Outside, the wind howled, the thermometer dropping to a bracing negative nine degrees as I waited for Sally to arrive for our Monday Morning conversation. I had hoped she’d found a story question as she thought about the themes of her story. Ironically, I’d been thinking about marketing my new book, and had to return to the storyquestion of that book to create the right marketing and PR campaign. I blew on my hot cocoa, glad I’d opted for a large as Sally came in, wrapped in a scarf and hat, the icy blast dragging in behind her. Anne already had her coffee ready. Sally set a stack of books on the table as she retrieved her coffee. I looked at her choices – Jane Eyre, the movies Pearl Harbor […]
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Writing a Suspense: The basic elements
Over the past four months, we’ve been covering the basic elements of Act 1 of a Suspense. Before we take a little romance rabbit trail (for all your romantic/suspense novelists!) let’s review the basic Act 1 elements: The first act consists of the setup, or what I call: The Game: Players, the Goals, the Rules, Board/Playing field. G = Let us meet the Guys and Gals. Who are they? What makes them common/sympathetic? What makes them extraordinary? We’ll be talking in coming weeks about developing the romance of a romantic/suspense novel, also, but for now, there are a number of elements a suspense hero/heroine should have. If you took my plotting class, you’ll know I spend a lot of time on developing my characters, and making a […]
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