspense fiction writing can be helpful. You may have a  good paragraph or two then end the chapter or next paragraph with something like "Then the unthinkable happened." ; "The trap was set." ; "Joshua jumped into the darkness." ; or "He looked down. Blood oozed under the door."  This leaves the reader with some anticipation and raises questions. 

Your characters, as well as your readers, need to respond to the suspense. They may respond in a predictable way or not. This tension may uncover a flaw in their character. Maybe how they respond to stress is with aggression, anger, a flood of tears, withdrawing and isolating, fight and flight response - there are so many options.

Switching between scenes can evoke tension. Someone is trying to escape, while, at the same time, their captor is is approaching, having purchased rope, tape and knives from the shopping mall. A bit like the movie "Misery". They are getting closer as the escapee makes a final attempt to break the window lock. Think of a long lit fuse running to a keg of gun powder. What is happening? Better hurry. Danger looms.

The appearance of a particular shady or diabolical character at an unexpected time can create a good "Oh no!!" moment. Maybe they will be standing right there at the window as the curtains are pulled back. Although this is more of a fright or shock than suspense as such. The suspense would be in the knowledge that this person is lurking somewhere outside the house while all inside are oblivious. Suspense can be maintained from paragraph to paragraph or chapter to chapter. Running then hiding and waiting - hearing sounds - moving to a safer location - maybe from the frying pan into the fire!

Have fun exploring suspense fiction and developing your own style!

Best Thriller Movies that came from a Novel

I do love a good thriller movie and many of my favourites started out as books. Hard to put an exact order on these but "Silence of the Lambs" is up near the top as are "Shutter Island" (appeals to me, not only for the thriller element, but also because of the mental health side too); "Girl With the Dragon Tattoo"; "Misery" (Kathy Bates was just wonderful); "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" (gotta love Jack in this); "The Shining" (Jack so good again!); and to conclude a short list "The Shawshank Redemption" which was a novella by Stephen King.

What a wonderful feeling it must be to see your novel adapted to the big screen. This is a dream of mine. I still live in hope!! Do you have any personal thriller book / movie favourites?

Tips for writing suspense

Creating suspense in a fiction novel is not a simple thing. Don't go telling your reader too much at one time - drip feed! "John trembled as he answered the knock at the door. It was late. He opened the door slowly and saw the parcel..." This is neat and asks questions - why was someone at the door that late? what is in this parcel? why did he even answer the door if it was late? was he expecting something?

Is there something about John's character that makes him worried about a door knock? The nature of a character can impact on the suspense both to the reader and even to other characters in the story.

A good article for further reading can be found here. 

Who is your favourite suspense author?

Writing a thriller - some useful tips

Happy to say that my new suspense fiction novel "The Tree of Thorns" is going to launch on June 15th!!! Very exciting! But editing has been a real chore and I'm not a big fan. I get help from others which is great but after reading my own work countless times I just want it to be done.

It's a hard thing to know when editing is complete and no doubt there are a couple of typos or a loose sentence structures still buried in there somewhere. Now heading towards marketing and promotion which has its own challenges. It seems to me the work after writing a novel is harder and far more complex than writing the novel itself.

Writing thriller style stories is an enjoyable process. I rarely have the complete plot in my brain when I start and inevitably the story takes twists and turns that I never imaged.

The start of your thriller needs to grab attention and interest. The first sentence and paragraph need to encourage the reader to go further.

You will need conflict and challenges for your characters. Something important to them has to be at stake - maybe their life or that of someone else; lifestyle; relationship; finances; material loss; health; self esteem or ego. Whatever it is - it is serious for this character and they need to battle through.

A thriller needs some action - not necessarily big explosions and car chases (although it may be), but action and struggle - relationship conflicts; stealthy sneaky antics by your key characters; maybe a sex scene or two; water leaking onto electrical wiring; a timer showing 3 minutes to go; a fight in a pub - you choose, but make it memorable.

Twists and turns in suspense / thriller novels are essential. Being predictable can dampen interest. You want a page turner! Let's trigger some emotion in your reader.

Remember - don't get it right, just get it written!

5 Elements of Suspense Writing

Writing suspense into a fiction story can be tricky, but that's what makes it most enjoyable. A progression of suspense is what I strive for in my novels - that slow build up - that's what I enjoy when I read some of my favorite authors like John Grisham, James Patterson and Dean Koontz.

Suspense generally centres around the main characters in the story, which makes sense. After all, these are the ones the reader has come to know the best - be it for good or bad reasons. You can have suspense too that lingers without anything actually happening. The mood is set around where the scene takes place. Maybe deep into a dark forest with the moon hiding behind the clouds; or a eerie old building creaking and cracking as the cold wind blows. There is a veiled suggestion that something is about to happen and this adds to the build up through the story.

Time can assist in contributing to suspense. "The timer ticked away. There was three hours to go"; "Tomorrow would be the 14th and the anniversary of his first kill."; "His specialist had given him only two months to live".

Check out this link for some very useful suggestions and read about the 5 elements of  suspense fiction writing.

Creative Writing - 7 tools to improve & more

I came across a couple of good articles on creative writing. the first one relates to kids and how to strike a balance between the student brain and the creative brain - CLICK HERE

The 2nd article provides 7 techniques used in creative writing to improve your essays - however the techniques are well described and certainly apply to many forms of writing. Definitely worth a read CLICK HERE

Editing suspense fiction

Is editing fiction more difficult than writing it?

Maybe it doesn't take as long as writing a novel but for me it's a source of frustration. My editing processes these days involve a few key people with writing and reading skills to go over my work after I have already done so countless times. I really can't afford to spend hundreds of dollars (or more) on 2 or 3 different editors.

Then after getting their feedback and corrections I read it again myself at least 3 more times. I enlarge the print to 300% - I find this helpful in seeing typos and grammar errors more easily. There comes a time when you have to say enough is enough and stop reading it anymore. Sometime later someone will inevitably find a typo and point it out, but hey... I find typos and errors in almost every book I read so best  be happy and settle for 99% accuracy in editing.

The picture here is the early evening skyline at the Bunya Mountains - an inspirational place for an author.

Happy fiction writing! If anyone has any tips on self-editing please share. Thanks.

Still Learning

For the first time, after 5 other novels, I am going through the process of pre-sale / pre-order for novel number 6. Not sure why I didn't embrace this before. It seems more likely to generate interest in my book and get to share my story with so many more people. And despite all my years on the web I still have a lot to learn! My head hurts!!!

My New Book

New thriller / suspense fiction coming soon!

"The Tree of Thorns" is set in a mental institution in 1976. A mental health trainee nurse forms a bond with a man diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia. The Holman Mental Hospital is brutal place - with punishment and over-medicating running rampant. Living conditions are poor. Patients are dying.

This story is inspired by real events. Many of the events described are based on truth.

Due for release around mid June 2020! Check in for updates, images and videos.