More Tips on Creating Suspense

Hope you all had a nice Thanksgiving holiday! Now, as we get back to work on our novels, here are more ways to create suspense:

6. A major character is not what he/she seems--spring surprises.
7. Try scenes from different viewpoints to see which creates the most tension.
8. Villains must possess some humanity; they should not be totally flawed.
9. Setting can convey the atmosphere of foreboding or be the direct opposite (i.e. the sun-
drenched beaches in Jaws.
10. "Keep the readers in a state of anxious uncertainty." Barnaby Conrad

Stay tuned for more.....

How to Create Suspense in Your Novel

I'm going to give you some tips on how to create suspense in your novel. I don't mean that you have to be writing a suspense novel, such as Mary Higgins Clark, but every novel needs to keep the reader in suspense on many levels. We want the reader to keep turning those pages, and maybe even lose sleep in order to finish your book. I'll start with a few tips that I've learned from others, and from experience.
1. "Make them laugh, make them cry, make them wait." LaVyrle Spencer
2. Every character should have a secret.
3. "When stuck, use a letter or phone call to generate new tension."
Phyllis Whitney
4. "Resolve mystery or crime first, emotional resolution last for reader satisfaction." Mary Higgins Clark
5. Split up some scenes to create the most tension; move to another setting and leave the reader with an unsettled feeling, wondering what's happening.

More tips soon...

Surprises

As you keep writing your 3 pages a day, aren't you running into surprises?
If you write on a continual basis, events, dialogue, supporting characters, etc, will show up when you least expect them. Sometimes these unplanned additions to your novel will be the very elements that draw the reader in and make your book a special read.

Timeline

I realized while writing my pages today that the timeline was getting fuzzy.
I needed to know when school started, when a pregnancy was due, when the snow came, in relation to the story. I stopped to go back and make those decisions before continuing. I'll also include a timeline review when I start revisions. Just another tip. :)

Keep Going, Even With Interruptions

I know, I don't write a blog every day, or even the three pages on my book. Life has a way of interrupting, even the best intentions. Don't beat yourself up over it. Start in again. Sometimes it helps to lie down, close your eyes, and let yourself enter the world of your novel. Think of a scene you want to write, hear the characters speaking to one another. Steep yourself in your story. Now write!

Only if you love it...

People have often told me, "I'm going to give writing a year to see if it pays off." My advice is always, "Find something else to do." There are a few people in the world who are so good, they can make a living writing, even if they hate it. For the most part, you don't choose writing, it chooses you. You have to do it to feel happy. Maybe you'll make money at it, maybe you won't. But if that's the only reason you're writing, forget it. Write for the love of the process; there are more ways to measure success than money.