tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2598106074397284232024-02-02T01:18:04.200-06:00mystery-writingAn informal forum for bringing together those who write mysteries and those who love to read them. A site for sharing opinions, insights, enthusiasms, criticisms, and--for writers--an ongoing resource for strengthening their craft and story-telling skills.Vergilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13045687055267007493noreply@blogger.comBlogger31125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-259810607439728423.post-78914232659000605212012-01-11T04:14:00.005-06:002012-01-11T04:39:02.896-06:00Forgettable Mysteries<span style="font-family:verdana;font-size:130%;">On January 11, my essay "Forgettable Mysteries: An Exploratory Inquiry" was published as a guest blog at Murder by 4</span><span style="font-size:130%;"><br face="verdana"></span><span style="font-family:verdana;font-size:130%;">< http://murderby4.blogspot.com >. The essay discusses why some mysteries and their titles are so forgettable and others so hauntingly memorable--even after only one reading.</span><span style="font-size:130%;"><br face="verdana"><br face="verdana"></span><span style="font-family:verdana;font-size:130%;">Robert D. Sutherland (aka Vergil)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Cambria; mso-fareast-font-family:Cambria;mso-bidi-Times New Roman"; mso-ansi-language:EN-US;mso-fareast-language:EN-USfont-family:";font-size:12.0pt;" ></span>Vergilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13045687055267007493noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-259810607439728423.post-10220077877404678212012-01-03T23:54:00.040-06:002012-01-05T11:50:51.870-06:00Audio Books: How Its Done Through ACX.COM, Part 1<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMpquGRqmQYIrCnwlJqeWHjrTrX4KHxyFdra-5sT1W_7JOWdcO5a9CMLBWqV-LoC3eZnQPnOl-o1EMy8Z9ZSe0O8erIlpWtXTF_EC6vshrwWaGW6b12JqkdX6dS6OyrJoAH-LRiXsQmHXM/s1600/Aaron+Lazar.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 141px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMpquGRqmQYIrCnwlJqeWHjrTrX4KHxyFdra-5sT1W_7JOWdcO5a9CMLBWqV-LoC3eZnQPnOl-o1EMy8Z9ZSe0O8erIlpWtXTF_EC6vshrwWaGW6b12JqkdX6dS6OyrJoAH-LRiXsQmHXM/s200/Aaron+Lazar.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5693916535724628818" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:verdana;"></span></span><br /><br /><style> <!-- /* Font Definitions */ @font-face {font-family:Verdana; panose-1:2 11 6 4 3 5 4 4 2 4; mso-font-charset:0; mso-generic-font-family:auto; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:3 0 0 0 1 0;} @font-face {font-family:Cambria; panose-1:2 4 5 3 5 4 6 3 2 4; mso-font-charset:0; mso-generic-font-family:auto; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:3 0 0 0 1 0;} /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-parent:""; margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ascii-font-family:Cambria; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family:Cambria; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-hansi-font-family:Cambria; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;} a:link, span.MsoHyperlink {color:blue; text-decoration:underline; text-underline:single;} a:visited, span.MsoHyperlinkFollowed {mso-style-noshow:yes; color:purple; text-decoration:underline; text-underline:single;} @page Section1 {size:8.5in 11.0in; margin:1.0in 1.25in 1.0in 1.25in; mso-header-margin:.5in; mso-footer-margin:.5in; mso-paper-source:0;} div.Section1 {page:Section1;} --></style><p class="MsoNormal"><span style=" ;font-family:Verdana;font-size:10pt;"> </span> <style> <!-- /* Font Definitions */ @font-face {font-family:Verdana; panose-1:2 11 6 4 3 5 4 4 2 4; mso-font-charset:0; mso-generic-font-family:auto; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:3 0 0 0 1 0;} @font-face {font-family:Cambria; panose-1:2 4 5 3 5 4 6 3 2 4; mso-font-charset:0; mso-generic-font-family:auto; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:3 0 0 0 1 0;} /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-parent:""; margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ascii-font-family:Cambria; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family:Cambria; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-hansi-font-family:Cambria; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;} a:link, span.MsoHyperlink {color:blue; text-decoration:underline; text-underline:single;} a:visited, span.MsoHyperlinkFollowed {mso-style-noshow:yes; color:purple; text-decoration:underline; text-underline:single;} @page Section1 {size:8.5in 11.0in; margin:1.0in 1.25in 1.0in 1.25in; mso-header-margin:.5in; mso-footer-margin:.5in; mso-paper-source:0;} div.Section1 {page:Section1;} --> </style> </p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-size: 9pt;font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;">by Aaron Paul Lazar<br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-size: 9pt;font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-size: 9pt;font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;">Have you ever wondered how to get your published book produced as an audio book? </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-size: 9pt;font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-size: 9pt;font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;">If so, read on. I currently have five books in production with ACX, an Audible (Amazon) company. I’m going to document the process for you in a few articles so you can give it a try yourself. You’ll need to know how to get started, how to get through the editing process, and what to do once your book is available for sale.</span></span></p><p style="font-weight: bold;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"><br /></span></span></p><span style="font-weight: bold;font-size:78%;"> </span><p style="font-weight: bold;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"> </span></span></p><span style="font-weight: bold;font-size:78%;"></span><span style="font-weight: bold;"> </span> <style> <!-- /* Font Definitions */ @font-face {font-family:Verdana; panose-1:2 11 6 4 3 5 4 4 2 4; mso-font-charset:0; mso-generic-font-family:auto; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:3 0 0 0 1 0;} @font-face {font-family:Cambria; panose-1:2 4 5 3 5 4 6 3 2 4; mso-font-charset:0; mso-generic-font-family:auto; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:3 0 0 0 1 0;} /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-parent:""; margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ascii-font-family:Cambria; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family:Cambria; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-hansi-font-family:Cambria; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;} @page Section1 {size:8.5in 11.0in; margin:1.0in 1.25in 1.0in 1.25in; mso-header-margin:.5in; mso-footer-margin:.5in; mso-paper-source:0;} div.Section1 {page:Section1;} --> </style> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 9pt; font-family:verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"><b>A little bit of history:</b></span></p> <span style="font-size:78%;"></span><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"></span></span><br /></p><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-size: 9pt;font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"></span></span><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-size: 9pt;font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;">I’ve tried to record my own books. Lord knows, I’ve tried. I spent a week downloading various (free) audio programs, playing with the settings, recording just a few chapters over and over again every time I messed up a word, or a loud truck went by, or the dogs barked. </span></span><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-size: 9pt;font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;">I drove myself nuts. </span></span><span style="font-family:verdana;font-size:78%;"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-size:10.0pt;">Finally, after hours of labor, I created some audio files of me reading the first few chapters in </span><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:78%;"><a><span style="mso-bidi-">TREMOLO: CRY OF THE LOON</span></a></span><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:10.0pt;">, and posted them up on my website.</span></span></p><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi-font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"></span></span><p class="MsoNormal"> </p><span style="font-size:78%;"></span><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"></span></span><span style="font-size:78%;"><br /><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi-font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"></span></span> </p><span style="font-size:78%;"></span><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"> </span></span></p><span style="font-size:78%;"> </span><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-size: 9pt;font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;">Don’t get me wrong. I enjoyed it. I really did. But while I was doing this, I wasn’t writing. And if I had ever hoped to get my complete set of sixteen books recorded as audio books, it would have taken months for each project. I’d never get my current book finished at that rate.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"><br /></span></span></p><span style="font-size:78%;"> </span><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"> </span></span></p><span style="font-size:78%;"> </span><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-size: 9pt;font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;">I sent off a few of the mp3 samples to my publisher. She had her “audio guy” listen to them, and he said they had too much “hiss,” that I’d need a different mike. Of course, I had used the simple microphone that comes with my MacBook Pro, and that naturally isn’t geared for serious recording.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"><br /></span></span></p><span style="font-size:78%;"> </span><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"> </span></span></p><span style="font-size:78%;"> </span><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-size: 9pt;font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;">For the time being, I let it go at that. After all, I had seven books to edit that were scheduled for 2012 release, and was working on the third book in my Tall Pines mystery series. With the full time day job, there wasn’t must time left for anything extra.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"> <style> <!-- /* Font Definitions */ @font-face {font-family:Verdana; panose-1:2 11 6 4 3 5 4 4 2 4; mso-font-charset:0; mso-generic-font-family:auto; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:3 0 0 0 1 0;} @font-face {font-family:Cambria; panose-1:2 4 5 3 5 4 6 3 2 4; mso-font-charset:0; mso-generic-font-family:auto; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:3 0 0 0 1 0;} /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-parent:""; margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ascii-font-family:Cambria; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family:Cambria; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-hansi-font-family:Cambria; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;} a:link, span.MsoHyperlink {color:blue; text-decoration:underline; text-underline:single;} a:visited, span.MsoHyperlinkFollowed {mso-style-noshow:yes; color:purple; text-decoration:underline; text-underline:single;} @page Section1 {size:8.5in 11.0in; margin:1.0in 1.25in 1.0in 1.25in; mso-header-margin:.5in; mso-footer-margin:.5in; mso-paper-source:0;} div.Section1 {page:Section1;} --> </style> </p> <style> <!-- /* Font Definitions */ @font-face {font-family:Verdana; panose-1:2 11 6 4 3 5 4 4 2 4; mso-font-charset:0; mso-generic-font-family:auto; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:3 0 0 0 1 0;} @font-face {font-family:Cambria; panose-1:2 4 5 3 5 4 6 3 2 4; mso-font-charset:0; mso-generic-font-family:auto; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:3 0 0 0 1 0;} /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-parent:""; margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ascii-font-family:Cambria; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family:Cambria; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-hansi-font-family:Cambria; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;} a:link, span.MsoHyperlink {color:blue; text-decoration:underline; text-underline:single;} a:visited, span.MsoHyperlinkFollowed {mso-style-noshow:yes; color:purple; text-decoration:underline; text-underline:single;} @page Section1 {size:8.5in 11.0in; margin:1.0in 1.25in 1.0in 1.25in; mso-header-margin:.5in; mso-footer-margin:.5in; mso-paper-source:0;} div.Section1 {page:Section1;} --> </style> <p style="font-weight: bold;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 9pt;font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;">The tip:</span></p><p style="font-weight: bold;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"><br /></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 9pt;font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"><span style="font-size:100%;">The dream </span>of getting my books into audio books didn’t die, it just simmered under the surface for a little while, until a good friend gave me a tip. Her Simon & Schuster book was going to audio book format through a company called ACX, part of Audible, which is owned by Amazon.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"><br /></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 9pt;font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;">Excited, I started to investigate. ACX is a wonderful site where authors, producers, and actors can network and pair up. The nicest part of this is one available option called “Royalty Share” where the narrators/actors/producers and authors to do the recording work up front, put no money down, and then share the royalties when the sales start coming in. Of course you can also simply hire a narrator and his studio to do the recordings, and keep your share of the royalties for yourself, if you want.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"><br /></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 9pt;font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;">Alternatively, you can record your own books, but you’d probably have to invest in a good mike, become well-versed in manipulating audio files, or have a an audio-techie colleague to help you.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"><br /></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 9pt;font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Important stuff to know:</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><br /></span> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 9pt;font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;">Now this part is really important. Please read this carefully:</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"><br /></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 9pt;font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;">You need to find out who owns the audio rights for your book(s).</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"><br /></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 9pt;font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;">Check your book contracts, and if you’re not sure, call your publisher.<br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"><br /></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 9pt;font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;">I hadn’t really paid attention to that part of the contract(s) with my publisher, Twilight Times Books, but soon discovered that she hadn’t included audio rights in our contract, so the rights were mine.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"><br /></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 9pt;font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;">For those whose publishers’ have retained the rights, don’t panic. Your publisher or agent can submit your books to ACX if he or she is so inclined, you’ll just have to share the royalties with her and your actor/narrator/producer.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"><br /></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 9pt;font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;">If you establish that you own the audio rights, the next step is to register. Please note that I’m pretty sure you must already have books in the Amazon bookstore for all this to work.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"><br /></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 9pt;font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;">I was surprised that Twilight Times Books wasn’t on the list (lots of companies weren’t, since this is a new program and they are still growing their lists), but didn’t let that stop me. I knew my publisher was highly-regarded in the industry, that she’d been interviewed by Publisher’s Weekly, and that our company was a member in good standing of Mystery Writers of America (MWA) and International Thriller Writers. These credentials were legit and impressive.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"><br /></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 9pt;font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;">I was able to chat with Nicole O., one of the ACX customer support folks, who was extremely helpful. We talked on the phone several times about my publisher and my books, and I provided all the information needed. After a while, the books were listed on the site for actors to listen to and (hopefully) submit auditions. Of course, I had to upload all the details about the work – number of pages, genre, synopsis, and a short excerpt for the actors to use in their audition.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"><br /></span></p> <p style="font-weight: bold;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"> </span></p><span style="font-weight: bold;"> </span><p style="font-weight: bold;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 9pt;font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;">The first audition:</span></p><p style="font-weight: bold;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"><br /></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;">I was thrilled to receive an audition almost immediately for </span><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi-font-family:Verdana;font-size:78%;"><a><span style="mso-bidi-">TREMOLO: CRY OF THE LOON</span></a></span><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi-font-family:Verdana;font-size:78%;">. </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 9pt;font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;">The voice actor/narrator, Erik S, did a great job, creating a very young-sounding voice for my eleven-year-old Gus LeGarde. I was pleased with his accents for Gus’s grandparents who live in Maine, Oscar and Millie Stone (British transplants), Elsbeth and Siegfried (German twins, Gus’s friends,) etc. Each voice was consistent and unique, and wonderfully rendered.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"><br /></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;">You can hear a sample chapter<span style="font-size:78%;"> </span></span><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi-font-family:Verdana;font-size:78%;"><a href="http://www.legardemysteries.com/audiobooks.htm"><span style="mso-bidi-">HERE</span></a></span><span style="font-size: 9pt;font-family:Verdana;font-size:78%;color:#3366FF;">.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi-font-family:Verdana;font-size:78%;color:#3366FF;"><br /></span></p> <p style="font-weight: bold;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"> </span></p><span style="font-weight: bold;"> </span><p style="font-weight: bold;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 9pt;font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;">The First Fifteen Minute Sample:</span></p><p style="font-weight: bold;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"><br /></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 9pt;font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;">After we started work on TREMOLO, Erik prepared the first fifteen-minute sample. I listened, made a few minor suggestions, and then approved the posted files. This is important for many reasons. For one thing, you need to confirm that the voices for each character are suitable and hopefully match the “voices in your head”.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"><br /></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 9pt;font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;">Well, that sounded a little weird, but if you’re like me and consider your stories like parallel universes, then you know exactly how your characters sound, and you often picture them in movies with actors you’ve already chosen for them.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"><br /></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"> <style> <!-- /* Font Definitions */ @font-face {font-family:Verdana; panose-1:2 11 6 4 3 5 4 4 2 4; mso-font-charset:0; mso-generic-font-family:auto; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:3 0 0 0 1 0;} @font-face {font-family:Cambria; panose-1:2 4 5 3 5 4 6 3 2 4; mso-font-charset:0; mso-generic-font-family:auto; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:3 0 0 0 1 0;} /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-parent:""; margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ascii-font-family:Cambria; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family:Cambria; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-hansi-font-family:Cambria; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;} @page Section1 {size:8.5in 11.0in; margin:1.0in 1.25in 1.0in 1.25in; mso-header-margin:.5in; mso-footer-margin:.5in; mso-paper-source:0;} div.Section1 {page:Section1;} --> </style> </p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;">Am I right?</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"> <style> <!-- /* Font Definitions */ @font-face {font-family:Verdana; panose-1:2 11 6 4 3 5 4 4 2 4; mso-font-charset:0; mso-generic-font-family:auto; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:3 0 0 0 1 0;} @font-face {font-family:Cambria; panose-1:2 4 5 3 5 4 6 3 2 4; mso-font-charset:0; mso-generic-font-family:auto; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:3 0 0 0 1 0;} /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-parent:""; margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ascii-font-family:Cambria; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family:Cambria; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-hansi-font-family:Cambria; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;} @page Section1 {size:8.5in 11.0in; margin:1.0in 1.25in 1.0in 1.25in; mso-header-margin:.5in; mso-footer-margin:.5in; mso-paper-source:0;} div.Section1 {page:Section1;} --> </style> </p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 9pt;font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 9pt;font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;">Okay, so the whole idea of checking out the first fifteen minutes is so your British character doesn’t sound like he’s from the Bronx, or your plucky heroine doesn’t sound too frail. Also, it gives you a good chance to check the quality level of the recording facilities that your producer is using.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"><br /></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 9pt;font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;">We didn’t have to do much adjusting, frankly, because Erik really nailed the accents without any coaching. He recorded the entire book over a period of a month, sending me batches of audio files to listen to, and when we were done catching any errors that might have crept into the files, he worked on the technical items that needed fixing.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"><br /></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"> </span></p> <p style="font-weight: bold;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 9pt;font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;">I panicked!</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"><br /></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 9pt;font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;">Erik went back to working on the files, and it was at that point that I panicked. I was trying to upload my book cover art into the required field on my TREMOLO ACX page, when I discovered that the cover art needed to be a square image.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"><br /></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"> </span></p><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;">Square? All of my covers were rectangular, in roughly 5x8 inch format.<br /><br /></span> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 9pt;font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;">I tried to cut the book cover down by cropping it, but there was no way it was going to work and look proper in a square format.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"><br /></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 9pt;font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;">Finally, like most guys, I finally looked at the directions. I studied the examples on the webpage of what was “acceptable” and what wasn’t. Right there in front of me was the botched up cover just like the one I’d attempted, with top and bottom cropped. Next to it was another stuck in a square with white borders.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"><br /></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 9pt;font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;">Nope. The cropping or squeezing-it-all-into-a-little-box approach was not going to achieve it!</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"><br /></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 9pt;font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;">The “acceptable” cover was designed from the beginning to fit in a square template.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"><br /></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 9pt;font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;">It was at this point that I started to worry about my rights again. I would need the layered version of my covers so I could play with the original art and design it to fit in a square box.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"><br /></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"> </span></p> <p style="font-weight: bold;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 9pt;font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;">Who owns your cover art?</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"><br /></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 9pt;font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;">Did I own the rights to my cover art? Would my publisher object to me using them, since she wasn’t involved in this venture? I had helped with the designs, and yes, many of my own photos and concepts were used, but I soon discovered I didn’t own the designs. My publisher was very sweet about it, but she pointed out that she’d paid an artist to do the designs, and that they were legally hers. I love my publisher and would never try to cross the line. So, off I went to create new, square audio book covers.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"><br /></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 9pt;font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;">Fortunately I have used Photoshop for years and knew how to go about it. I’ve been designing “place holder” covers for years, even before I submitted my manuscripts to my publisher, so I had lots of images to play with. I like having a colorful image in my head (and on my websites) that gives a feeling for what’s coming in the books.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"><br /></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 9pt;font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;">I set about creating new, square covers using my Photoshop Elements application.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"><br /></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 9pt;font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;">There are specs you need to follow. For example, the cover must be over 1200 by 1200 pixels, etc.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"><br /></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 9pt;font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;">Here is the original cover for Tremolo and my new audio book cover:</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"><img style="width: 132px; height: 197px;" 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" 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style="font-family:Verdana;font-size:100%;">Erik uploaded the final files to ACX, and I automatically approved them, since I’d already listened to each one so many times and felt comfortable that they’d be fine.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Verdana;font-size:130%;"><br /></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Verdana;font-size:130%;"> </span></p> <p style="font-weight: bold;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Verdana;font-size:100%;">My first mistake:</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Verdana;font-size:100%;"><br /></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Verdana;font-size:100%;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Verdana;font-size:100%;">I always say, “Double check! Triple check!” and am usually quite obsessed with being absolutely sure all is good.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Verdana;font-size:100%;"><br /></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Verdana;font-size:100%;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Verdana;font-size:100%;">Just recently, I received notification from ACX that some of the chapters were missing or repeated. Both Erik and I had missed the uploading errors. But thankfully, the Quality group at ACX does a screening up front, and the errors were quickly corrected.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Verdana;font-size:100%;"><br /></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Verdana;font-size:100%;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Verdana;font-size:100%;">We’re waiting now to see TREMOLO pop up on the Audible website. It’s supposed to take a few weeks after we approve the final version.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Verdana;font-size:100%;"><br /></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Verdana;font-size:100%;"> </span></p><span style="font-size:100%;"> </span><p style="font-weight: bold;" class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Verdana;font-size:100%;">More auditions came in!</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style=" ;font-family:Verdana;font-size:130%;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><img 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" alt="" /></p><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"> <style> <!-- /* Font Definitions */ @font-face {font-family:Verdana; panose-1:2 11 6 4 3 5 4 4 2 4; mso-font-charset:0; mso-generic-font-family:auto; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:3 0 0 0 1 0;} @font-face {font-family:Cambria; panose-1:2 4 5 3 5 4 6 3 2 4; mso-font-charset:0; mso-generic-font-family:auto; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:3 0 0 0 1 0;} /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-parent:""; margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ascii-font-family:Cambria; mso-fareast-font-family:Cambria; mso-hansi-font-family:Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman";} a:link, span.MsoHyperlink {color:blue; text-decoration:underline; text-underline:single;} a:visited, span.MsoHyperlinkFollowed {mso-style-noshow:yes; color:purple; text-decoration:underline; text-underline:single;} @page Section1 {size:8.5in 11.0in; margin:1.0in 1.25in 1.0in 1.25in; mso-header-margin:.5in; mso-footer-margin:.5in; mso-paper-source:0;} div.Section1 {page:Section1;} --> </style> </p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Meanwhile, in the midst of the TREMOLO efforts, I received and enthusiastically accepted an audition from a Canadian Recording Studio (Agile Sound) for </span><span style="mso-bidi-;font-family:Verdana;font-size:100%;"><a href="http://www.mooremysteries.com/"><span style="mso-bidi-">HEALEY’S</span></a></span><u><span style="font-family:Verdana;color:blue;"> <span style="font-size:100%;">CAVE</span></span></u><span style="font-family:Verdana;">, book 1 in Moore Mysteries, otherwise known as “the green marble series.” The actor’s name is Dr. Tom Fraser, and he’s a genius. Really.</span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"> </span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;">A true kindred spirit, I met Tom just in time to bring all of my characters and books to life. I was floored by the recordings, and even after I’d heard just a few chapters, I knew I wanted this actor to record as many of my books as possible. His mature, warm, earthy voice was perfect for my Sam Moore character (HEALEY’S CAVE), but he also would be a wonderful Gus LeGarde, hero of my first mystery series with six books in production and four more written and waiting to be submitted to my publisher.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><br /></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"> </span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Since I accepted his audition for HEALEY’S CAVE, he’s also auditioned for and been accepted to record </span><span style="font-family:Verdana;"> <a href="http://www.legardemysteries.com:mazurka.htm">MAZURKA</a> and </span><span style="mso-bidi- ;font-family:Verdana;font-size:100%;"><a href="http://www.legardemysteries.com/firesong.htm"><span style="mso-bidi-">FIRESONG</span></a></span><span style="font-family:Verdana;">. We are working on them all, and HEALEY’S CAVE is now available on </span><span style=" mso-bidi-;font-family:Verdana;font-size:100%;"><a href="http://tinyurl.com/cype3f2"><span style="mso-bidi-">Audible.com</span></a></span><span style="font-family:Verdana;">, Amazon.com and iTunes. What a whirlwind! </span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"> </span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Tom was born to be Sam Moore, and also fits perfectly for Gus LeGarde. He seemed to agree, and we decided that from now on, he would record all except the YA books.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><br /></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"> </span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;">If you’ve ever wanted to have your books recorded and available for folks to listen to, give it a try!</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><br /></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"> </span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;">www.ACX.com</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><br /></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"> </span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;">You can listen to some samples of my upcoming audio books </span><span style="mso-bidi-;font-family:Verdana;font-size:100%;"><a href="http://www.legardemysteries.com/audiobooks.htm"><span style="mso-bidi-">here</span></a></span><span style="font-family:Verdana;">:</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><br /><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"> <span style="color:blue;"></span></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"> </span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;">You can buy the TREMOLO: CRY OF THE LOON book </span><span style=" mso-bidi-;font-family:Verdana;font-size:100%;"><a href="http://tinyurl.com/84zupmt"><span style="mso-bidi-">here</span></a></span><span style="font-family:Verdana;">:</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><br /></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"> </span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;">And HEALEY’S CAVE audio book </span><span style="mso-bidi-;font-family:Verdana;font-size:100%;"><a href="http://tinyurl.com/cype3f2"><span style="mso-bidi-">here</span></a></span><span style=" ;font-family:Verdana;">:</span></span></p><p style="font-weight: bold;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><br /><span style=" ;font-family:Verdana;"></span></span></p><p style="font-weight: bold;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style=" ;font-family:Verdana;">Additional notes:</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><br /><span style=" ;font-family:Verdana;"></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"> <span style="font-size:100%;"> </span> <style> <!-- /* Font Definitions */ @font-face {font-family:Verdana; panose-1:2 11 6 4 3 5 4 4 2 4; mso-font-charset:0; mso-generic-font-family:auto; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:3 0 0 0 1 0;} @font-face {font-family:Cambria; panose-1:2 4 5 3 5 4 6 3 2 4; mso-font-charset:0; mso-generic-font-family:auto; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:3 0 0 0 1 0;} /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-parent:""; margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ascii-font-family:Cambria; mso-fareast-font-family:Cambria; mso-hansi-font-family:Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman";} @page Section1 {size:8.5in 11.0in; margin:1.0in 1.0in 1.0in 1.0in; mso-header-margin:.5in; mso-footer-margin:.5in; mso-paper-source:0;} div.Section1 {page:Section1;} --> </style> </p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;">The audio books do take a lot of listening time by you to be sure your producer/narrator/actor hasn't made errors. I try to listen to the complete books at least three times all the way through, during various stages, and once at the end to insure no errors crept through when correcting the errors like throat clears, cut off sentences, mispronunciations, etc. etc. I've completed 3 books now (Tremolo, Mazurka, and Healey's Cave) and am just about to listen to the final production version of FireSong. Most books are about 7-10 hours of listening time, depending on the book length, of course.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><br /></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"> </span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;">The good part is it doesn't cost up front (or at all, except in time spent) if you do the royalty share option with your producer. If you were a big name author, it would be smarter to just pay them a straight up fee, and you reap the royalties of your millions of fans!</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><br /></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="mso-bidi- ;font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"> </span></span></p> <span style="font-size:100%;"> </span> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:verdana;">Part II will discuss what to do if you don’t get an audition right away, and will explain how to find the perfect narrator.</span><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><br /></span></p><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span></span> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"> </span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Copyright © Aaron Paul Lazar, 2011<br /></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><a href="http://www.legardemysteries.com/"><span style="">www.legardemysteries.com</span></a></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><br /><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:100%;"><a href="http://www.legardemysteries.com/"><span style="mso-bidi-text-decoration:none;text-underline:none"></span></a></span><span style="font-family:Verdana;font-size:10.0pt;"></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:12.0pt;"> </span></span></p> <style> <!-- /* Font Definitions */ @font-face {font-family:Verdana; panose-1:2 11 6 4 3 5 4 4 2 4; mso-font-charset:0; mso-generic-font-family:auto; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:3 0 0 0 1 0;} @font-face {font-family:Cambria; panose-1:2 4 5 3 5 4 6 3 2 4; mso-font-charset:0; mso-generic-font-family:auto; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:3 0 0 0 1 0;} /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-parent:""; margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ascii-font-family:Cambria; mso-fareast-font-family:Cambria; mso-hansi-font-family:Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman";} a:link, span.MsoHyperlink {color:blue; text-decoration:underline; text-underline:single;} a:visited, span.MsoHyperlinkFollowed {mso-style-noshow:yes; color:purple; text-decoration:underline; text-underline:single;} @page Section1 {size:8.5in 11.0in; margin:1.0in 1.25in 1.0in 1.25in; mso-header-margin:.5in; mso-footer-margin:.5in; mso-paper-source:0;} div.Section1 {page:Section1;} --></style> <style> <!-- /* Font Definitions */ @font-face {font-family:Verdana; panose-1:2 11 6 4 3 5 4 4 2 4; mso-font-charset:0; mso-generic-font-family:auto; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:3 0 0 0 1 0;} @font-face {font-family:Cambria; panose-1:2 4 5 3 5 4 6 3 2 4; mso-font-charset:0; mso-generic-font-family:auto; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:3 0 0 0 1 0;} /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-parent:""; margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ascii-font-family:Cambria; mso-fareast-font-family:Cambria; mso-hansi-font-family:Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman";} a:link, span.MsoHyperlink {color:blue; text-decoration:underline; text-underline:single;} a:visited, span.MsoHyperlinkFollowed {mso-style-noshow:yes; color:purple; text-decoration:underline; text-underline:single;} @page Section1 {size:8.5in 11.0in; margin:1.0in 1.25in 1.0in 1.25in; mso-header-margin:.5in; mso-footer-margin:.5in; mso-paper-source:0;} div.Section1 {page:Section1;} --> </style> <p style="font-weight: bold;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 9pt;font-family:Verdana;font-size:12.0pt;">Biographical:</span></p><p style="font-weight: bold;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:12.0pt;"><br /></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:12.0pt;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi-mso-ansi-language:EN-GBfont-family:Verdana;font-size:12.0pt;" lang="EN-GB">Aaron Paul Lazar writes to soothe his soul. The award-winning and bestselling Kindle author of three addictive mystery series, Aaron enjoys the Genesee Valley countryside in upstate New York, where his characters embrace life, play with their dogs and grandkids, grow sumptuous gardens, and chase bad guys. Visit his website at </span><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:12.0pt;"><a href="http://www.legardemysteries.com/"><span style="mso-ansi-language:EN-GB" lang="EN-GB">www.legardemysteries.com</span></a></span><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- mso-ansi-language:EN-GBfont-family:Verdana;font-size:12.0pt;" lang="EN-GB"> and watch for his upcoming Twilight Times Books releases, ESSENTIALLY YOURS (MAR 2012), TERROR COMES KNOCKING (FEB 2011), FOR KEEPS (MAY 2012), DON’T LET THE WIND CATCH YOU (APRIL 2012), and the author’s preferred editions of DOUBLE FORTÉ (FEB 2012) and UPSTAGED (JUNE 2012).</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:12.0pt;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:12.0pt;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:12.0pt;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:12.0pt;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"> <style> <!-- /* Font Definitions */ @font-face {font-family:Verdana; 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margin:1.0in 1.25in 1.0in 1.25in; mso-header-margin:.5in; mso-footer-margin:.5in; mso-paper-source:0;} div.Section1 {page:Section1;} --> </style> </p><style><!-- /* Font Definitions */ @font-face {font-family:Verdana; panose-1:2 11 6 4 3 5 4 4 2 4; mso-font-charset:0; mso-generic-font-family:auto; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:3 0 0 0 1 0;} @font-face {font-family:Cambria; panose-1:2 4 5 3 5 4 6 3 2 4; mso-font-charset:0; mso-generic-font-family:auto; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:3 0 0 0 1 0;} /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-parent:""; margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ascii-font-family:Cambria; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family:Cambria; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-hansi-font-family:Cambria; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;} a:link, span.MsoHyperlink {color:blue; text-decoration:underline; text-underline:single;} a:visited, span.MsoHyperlinkFollowed {mso-style-noshow:yes; color:purple; text-decoration:underline; text-underline:single;} @page Section1 {size:8.5in 11.0in; margin:1.0in 1.25in 1.0in 1.25in; mso-header-margin:.5in; mso-footer-margin:.5in; mso-paper-source:0;} div.Section1 {page:Section1;} --></style>Vergilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13045687055267007493noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-259810607439728423.post-12884330058568043452011-12-03T23:27:00.010-06:002011-12-04T17:20:36.067-06:00Writing BLONDE DEMOLITION<span style="font-size:100%;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgX6bLMfzVLFEW73pr9XX5KVATqRtnKIRxrJ5fxhEld-gJj9pCtFoRXDtqEfuWE2k4UccF3Vg6q0CaAVgiuGF1MdDzyyVtI7gzwj_VHLeZIzarIlylGf4Ir3BEXS24E36h0J8QMLKMIYUEj/s1600/-2.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 201px; height: 301px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgX6bLMfzVLFEW73pr9XX5KVATqRtnKIRxrJ5fxhEld-gJj9pCtFoRXDtqEfuWE2k4UccF3Vg6q0CaAVgiuGF1MdDzyyVtI7gzwj_VHLeZIzarIlylGf4Ir3BEXS24E36h0J8QMLKMIYUEj/s320/-2.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5682144701530406882" border="0" /></a></span><span style="font-family:verdana;">The Writing of <span style="font-style: italic;">BLONDE DEMOLITION</span></span><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZxQwNBHOo6V8uZbQUFAwJ34uCp7OjETWEtMXTzw2wxFMLDz-jbL05-2fEfg1q0Q4z179QYv-fJzC-74UTRVeBrJLAgmHEcuuvS9Fh2kmOh1XPa9Ps_LT5ZJLvaVO1Y6JROQXB0-WMfBdV/s1600/-1.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 212px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZxQwNBHOo6V8uZbQUFAwJ34uCp7OjETWEtMXTzw2wxFMLDz-jbL05-2fEfg1q0Q4z179QYv-fJzC-74UTRVeBrJLAgmHEcuuvS9Fh2kmOh1XPa9Ps_LT5ZJLvaVO1Y6JROQXB0-WMfBdV/s320/-1.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5682143422861268338" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:verdana;">by Chris Redding</span><br /><br /> <style> <!-- /* Font Definitions */ @font-face {font-family:Arial; panose-1:2 11 6 4 2 2 2 2 2 4; mso-font-charset:0; mso-generic-font-family:auto; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:3 0 0 0 1 0;} @font-face {font-family:Cambria; panose-1:2 4 5 3 5 4 6 3 2 4; mso-font-charset:0; mso-generic-font-family:auto; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:3 0 0 0 1 0;} /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-parent:""; margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman";} a:link, span.MsoHyperlink {color:blue; text-decoration:underline; text-underline:single;} a:visited, span.MsoHyperlinkFollowed {mso-style-noshow:yes; color:purple; text-decoration:underline; text-underline:single;} @page Section1 {size:8.5in 11.0in; margin:1.0in 1.25in 1.0in 1.25in; mso-header-margin:.5in; mso-footer-margin:.5in; mso-paper-source:0;} div.Section1 {page:Section1;} --> </style> <p style="font-family: verdana;font-family:verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;">Everyone asks writers where they get their ideas. It isn’t an easy question. The answers vary with each author and can even vary with each book.</span></p><p style="font-family: verdana;font-family:verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><br /></span></p><span style="font-family:verdana;font-size:85%;"><span style="mso-bidi-;font-family:Arial;" ></span></span><p class="MsoNormal" face="verdana"> </p><span style="font-family:verdana;font-size:85%;"></span><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:verdana;"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="mso-bidi-;font-family:Arial;" > </span></span></p><span style="font-family:verdana;font-size:85%;"> </span><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><i style="font-family:verdana;"><span style="mso-bidi-;font-family:Arial;" >Blonde Demolition,</span></i><span style="font-family:Arial;mso-bidi-font-family:Arial;" ><span style="font-family:verdana;"> a thriller</span> with some romance, is my latest release. This book is the confluence of two ideas. </span></span><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:verdana;">One is that Robert Crais wrote a book called </span><i style="font-family: verdana;">Demolition Angel</i><span style="font-family:verdana;">. I loved that title. Bought the book solely on the title and of course enjoyed it. He is Robert Crais after all. So I wrote the book I would have called </span><i style="font-family: verdana;">Demolition Angel</i><span style="font-family:verdana;">, but of course I couldn’t call it that. Thus was born </span><i style="font-family: verdana;">Blonde Demolition</i><span style="font-family:verdana;">.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:verdana;"><br /></span></span></p><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Arial;mso-bidi-font-family:Arial;" ></span></span><p class="MsoNormal"> </p><span style="font-size:100%;"></span><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Arial;mso-bidi-font-family:Arial;" > </span></span></p><span style="font-size:100%;"> </span><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family: Arial;font-family:Arial;" >The other is that for many years my husband’s volunteer fire company hosted a fair to raise money. Games, rides, food, and beer. The guys who ran the beer tent were an exclusive group, and I was one of only a few women they let pour beer. We called them The Beer Gods. They often bugged me about writing a book about them. When I searched for a location to begin <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal">Blonde Demolition</i>, I came upon the fair. Think about how hideous it would be to set off a bomb during a local carnival. Maybe not a big target, but there isn’t a lot of security, so one could easily plant a bomb. And no one would be expecting it. Thus was born the beginning of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal">Blonde Demolition</i>.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Arial;mso-bidi-font-family:Arial;" ><br /></span></span></p><span style="font-size:100%;"> </span><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Arial;mso-bidi-font-family:Arial;" > </span></span></p><span style="font-size:100%;"> </span><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Arial;mso-bidi-font-family:Arial;" >I had a lot of fun writing this book. The tension between Mallory and Trey kept me going until I wasn’t sure if they were going to resolve their differences. Trey is your typical bad boy. He knows about women, but he doesn’t really know about relationships. Mallory is damaged. She was an orphan who had never been adopted and therefore didn’t truly understand what family meant until she joined the fire company.</span></span></p><span style="font-size:100%;"> </span><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Arial;mso-bidi-font-family:Arial;" > </span></span></p><span style="font-size:100%;"> </span><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family: Arial;font-family:Arial;" >This made the story all that more interesting for me. Using my home state of New Jersey made the setting come alive. I knew the places I used very well.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Arial;mso-bidi-font-family:Arial;" ><br /></span></span></p><span style="font-size:100%;"> </span><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Arial;mso-bidi-font-family:Arial;" > </span></span></p><span style="font-size:100%;"> </span><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family: Arial;font-family:Arial;" >As writers, we are absorbing items all the time. Places, ideas, plots. We never know when we will use them. They are part of our arsenal as writers.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Arial;mso-bidi-font-family:Arial;" ><br /></span></span></p><span style="font-size:100%;"> </span><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Arial;mso-bidi-font-family:Arial;" > </span></span></p><span style="font-size:100%;"> </span><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family: Arial;font-family:Arial;" >If you plan to write, you also need to be an observer of the world around you. You never know when you’ll happen upon a character or a setting that you think you’ll use in a book. I often think about where I’d hide a dead body in the most innocuous of places. (Crayola Factory!) Never stop looking around. That’s the best advice I can give a writer.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Arial;mso-bidi-font-family:Arial;" ><br /></span></span></p><span style="font-size:100%;"> </span><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Arial;mso-bidi-font-family:Arial;" > </span></span></p><span style="font-size:100%;"> </span><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Arial;mso-bidi-font-family:Arial;" >I hope you’ll enjoy the end result. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style:normal">Blonde Demolition</i>.</span></span></p><span style="font-size:100%;"> </span><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Arial;mso-bidi-font-family:Arial;" > </span></span></p><span style="font-size:100%;"> </span><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Arial;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Arial;">Hook:</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Arial;mso-bidi-font-family:Arial;" ><br /></span></span></p><span style="font-size:100%;"></span><span style="font-size:100%;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal"><span style="font-family:Arial;mso-bidi-mso-ansi-language:EN-CAfont-family:Arial;font-size:16.0pt;" lang="EN-CA" >You just can't hide from the past...</span></i></span><span style="font-size:100%;"> </span><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Arial;mso-bidi-font-family:Arial;font-size:16.0pt;" > </span></span></p><span style="font-size:100%;"> </span><p style="font-family: verdana;" class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family: Arial;">Mallory Sage lives in a small, idyllic town where nothing ever happens. Just the kind of life she has always wanted. No one, not even her fellow volunteer firefighters, knows about her past life as an agent for Homeland Security. Former partner and lover Trey McCrane comes back into Mallory's life. He believes they made a great team once, and that they can do so again. Besides, they don't have much choice. Paul Stanley, a twisted killer <span style="font-style: italic;">and</span> their old nemesis, is back. Framed for a bombing and drawn together by necessity, Mallory and Trey go on the run and must learn to trust each other again</span></span><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family: Arial;font-family:Arial;" >―if they hope to survive. But Mallory has been hiding another secret, one that could destroy their relationship. And time is running out.<br /></span></span></p><span style="font-size:100%;"></span><br /><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;">________________</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p><span style="font-size:100%;"></span><p class="MsoNormal"> </p><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Arial;mso-bidi-font-family:Arial;" >Chris Redding lives in New Jersey with her husband, two kids, one dog, and three rabbits. She graduated from Penn State with a degree in journalism. When she isn’t writing, she works part time for her local hospital.<br /><br /></span></span><span style="font-size:100%;"> </span><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Arial;mso-bidi-font-family:Arial;" > </span></span></p><span style="font-size:100%;"> </span><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family: Arial;font-family:Arial;" >Other Books by Chris Redding:</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Arial;mso-bidi-font-family:Arial;" ><br /></span></span></p><span style="font-size:100%;"> </span><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Arial;mso-bidi-font-family:Arial;" > </span></span></p><span style="font-size:100%;"> </span><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style:normal"><span style="font-family:Arial;mso-bidi-font-family:Arial;" >Corpse Whisperer</span></i></span></p><span style="font-size:100%;"> </span><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style:normal"><span style="font-family:Arial;mso-bidi-font-family:Arial;" >The Drinking Game</span></i></span></p><span style="font-size:100%;"> </span><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style:normal"><span style="font-family:Arial;mso-bidi-font-family:Arial;" >Confessions: Volume One</span></i></span></p><span style="font-size:100%;"> </span><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style:normal"><span style="font-family:Arial;mso-bidi-font-family:Arial;" >Incendiary</span></i></span></p><span style="font-size:100%;"> </span><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><i style=""><span style="font-family: Arial;font-family:Arial;" >A View to a Kilt</span></i></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style:normal"><span style="font-family:Arial;mso-bidi-font-family:Arial;" ><br /></span></i></span></p><span style="font-size:100%;"> </span><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Arial;mso-bidi-font-family:Arial;" > </span></span></p><span style="font-size:100%;"> </span><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Arial;mso-bidi-font-family:Arial;" >Links:</span></span></p><span style="font-size:100%;"> </span><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Arial;mso-bidi-font-family:Arial;" ><a href="http://www.chrisreddingauthor.com/">www.chrisreddingauthor.com</a></span></span></p><span style="font-size:100%;"> </span><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Arial;mso-bidi-font-family:Arial;" ><a href="http://chrisredddingauthor.blogspot.com/">http://chrisredddingauthor.blogspot.com</a></span></span></p><span style="font-size:100%;"> </span><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Arial;mso-bidi-font-family:Arial;" ><a href="http://www.facebook.com/chrisreddingauthor">www.facebook.com/chrisreddingauthor</a></span></span></p><span style="font-size:100%;"> </span><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Arial;mso-bidi-font-family:Arial;" ><a href="http://www.twitter.com/chrisredding">www.twitter.com/chrisredding</a></span></span></p><span style="font-size:100%;"> </span><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Arial;mso-bidi-font-family:Arial;" > </span></span></p><span style="font-size:100%;"></span><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Arial;mso-bidi-font-family:Arial;" ><br /></span></span></p><span style="font-size:100%;"> </span><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Arial;mso-bidi-font-family:Arial;" > </span></span></p><span style="font-size:100%;"> </span><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Arial;mso-bidi-font-family:Arial;" > </span></span></p><span style="font-size:100%;"> </span><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Arial;mso-bidi-font-family:Arial;" > </span></span></p><span style="font-size:100%;"> </span><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Arial;mso-bidi-font-family:Arial;" > </span></span></p>Vergilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13045687055267007493noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-259810607439728423.post-17420431614024409972011-10-29T18:45:00.005-05:002011-10-29T19:10:05.046-05:00Suspense: Creating and Sustaining it<span style="font-size:130%;">My long essay "The Importance of Suspense in Mystery-Writing: How Authors Can Create and Sustain It--And Why They Must" (which appeared in installments on this blog) is now available as a single, unified publication able to be downloaded free of charge on my personal website: http://www.robertdsutherland.com</span><http: com=""><span style="font-size:130%;">.<br />Go to MY WRITINGS...ESSAYS...On Writing; find the file's highlighted title. It is published as Primetime Monographs #2. Click on the title and you will be linked to the master file for downloading. Enjoy.<br /><br />Vergil</span><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></http:>Vergilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13045687055267007493noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-259810607439728423.post-14194340285870079092011-10-06T05:25:00.006-05:002011-10-06T23:48:21.074-05:00The 9 Best Mystery Books for Kids<style> <!-- /* Font Definitions */ @font-face {font-family:Times; panose-1:2 0 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0; mso-font-charset:0; mso-generic-font-family:auto; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:3 0 0 0 1 0;} @font-face {font-family:Verdana; panose-1:2 11 6 4 3 5 4 4 2 4; mso-font-charset:0; mso-generic-font-family:auto; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:3 0 0 0 1 0;} @font-face {font-family:Cambria; panose-1:2 4 5 3 5 4 6 3 2 4; mso-font-charset:0; mso-generic-font-family:auto; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:3 0 0 0 1 0;} /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-parent:""; margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ascii-font-family:Cambria; mso-fareast-font-family:Cambria; mso-hansi-font-family:Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman";} a:link, span.MsoHyperlink {mso-style-noshow:yes; color:blue; text-decoration:underline; text-underline:single;} a:visited, span.MsoHyperlinkFollowed {mso-style-noshow:yes; color:purple; text-decoration:underline; text-underline:single;} p {margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ascii-font-family:Times; mso-fareast-font-family:Cambria; mso-hansi-font-family:Times; mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman";} @page Section1 {size:8.5in 11.0in; margin:1.0in 1.0in 1.0in 1.0in; mso-header-margin:.5in; mso-footer-margin:.5in; mso-paper-source:0;} div.Section1 {page:Section1;} --> </style> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Life is confusing for kids: Everyone’s taller than you are, you don’t know the rules, and most jokes go right over your head. The world’s one big mystery waiting to be solved, which might be why mystery stories have always had a special appeal for young readers. By jumping into books about underage sleuths, they get to identify with someone in a similar situation who’s also trying to figure out the world around them — and who gets to go one step further and actually solve the case. If you’ve got a young reader — or if you just want to relive a time in your life that was both simpler and endlessly complicated — give these titles a look.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><br /></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"> </span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;">1<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style:normal">The Westing Game</i></b>, Ellen Raskin (ages 9–12)</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><br /></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"> </span></span></p><span style="font-size:78%;"> </span><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1"> </span>Winner of the 1979 Newbery Medal, Ellen Raskin’s <i style="mso-bidi-font-style:normal">The Westing Game</i> is that rare children’s book that talks up to its readers, not down. The plot revolves around 16 people at an apartment building who are gathered to hear the will of local eccentric millionaire Samuel Westing. The twist is that the will is a series of clues that divides the group into eight pairs who are each challenged with solving the riddles and figuring out who killed Westing. It’s a smart, occasionally spooky book that’s perfectly pitched at middle schoolers, and at under 200 pages, it’s a quick read.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><br /></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;">2<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style:normal">The Eleventh Hour</i></b>, Graeme Base (ages 4–8)</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><br /></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"> </span></span></p><span style="font-size:78%;"> </span><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1"> </span>Graeme Base’s animal illustrations are things of beauty, and his style made <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal">Animalia</i> a work of art instead of just another book about the alphabet. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style:normal">The Eleventh Hour</i> brings that style to a dinner-theater mystery aimed at younger readers that’s still a pleasant experience for older ones. The stakes are predictably low: The crime is a missing meal, not a mangled corpse. Still, the artwork makes it a good choice for early readers who are starting to show their curiosity about the world.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><br /></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"> </span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;">3<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style:normal">Windcatcher</i></b>, Avi (ages 9–12)</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><br /></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1"> </span></span></span></p><span style="font-size:78%;"> </span><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1"> </span>Another Newbery winner, Avi’s <i style="mso-bidi-font-style:normal">Windcatcher</i> is a mix of mystery and adventure. It’s not quite the puzzle for readers that some of the other books on this list try to be, but that’s not really Avi’s goal here, either. The book’s a slender one even by YA standards (running maybe 130 pages) and its mystery comes in the form of buried treasure and lost shipwrecks. It’s a nice change of pace but still fun enough to get kids thinking.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><br /></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"> </span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;">4<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style:normal">The Maze of Bones</i></b>, Rick Riordan (ages 9–12)</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><br /></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"> </span></span></p><span style="font-size:78%;"> </span><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1"> </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal">The Maze of Bones</i> is the first book in the series <i style="mso-bidi-font-style:normal">The 39 Clues</i>, and though author Rick Riordan (the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style:normal">Percy Jackson & the Olympians</i> titles) had a hand in developing the overall story, the only book he actually wrote is this one. The book is centered on the Cahill family, a world-famous clan whose members include everyone from Mozart to Napoleon. The story kicks off when two young members of the family are given a choice after their grandmother’s death: take $1 million and just walk away, or search for the 39 Clues and change the world. What makes the mystery-adventure so engaging is the way it blends books with online media, tying websites to plot lines. A great choice for tweens.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><br /></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"> </span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;">5<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style:normal">The Mysterious Benedict Society</i></b>, Trenton Lee Stewart (ages 8–12)</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><br /></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"> </span></span></p><span style="font-size:78%;"> </span><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1"> </span>Published in 2007 (and followed by a pair of sequels), <i style="mso-bidi-font-style:normal">The Mysterious Benedict Society</i> is a full-on novel for kids, running several hundred pages as it weaves a tale of gifted children who band together to solve a mystery and stop a villain from using his own gang of children to rule the world. The idea of a school for gifted kids is nothing new, but what makes <i style="mso-bidi-font-style:normal">The Mysterious Benedict Society</i> work so well is that its heroes unite through brain and will power, not might or magic.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><br /></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"> </span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;">6<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style:normal">Encyclopedia Brown, Boy Detective</i></b>, Donald J. Sobol (ages 7–12)</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><br /></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"> </span></span></p><span style="font-size:78%;"> </span><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1"> </span>There have been more than two dozen Encyclopedia Brown titles published since the series started in 1963, and there’s nothing like the original for jump-starting a child’s puzzle-solving side. Donald Sobol’s books are engineered as mini-games for readers, and each "case" is brief enough to keep the pace from flagging. Generations have been raised on these books.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><br /></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"> </span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;">7<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style:normal">The Name of This Book Is Secret</i></b>, Pseudonymous Bosch (ages 9–12)</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><br /></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"> </span></span></p><span style="font-size:78%;"> </span><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1"> </span>Pseudonymous Bosch (real name: Raphael Simon) gets a lot of mileage in this fantasy mystery out of his sense of humor and commitment to making the act of reading a real experience. Most kids probably aren’t familiar with the idea of metafiction, but they know it when they see it: sly narrators talking about the story they’re telling, stories that become about themselves, etc. It’s Dr. Seuss, just dressed up a little. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style:normal">The Name of This Book Is Secret</i> plays around with those ideas as it invites young readers to travel with a pair of children investigating a secret society, and it does so with such skill you can see why there have been three sequels to date.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><br /></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"> </span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;">8<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style:normal">Skeleton Creek</i></b>, Patrick Carman (ages 8–12)</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><br /></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"> </span></span></p><span style="font-size:78%;"> </span><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1"> </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal">Skeleton Creek</i> is a nice mix of horror and mystery, or at least the type of horror that’s palatable to 6th graders. What makes the book so rewarding is Patrick Carman’s epistolary style, roping in blog posts and journal entries to complete the story. Clues and passwords used in one part of the book allow the reader to explore an <a href="http://www.sarahfincher.com/">official site</a> that ties into the other part. It’s a smart idea and a great way to present a mystery to younger readers who might find fiction daunting.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><br /></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"> </span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;">9<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style:normal">The Invention of Hugo Cabret</i></b>, Brian Selznick (ages 9–12)</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><br /></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"> </span></span></p><span style="font-size:78%;"> </span><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1"> </span>Brian Selznick’s <i style="mso-bidi-font-style:normal">The Invention of Hugo Cabret</i> was published in early 2007, and it’s the perfect children’s book for a generation that will be raised on mash-ups. Running more than 500 pages, the book is a mix of text and illustration that uses both to tell a story, and it’s that blend of picture book and graphic novel that makes the experience so enchanting. It’s a winning story, too, revolving around an orphan who lives in a Paris train station in the early 1900s and finds himself drawn to the clocks and gears that remind him of his absent father’s passions. A good read for all ages.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><br /></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"> </span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"> </span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Jay Smith</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Criminal Justice Degrees Guide</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10pt;color:black"></span><a href="http://www.criminaljusticedegreesguide.com/features/the-9-best-mystery-books-for-kids.html" target="_blank"><span style="font-size:10pt">http://www.<wbr>criminaljusticedegreesguide.<wbr>com/features/the-9-best-<wbr>mystery-books-for-kids.html</span></a></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"> </span></span></p> <p style="margin-top:.1pt;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:.1pt;margin-left:0in"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span></span></span></p>Vergilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13045687055267007493noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-259810607439728423.post-48527471280651408162011-09-04T15:09:00.007-05:002011-09-04T19:26:35.465-05:00When Well-planned Book Marketing Stategies Fail <style> <!-- /* Font Definitions */ @font-face {font-family:Verdana; panose-1:2 11 6 4 3 5 4 4 2 4; mso-font-charset:0; mso-generic-font-family:auto; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:3 0 0 0 1 0;} @font-face {font-family:Cambria; panose-1:2 4 5 3 5 4 6 3 2 4; mso-font-charset:0; mso-generic-font-family:auto; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:3 0 0 0 1 0;} /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-parent:""; margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ascii-font-family:Cambria; mso-fareast-font-family:Cambria; mso-hansi-font-family:Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman";} a:link, span.MsoHyperlink {mso-style-noshow:yes; color:blue; text-decoration:underline; text-underline:single;} a:visited, span.MsoHyperlinkFollowed {mso-style-noshow:yes; color:purple; text-decoration:underline; text-underline:single;} span.readmailplaintext {mso-style-name:readmailplaintext;} @page Section1 {size:8.5in 11.0in; margin:1.0in 1.0in 1.0in 1.0in; mso-header-margin:.5in; mso-footer-margin:.5in; mso-paper-source:0;} div.Section1 {page:Section1;} --> </style> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-size: 16pt;font-family:Verdana;font-size:12.0pt;" >When Well-planned Book Marketing Strategies Fail</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-size:16.0pt;mso-bidi- font-family:Verdana;font-size:12.0pt;" >
<br /></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"> </span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;">The occasional failure of well-planned and well-executed promotional efforts to generate book sales is an issue that perhaps requires more discussion than it normally gets. In marketing my novel <i style="mso-bidi-font-style:normal">The Farringford Cadenza</i> I’ve experienced two such failures which colleagues might find interesting (and even useful). <span style="font-style: italic;">I</span> certainly find them interesting—as well as irksome and puzzling. I’m sure some of you have had comparable experiences you might like to share.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;">
<br /></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"> </span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;">It’s always disappointing when a well-planned marketing strategy fails to produce sales; and it’s particularly frustrating when, to the best of your ability, you’ve done everything “right”: identified the target audience, done the necessary research to design promotional materials for an effective “pitch”, and delivered those materials into the proper hands. On two occasions while promoting my mystery <span class="readmailplaintext"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal">The Farringford Cadenza</i> (The Pikestaff Press, 2007), I’ve found that—contrary to logic and counter to informed intuition—my hopefully scattered seeds fell on stony ground.</span></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><span class="readmailplaintext">
<br /></span></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span class="readmailplaintext"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"> </span></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span class="readmailplaintext"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight:normal">CASE 1.</b> Since the novel has classical music as one of its chief components, and its main action is organized around the avid pursuit by a number of diverse characters of a missing manuscript of a cadenza for solo piano, it seemed to me that professional musicians would be a logical niche audience to receive promotional materials. These materials consisted of a letter that described the book (briefly summarizing its action), depicted its cover, and provided purchase information. In addition to the book’s being well reviewed in a number of venues, two concert pianists and the former principal flute of the London Symphony Orchestra had praised it, and these endorsements were included in the materials.</span></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span class="readmailplaintext"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"> <span style="mso-spacerun: yes">
<br /></span></span></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span class="readmailplaintext"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>To obtain my list of professional musicians, I researched the teaching faculties of all the nation’s major conservatories and university music departments. I list them here not to be pedantic, but to show the number of schools and their geographical distribution: Boston Conservatory, U. of Cincinnati, Curtis Institute, Eastman, Juilliard, Levine School of Music, Manhattan School of Music, U. of Maryland, New England Conservatory, Oberlin Conservatory, Peabody Conservatory (located in Baltimore, MD, where much of the book’s action takes place, and which enters into the story, though under a different name), San Francisco Conservatory, USC at Los Angeles (Thornton School of Music), Cleveland Institute, Yale, Indiana U. (Jacobs School), Interlochen Arts Academy, Blair School of Music (Vanderbilt U.), Bard College Conservatory, and Illinois Wesleyan University.</span></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span class="readmailplaintext"><span style="font-family:Verdana;">
<br /></span></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span class="readmailplaintext"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>From these various institutions, I selected the faculty members who were to receive promotional materials on the basis of (1) their instrumental specialties (piano, flute, trumpet, violin, etc.), (2) their academic interests (composition, theory, musicology, etc.) and performance histories, (3) where they had done their own training (and particularly if they had studied at Peabody), and (4) what their non-musical interests were (writing, reading, collecting). From the twenty schools of music I selected 369 individuals whom I thought would be the most likely to find my promotional materials interesting. I assumed that if they purchased the book (and liked it) they would tell their colleagues and friends, lend their copies out, and purchase additional copies as gifts (a promotional ripple effect). My timing had the letters arrive in early autumn, well in advance of holiday gift-buying. Altogether, I spent almost three months doing research, selecting recipients, and preparing and mailing the 369 customized cover letters. These efforts resulted in <i style="mso-bidi-font-style:normal">one</i> sale—an outcome that I found not only disheartening, but <i style="">baffling.</i></span></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span class="readmailplaintext"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style:normal">
<br /></i> </span></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span class="readmailplaintext"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>The niche marketing strategy had seemed valid: contacting a carefully selected group of musicians (performers, composers, musicologists, etc.)—teachers all, deeply committed to music, and to nurturing the next generation of practitioners. The flatline response was not only contrary to what I perceived to be the logic of my plan, but counter-intuitive as well. Was I naïve to think that musicians would be interested in my novel? Is it possible they don’t read mysteries, or for that matter, any sort of fiction? Are they too busy teaching, performing, traveling, and practicing to read at all? Was there something about my promotional materials that didn’t resonate with 368 diverse people? Having carefully crafted my pitch, I’m at a loss to know how I could’ve improved it. I find this non-response a real-life mystery that I haven’t yet solved.</span></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span class="readmailplaintext"><span style="font-family:Verdana;">
<br /></span></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span class="readmailplaintext"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"> </span></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span class="readmailplaintext"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight:normal">CASE 2.</b> Two years ago I decided that I should make a concerted effort to market the book to public libraries. Because there are many hundreds of libraries in the United States, and my promotional budget is limited, it seemed reasonable to launch an experimental trial run before committing printing and postage money to a broad-based scattergun approach. Since much of the action of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style:normal">The Farringford Cadenza</i> takes place in Baltimore and on the island of St. Croix in the U.S. Virgin Islands, I focused on a regional effort, targeting public libraries in the State of Maryland and in Christiansted, St. Croix, where theoretically there would be local interest.</span></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span class="readmailplaintext"><span style="font-family:Verdana;">
<br /></span></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span class="readmailplaintext"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>While Maryland has some prestigious freestanding libraries like the Enoch Pratt Free Library in Baltimore, many libraries in the state are housed in County systems, in which a main library situated in a particular town has administrative jurisdiction over a variable number of branch facilities in other towns. When I was visiting my son’s family in Ellicott City, I asked the acquisitions librarian at Elkridge Branch Library (the one near his home) if Elkridge would consider purchase of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style:normal">The Farringford Cadenza.</i> The librarian said that she didn’t have the authority to purchase books; that those decisions were made at the Central Library for Howard County, located in Columbia.</span></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span class="readmailplaintext"><span style="font-family:Verdana;">
<br /></span></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span class="readmailplaintext"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Using the website <a href="http://www.publiclibraries.com/">http://www.publiclibraries.com/</a> which lists all U. S. libraries alphabetically by State, with addresses, I compiled a list of Maryland libraries and obtained the address of the public library in Christiansted. I decided to pitch my inquiry to the chief or main library in each of the Maryland County systems. It seemed logical to assume that if the acquisitions staff at a particular main library purchased the book for their collection, they might make a blanket purchase for all the branches in their jurisdiction.</span></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span class="readmailplaintext"><span style="font-family:Verdana;">
<br /></span></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span class="readmailplaintext"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Back in Illinois with my targets identified, I again prepared promotional materials: a letter with a brief description of the book, depiction of the cover, and the endorsements as before, with an order blank for purchasing. But in these materials, I highlighted that the action took place in Baltimore (or respectively, in Chistiansted) as a detail that might catch the staff’s interest, and included ISBN and LCCN (Library of Congress Control Number). As a special incentive, I announced in large font that libraries purchasing directly from the publisher would receive a discount of 33 1/3% from list price ($10.63 net for a book priced at $15.95).</span></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span class="readmailplaintext"><span style="font-family:Verdana;">
<br /></span></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span class="readmailplaintext"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>In all, there were thirty libraries on my list. I printed the customized letters and once again stuffed envelopes and affixed first-class postage. Later, in May, 2011, I arranged (free of charge to me) for Association Book Exhibit (ABE) to display the book in Ocean City at the Maryland Library Association convention, in the hope that seeing my book’s cover might jog the memories of County acquisitions staff who’d received my materials. How many sales resulted from all these efforts? <i style="mso-bidi-font-style:normal">Not one.</i> It was as though a black hole had swallowed everything.</span></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span class="readmailplaintext"><span style="font-family:Verdana;">
<br /></span></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span class="readmailplaintext"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I began my experiment by targeting libraries in the State of Maryland, thinking it stood to reason that interest would be relatively high in the region closest to the scene of action (Baltimore). But even if interest <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal">was</i> quickened, it didn’t translate into sales.</span></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span class="readmailplaintext"><span style="font-family:Verdana;">
<br /></span></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span class="readmailplaintext"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"> </span></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span class="readmailplaintext"><span style="font-family:Verdana;">In both of these cases I did the best I could to frame approaches that would generate sales. My research was thorough, my planning meticulous, my presentation and wording of materials carefully calibrated for specific recipients. In targeting the musicians, whom I saw as a logical and “natural” niche market, I tried to think outside the box. In targeting the Maryland libraries, I employed logic and a systematic approach that simply didn’t bear fruit. The question remains: if my efforts in Maryland were so futile, should I approach other libraries in other states with individualized mass mailings? Would a campaign in Oregon be more successful? Oklahoma? Minnesota? And should I try the Maryland libraries again? Marketing gurus tell us that frequently multiple exposures are required for an advertisement to impact a potential target: maybe on the fifth encounter the target will take notice and act on it. But to balance that, there’s a popular definition currently floating about that may be worth considering: “Insanity is when you try something and, finding that it doesn’t work, you try it again the same way, confident that the outcome will be different.” I’m not inclined to spend the time, energy, and money on continuing the experiment with 49 other states.</span></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span class="readmailplaintext"><span style="font-family:Verdana;">
<br /></span></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span class="readmailplaintext"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"> </span></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span class="readmailplaintext"><span style="font-family:Verdana;">The library failure, like that of the musicians’ campaign, is frustrating and discouraging. But like many failures in promotion, its cause may lie in variables beyond a marketer’s control—external events, a bad economy, shrinking acquisitions budgets, habits of buying in bulk from jobber-distributors rather than directly from publishers. The musicians’ lack of response is more problematical.</span></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span class="readmailplaintext"><span style="font-family:Verdana;">
<br /></span></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span class="readmailplaintext"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span></span></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span class="readmailplaintext"><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Though they are disappointing, failures are inevitable accompaniments to marketing. Promoters must be prepared to take them in stride, as bumps in the road, and go marching on. Good marketers must think outside the box, using analysis and imagination to discern potential new markets and to devise innovative and effective ways of reaching them. And in planning strategy, they must strive always to do everything “right” as the best hope for achieving success.</span></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span class="readmailplaintext"><span style="font-family:Verdana;">
<br /></span></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span class="readmailplaintext"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span></span></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span class="readmailplaintext"><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Vergil</span></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span class="readmailplaintext"><span style="font-family:Verdana;">
<br /></span></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span class="readmailplaintext"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"> </span></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span class="readmailplaintext"><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Personal website:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span><a href="http://www.robertdsutherland.com/">http://www.robertdsutherland.com</a></span></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span class="readmailplaintext"><span style="font-family:Verdana;">Pikestaff Press website:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span><a href="http://www.pikestaffpress.com/">http://www.pikestaffpress.com</a></span></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span class="readmailplaintext"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><a href="http://www.pikestaffpress.com/">
<br /></a></span></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span class="readmailplaintext"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span></span>Also published on Murder Must Advertise blog </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;font-size:85%;" > </span><span style="font-size:85%;">(September 3, 2011)</span></p><span style="font-size:85%;"><span class="readmailplaintext"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span></span></span><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span class="readmailplaintext"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"> <span style="font-size:78%;">http://murdermustadvertise.blogspot.com/</span>
<br /></span></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span class="readmailplaintext"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span><http: com=""> </http:></span></span><span style="font-family:Verdana;"></span></span></p> Vergilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13045687055267007493noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-259810607439728423.post-31921594224852187552011-05-01T01:22:00.010-05:002011-09-04T19:42:58.416-05:00Book Cover Design<style>@font-face { font-family: "Times"; }@font-face { font-family: "Cambria"; }p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal { margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman"; }div.Section1 { page: Section1; }</style> <style>@font-face { font-family: "Times"; }@font-face { font-family: "Cambria"; }p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal { margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman"; }div.Section1 { page: Section1; }</style> <style>@font-face { font-family: "Times"; }@font-face { font-family: "Cambria"; }p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal { margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman"; }div.Section1 { page: Section1; }</style> <style>@font-face { font-family: "Verdana"; }@font-face { font-family: "Cambria"; }p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal { margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman"; }div.Section1 { page: Section1; }</style> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0.1pt 0in;"><span style=";font-family:Verdana;font-size:85%;" >The timeworn adage asserts, "You can't judge a book by its cover". True enough. But if it's an effective cover in its design and content, it will provide a great deal of information <span style="">about</span> the book that will help the viewer in deciding whether to read or purchase it. For self-publishing authors, and for any authors who are able to exercise some control over the design of their book covers (because they either design the covers themselves, or hire someone else to do it with whom they're able to consult), it's essential to know what makes a cover effective. While I am going to focus primarily on books printed on paper, many of the principles discussed will apply to designing and creating covers for e-books as well.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0.1pt 0in;"><span style=";font-family:Verdana;font-size:85%;" >
<br /></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0.1pt 0in;"><span style=";font-family:Verdana;font-size:85%;" > </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0.1pt 0in;"><span style=";font-family:Verdana;font-size:85%;" >Covers are extremely important: they can visually establish a "branding" icon for a book or for a series; they become identified with the text in readers' minds (recalling one will recall the other); and they help to sell copies. In the marketplace, I think poorly designed covers far outnumber those that are effective. This is a pity. But it does give those books with well-designed, effective covers a marketing advantage. An author may get only one shot at marketing a particular title, and a good cover may go far toward contributing to the success of that effort.
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<br />In designing a cover yourself, or in hiring a professional designer to do the job, there are several key principles to keep in mind which will serve as guidelines for planning and executing the cover's composition, and for evaluating its effectiveness.
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<br />First, it's an error to conceive a cover's overall design primarily as a graphic composition (a "pretty" picture) rather than as an esthetically-pleasing <span style="font-style: italic;">tool with work to do</span>. This is a mistake that many designers make.
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<br />For, to be effective, a book cover must accomplish a number of objectives: it must (1) catch the potential reader/buyer's eye, (2) pique that person's interest and curiosity, (3) represent fairly the nature of the book (i.e., be congruent and consistent with the book's subject matter, theme, content, etc.), and (4) provide basic information useful to purchasers, reviewers, booksellers, and librarians (title, author, price, bar code, ISBN, publisher's imprint, blurbs (if any), and category ('a novel', 'poetry', 'how-to', 'humor', 'scholarship', biography, memoir, etc.)--all of this in a clear, uncluttered, legible, and quickly-graspable fashion. That's a lot of work to do.
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<br />In short, a cover is specifically designed to call attention to the book, attractively present it to the public, and convince the viewer to read or buy it. Visually, it must be sufficiently striking to stand out among (perhaps) hundreds of competing covers displayed on shelves, racks, or tables, causing the viewer to focus on it (even across a crowded room) and say, 'Hey, I want to check that out,' and go pick it up. A badly-designed cover can actually hinder sales.
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<br />Like record jackets and posters, book covers are a specialized and complex art form. They combine esthetics and "grab" with workaday information. [I think of Alphonse Mucha's work, Toulouse-Lautrec's and Maxfield Parrish's advertising art, and James M. Flagg's Uncle Sam pointing at the viewer to say "I Want You".] Esthetically, a book cover must satisfy three audiences: (1) the <span style="font-style: italic;">artist</span> who designed it, (2) the <span style="font-style: italic;">author</span> whose book it's announcing, and (3) the <span style="font-style: italic;">publisher,</span> whose taste, savvy, and professional competence are being represented in the marketplace and to the world at large. If the author is a self-publisher, these three audiences may be one and the same.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0.1pt 0in;"><span style=";font-family:Verdana;font-size:85%;" >
<br /></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0.1pt 0in;"><span style=";font-family:Verdana;font-size:85%;" > </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0.1pt 0in;"><span style=";font-family:Verdana;font-size:85%;" > </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0.1pt 0in;"><span style=";font-family:Verdana;font-size:85%;" >Vergil</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p> <span style=";font-family:Times;font-size:10pt;" ></span> <span style=";font-family:Times;font-size:10pt;" ></span>Vergilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13045687055267007493noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-259810607439728423.post-44081493075245000342010-09-15T02:15:00.007-05:002010-09-15T19:04:30.412-05:00Writing a Free Ebook -- Is it a Good Investment of Your Time?<style>@font-face { font-family: "Times"; }@font-face { font-family: "Verdana"; }@font-face { font-family: "Cambria"; }p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal { margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman"; }p { margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman"; }div.Section1 { page: Section1; }</style> <style>@font-face { font-family: "Times"; }@font-face { font-family: "Verdana"; }@font-face { font-family: "Cambria"; }p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal { margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman"; }p { margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman"; }div.Section1 { page: Section1; }</style><p style="margin: 0.1pt 0in;"> <style>@font-face { font-family: "Times"; }@font-face { font-family: "Verdana"; }@font-face { font-family: "Cambria"; }p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal { margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman"; }p { margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman"; }div.Section1 { page: Section1; }</style> </p> <p style="margin: 0.1pt 0in;"><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68);font-family:Verdana;" > </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.1pt 0in;"><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68);font-family:Verdana;" >By Aaron Lazar</span></p><p style="margin: 0.1pt 0in;"><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68);font-family:Verdana;" ><br /></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.1pt 0in;"><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68);font-family:Verdana;" > </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.1pt 0in;"><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68);font-family:Verdana;" >When my publisher </span><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68);font-family:Verdana;" >approached me about doing a free eBook, at first I balked. I was happily ensconced in my latest book, and wallowed in the creative rush every day. That particular aspect of being an author is by far my favorite. I'm swept away in my parallel universe and was happily hunting down bad guys in the Adirondack Mountains when the request came in.</span></p> <p style="margin: 0.1pt 0in;"><span style=";font-family:Verdana;color:white;" >a</span></p> <p style="margin: 0.1pt 0in;"><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68);font-family:Verdana;" >What? A free eBook? I'd heard about them and had actually downloaded a number of them before, but hadn't really thought it would be in my future. </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.1pt 0in;"><span style=";font-family:Verdana;color:white;" >a</span></p> <p style="margin: 0.1pt 0in;"><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68);font-family:Verdana;" >I was wrong.</span></p><p style="margin: 0.1pt 0in;"><br /></p><p style="margin: 0.1pt 0in;"><a target="_blank" class="fw_link_file fw_link_newWindow" href="http://www.legardemysteries.com/Bios%20author%20pix/Literary%20Sampler%20arc-1.pdf"><img src="http://www.legardemysteries.com//Bios%20author%20pix/Literary%20Sampler,%20BLUE%20IRIS.jpg" style="width: 390px; height: 592px; margin: 8px;" class="fw_image_freewebs fwSizeProp" border="0" /></a></p><br /><p style="margin: 0.1pt 0in;"> <style>@font-face { font-family: "Times"; }@font-face { font-family: "Verdana"; }@font-face { font-family: "Cambria"; }p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal { margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman"; }a:link, span.MsoHyperlink { color: blue; text-decoration: underline; }a:visited, span.MsoHyperlinkFollowed { color: purple; text-decoration: underline; }p { margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman"; }div.Section1 { page: Section1; }</style> </p><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68);font-family:Verdana;font-size:100%;" >Three authors from </span><span style=";font-family:Verdana;font-size:100%;" ><a href="http://www.twilighttimesbooks.com/"><span style="color: rgb(16, 74, 201);">Twilight Times Books</span></a></span><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68);font-family:Verdana;font-size:100%;" > collaborated on this effort, which became an amalgam of first chapters and short stories. </span><span style=";font-family:Verdana;font-size:100%;" ><a href="http://www.mysteryfiction.net/"><span style="color: rgb(16, 74, 201);">Anne K. Edwards</span></a></span><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68);font-family:Verdana;font-size:100%;" >, author of many mysteries and children's books, and </span><span style=";font-family:Verdana;font-size:100%;" ><a href="http://mayracalvani.com/"><span style="color: rgb(16, 74, 201);">Mayra Calvani,</span></a></span><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68);font-family:Verdana;font-size:100%;" > a multi-genre author, were my cohorts in this project. Anne agreed to pull together the first version of the book, and I took it over after that to design a cover, insert cover art and author photo graphics, and to add links for purchases and other resources. </span> <p style="margin: 0.1pt 0in;"><span style=";font-family:Verdana;font-size:100%;color:white;" >a</span><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68);font-family:Verdana;" ></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.1pt 0in;"><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68);font-family:Verdana;" > </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.1pt 0in;"><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68);font-family:Verdana;" >When we finished, our publisher did her magic on it to turn it into a 1Meg pdf file. After that, we were on our own. But one of the incredible side effects that I hadn't even considered was the exploding ability for us to use THREE major networks to promote our work together. The symbiotic nature of this effort is huge. Each of us are veteran networkers and promoters. Each has massive lists of readers and fans. And with all three of us promoting at the same time, our book reached three times as many potential readers. </span><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68);font-family:Verdana;" ></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.1pt 0in;"><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68);font-family:Verdana;" > </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.1pt 0in;"><span style=";font-family:Verdana;color:white;" >a</span><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68);font-family:Verdana;" ></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.1pt 0in;"><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68);font-family:Verdana;" >Of course we're doing this to sell books. But the cool part is, we're also giving away something of value. All of the short stories offered within are fun and free. And that's a good thing!</span><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68);font-family:Verdana;" ></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.1pt 0in;"><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68);font-family:Verdana;" > </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.1pt 0in;"><span style=";font-family:Verdana;color:white;" >a</span><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68);font-family:Verdana;" ></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.1pt 0in;"><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68);font-family:Verdana;" >We named our little book </span><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><a href="http://www.legardemysteries.com/freestuff.htm"><span style="color: rgb(16, 74, 201);">Literary Sampler: a potpourri of stories and first chapters</span></a></span><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68);font-family:Verdana;" >, and you can download it by clicking on the link, on the photo of the cover, or going to www.legardemysteries.com/freestuff.htm. </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.1pt 0in;"><span style=";font-family:Verdana;color:white;" >a</span><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68);font-family:Verdana;" ></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.1pt 0in;"><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68);font-family:Verdana;" > </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.1pt 0in;"><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68);font-family:Verdana;" >We'd love to hear back from our readers. Did you enjoy the stories? Did the first chapters or excerpts entice you? Did you like our cover art? Please email aaron.lazar@yahoo.com with comments and I'll forward your words to Anne and Mayra, as well. On parting, remember to take pleasure in the little things, and write like the wind!</span><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68);font-family:Verdana;" ></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.1pt 0in;"><span style=";font-family:Verdana;color:white;" >a</span><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68);font-family:Verdana;" ></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.1pt 0in;"><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68);font-family:Verdana;" > </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.1pt 0in;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><a href="http://www.legardemysteries.com/"><span style="">Aaron Paul Laza</span></a></span><span style="color: rgb(16, 74, 201);font-family:Verdana;" >r</span><span style=";font-family:Verdana;color:white;" >a</span><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68);font-family:Verdana;" ></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.1pt 0in;"><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68);font-family:Verdana;" > </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.1pt 0in;"><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68);font-family:Verdana;" > </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.1pt 0in;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><a href="http://www.legardemysteries.com/"><b style=""><span style="">LEGARDE MYSTERIES</span></b></a><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68);"></span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.1pt 0in;"><b style=""><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68);font-family:Verdana;" >DOUBLE FORTE' (2004)</span></b><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68);font-family:Verdana;" ></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.1pt 0in;"><b style=""><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68);font-family:Verdana;" >UPSTAGED (2005)</span></b><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68);font-family:Verdana;" ></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.1pt 0in;"><b style=""><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68);font-family:Verdana;" >TREMOLO: CRY OF THE LOON (2007)</span></b><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68);font-family:Verdana;" ></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.1pt 0in;"><b style=""><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68);font-family:Verdana;" >MAZURKA (2009)</span></b><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68);font-family:Verdana;" ></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.1pt 0in;"><b style=""><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68);font-family:Verdana;" >FIRESONG (2010)</span></b><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68);font-family:Verdana;" > </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.1pt 0in;"><span style=";font-family:Verdana;color:white;" >a</span><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68);font-family:Verdana;" ></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.1pt 0in;"><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68);font-family:Verdana;" > </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.1pt 0in;"><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><a href="http://www.mooremysteries.com/"><b style=""><span style="">MOORE MYSTERIES</span></b></a><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68);"></span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.1pt 0in;"><b style=""><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68);font-family:Verdana;" >HEALEY'S CAVE (2010)</span></b><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68);font-family:Verdana;" ></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.1pt 0in;"><b style=""><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68);font-family:Verdana;" >ONE POTATO, BLUE POTATO (2011)</span></b><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68);font-family:Verdana;" ></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.1pt 0in;"><span style=";font-family:Verdana;color:white;" >a</span><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68);font-family:Verdana;" ></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.1pt 0in;"><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68);font-family:Verdana;" > </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.1pt 0in;"><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68);font-family:Verdana;" >Preditors&Editors </span><span style=";font-family:Verdana;color:blue;" >Top 10 Finalist</span><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68);font-family:Verdana;" > * </span><span style=";font-family:Verdana;color:blue;" >Yolanda Renee's Top Ten Books 2008</span><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68);font-family:Verdana;" > * </span><span style=";font-family:Verdana;color:blue;" >MYSHELF Top Ten Reads 2008</span><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68);font-family:Verdana;" > * Writers' Digest Top 101 Website Award 2009 & 2010</span></p> <p style="margin: 0.1pt 0in;"><span style=";font-family:Verdana;color:white;" >a</span><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68);font-family:Verdana;" ></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.1pt 0in;"><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68);font-family:Verdana;" > </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.1pt 0in;"><span style="color: rgb(16, 74, 201);font-family:Verdana;" >www.legardemysteries.com</span><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68);font-family:Verdana;" ></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.1pt 0in;"><span style="color: rgb(16, 74, 201);font-family:Verdana;" >www.mooremysteries.com</span><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68);font-family:Verdana;" ></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.1pt 0in;"><span style="color: rgb(16, 74, 201);font-family:Verdana;" >www.murderby4.blogspot.com</span><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68);font-family:Verdana;" ></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.1pt 0in;"><span style="color: rgb(16, 74, 201);font-family:Verdana;" >www.aaronlazar.blogspot.com</span><span style=";font-family:Verdana;color:white;" >a</span><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68);font-family:Verdana;" ></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.1pt 0in;"><span style=";font-family:Verdana;color:white;" >a</span><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68);font-family:Verdana;" ></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.1pt 0in;"><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68);font-family:Verdana;" >- Aaron Paul Lazar</span><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68);font-family:Verdana;" ></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Verdana;font-size:10pt;" > </span></p><br /><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68);font-family:Verdana;font-size:11pt;" ></span><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68);font-family:Verdana;font-size:11pt;" ></span><p></p> <span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68);font-family:Verdana;font-size:12pt;" ></span></span><span style="color: rgb(68, 68, 68);font-family:Verdana;font-size:12pt;" ></span> <style>@font-face { font-family: "Times"; }@font-face { font-family: "Verdana"; }@font-face { font-family: "Cambria"; }@font-face { font-family: "\'Times New Roman\'"; }p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal { margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman"; }a:link, span.MsoHyperlink { color: blue; text-decoration: underline; }a:visited, span.MsoHyperlinkFollowed { color: purple; text-decoration: underline; }p { margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman"; }div.Section1 { page: Section1; }</style>Vergilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13045687055267007493noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-259810607439728423.post-87229641426586368252010-03-02T14:12:00.003-06:002010-03-02T14:23:00.014-06:00Humor in Mystery WritingAn essay of mine, <span style="font-weight: bold;">"Humor in Mystery Writing"</span>, was published March 1, 2010 as a guest blog on MURDER BY 4 -- http://murderby4.blogspot.com/<br /><br />It follows my guest blogs <span style="font-weight: bold;">"Tact in Mystery Writing"</span> and <span style="font-weight: bold;">"Creating Interesting, Believable Characters"</span>, which were posted on MURDER BY 4 on January 8 and February 1, respectively.<br /><br />These three essays are a follow-up to to my long essay <span style="font-weight: bold;">"The Importance of Suspense"</span> already published on the mystery-writing-vergil blogsite (below).<br /><br /><br />VergilVergilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13045687055267007493noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-259810607439728423.post-27824845318336193892010-02-20T22:19:00.007-06:002010-03-09T11:53:37.639-06:00Review of THE FARRINGFORD CADENZA<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxEK9jJgSw-xI1nvtc2P5cQH5ris2-FYzO_YeU-Yc0chdK71xTmWersRQYFyK5aWOL82j6hN7mOgfSaJSSNYM_qNiatY1Sfsn3sEx_U0lj6X-Hyu02GAVCuLvWkT2txZZhfnPZEbqcrt4C/s1600-h/cover+copy"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 209px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxEK9jJgSw-xI1nvtc2P5cQH5ris2-FYzO_YeU-Yc0chdK71xTmWersRQYFyK5aWOL82j6hN7mOgfSaJSSNYM_qNiatY1Sfsn3sEx_U0lj6X-Hyu02GAVCuLvWkT2txZZhfnPZEbqcrt4C/s320/cover+copy" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5440549326331649314" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>A review by Aaron P. Lazar of Robert D. Sutherland's mystery novel THE FARRINGFORD CADENZA has been posted on the blog Murder by 4 as of Saturday, February 20, 2010:<br />http://murderby4.blogspot.com/<br /></div>Vergilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13045687055267007493noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-259810607439728423.post-8864073385249456462009-10-22T01:09:00.005-05:002009-10-22T01:37:48.422-05:00Just Published:<span style=";font-family:verdana;font-size:100%;" ><span style="font-style: italic;">Just published:</span> </span><meta name="Title" content=""> <meta name="Keywords" content=""> <meta equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"> <meta name="ProgId" content="Word.Document"> <meta name="Generator" content="Microsoft Word 2008"> <meta name="Originator" content="Microsoft Word 2008"> <link style="font-family: verdana;" rel="File-List" href="file://localhost/Users/robertdsutherland/Library/Caches/TemporaryItems/msoclip/0clip_filelist.xml"> <!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <o:officedocumentsettings> <o:allowpng/> </o:OfficeDocumentSettings> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:worddocument> <w:zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:trackmoves>false</w:TrackMoves> <w:trackformatting/> <w:punctuationkerning/> <w:drawinggridhorizontalspacing>18 pt</w:DrawingGridHorizontalSpacing> <w:drawinggridverticalspacing>18 pt</w:DrawingGridVerticalSpacing> <w:displayhorizontaldrawinggridevery>0</w:DisplayHorizontalDrawingGridEvery> <w:displayverticaldrawinggridevery>0</w:DisplayVerticalDrawingGridEvery> <w:validateagainstschemas/> <w:saveifxmlinvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:ignoremixedcontent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:alwaysshowplaceholdertext>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:compatibility> <w:breakwrappedtables/> <w:dontgrowautofit/> <w:dontautofitconstrainedtables/> <w:dontvertalignintxbx/> </w:Compatibility> </w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:latentstyles deflockedstate="false" latentstylecount="276"> </w:LatentStyles> </xml><![endif]--> <style> <!-- /* Font Definitions */ @font-face {font-family:Times; panose-1:2 0 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0; mso-font-charset:0; mso-generic-font-family:auto; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:3 0 0 0 1 0;} @font-face {font-family:Cambria; panose-1:2 4 5 3 5 4 6 3 2 4; mso-font-charset:0; mso-generic-font-family:auto; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:3 0 0 0 1 0;} /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-parent:""; margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ascii-font-family:Cambria; mso-fareast-font-family:Cambria; mso-hansi-font-family:Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman";} p {margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ascii-font-family:Times; mso-fareast-font-family:Cambria; mso-hansi-font-family:Times; mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman";} @page Section1 {size:8.5in 11.0in; margin:1.0in 1.25in 1.0in 1.25in; mso-header-margin:.5in; mso-footer-margin:.5in; mso-paper-source:0;} div.Section1 {page:Section1;} --> </style> <!--[if gte mso 10]> <style> /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ascii-font-family:Cambria; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast; mso-hansi-font-family:Cambria; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;} </style> <![endif]--> <!--StartFragment--><span style=";font-family:verdana;font-size:100%;" ><span style=""> </span>MAZURKA, by Aaron P. Lazar. An enjoyable mystery/thriller, MAZURKA takes place in Paris, in a small town in Germany, in Vienna, and the Austrian countryside. Idyllic? Far from it. A honeymooning couple and their friend are targeted and pursued by a relentless band of skinhead Neo-Nazis through a harrowing series of life-threatening encounters. Their only hope of escape is an ambiguous protective arrangement with agents of Interpol. Author Lazar is skillful at creating suspense and a sense of foreboding that terrible things are going to happen. His novel is an exciting read and contains many startling surprises. </span> <p style="margin: 0.1pt 0in;font-family:verdana;"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style=""> </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">This book is part of the Gus LeGarde mystery series, which is currently approaching ten volumes. Autographed copies of MAZURKA can be ordered through the author for $20.00 including tax and shipping</span><span style="font-family:verdana;"> (</span><span style="font-family:verdana;">Aaron P. Lazar</span><span style="font-family:verdana;"> </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">5647 Groveland Hill Road</span><span style="font-family:verdana;"> </span><span style="font-family:verdana;">Geneseo, NY 14454).
<br /></span></span></p><p style="margin: 0.1pt 0in;font-family:verdana;"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:verdana;">Amazon.com and Barnes and Noble (and other online stores) have it at $16.95 plus tax/shipping. You can also get it directly from the Publisher at Twilight Times Books. Their website is </span><a style="font-family: verdana;" href="http://www.twilighttimesbooks.com/"><span style="color:blue;">www.twilighttimesbooks.com</span></a><span style="font-family:verdana;"> and the ordering page for MAZURKA is: </span><a style="font-family: verdana;" href="http://www.twilighttimesbooks.com/Mazurka_ch1.html"><span style="color:blue;">http://www.twilighttimesbooks.com/Mazurka_ch1.html</span></a><span style="font-family:verdana;">.</span></span></p><p style="margin: 0.1pt 0in;font-family:verdana;"><span style="font-size:100%;">
<br /></span></p><p style="margin: 0.1pt 0in;font-family:verdana;"><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:verdana;">Vergil</span>
<br /><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.1pt 0in;font-family:verdana;"><span style="font-size:100%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.1pt 0in;">
<br /><span style="font-size:14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p> <!--EndFragment--> Vergilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13045687055267007493noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-259810607439728423.post-17647948904865647542009-07-22T11:49:00.006-05:002009-07-23T00:59:26.379-05:00A Shameless Promotional Announcement -- 2Here's a shameless announcement of my new book, MIND THE GAP AND 2 OTHER MYSTERIES (MIND THE GAP is a novel; the other two mysteries are longish short stories). This is my first work of fiction, although I've published 5 non-fiction books: 4 biographies and 1 history. Robert Sutherland, whose picture can be seen on this page, said about the novel, "Jared Brown's Mind the Gap is a mystery novel written with the psychological insight of a skilled dramatist. It pulled me in, held me fast during the reading, and has remained with me ever since." The novel concerns eight college students and their two professors who visit London and Stratford to see and discuss plays -- but one of them is murdered. One of the short stories describes the attempts of a little man to rid himself of a rival; the other is an affectionate spoof of hard-boiled mysteries.<div><br /></div><div>Anyone who'd be interested in buying a copy of the book should send a check for $16.88 made out to me (Jared Brown) at the following address: 18 Chatsford Court, Bloomington, IL 61704. That covers the cost of the book, packaging and mailing. (MIND THE GAP AND 2 OTHER MYSTERIES is also available through Amazon.com and Barnesandnoble.com, but I can offer it at a lower price.)</div>jaredhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00639956420983249105noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-259810607439728423.post-16996947376837361712009-07-16T10:00:00.006-05:002009-07-23T00:47:26.209-05:00The Importance of Suspense -- Part 11I'd like to add a few words to "Vergil's" posts on The Importance of Suspense, primarily those concerning the uses of dialogue. I've been concerned with plays all of my life -- writing them, directing them, acting in them -- so I'm always focused on dialogue, and may have something to contribute here.<br /><br />First, though, I should say that "Vergil's" observations, if taken together, might well be the beginnings of a textbook on Mystery Writing. I don't know if such a thing exists, but these comments are so cogent and so clearly-stated that I think they would indeed help mystery writers of all stripes -- those who want to review their technique as well as beginners.<br /><br />Another comment (I'm putting off my comments on dialogue, you'll notice, thereby keeping you in suspense) concerns the quotation in the section beginning Part 6, "If a gun is introduced to the audience in the first act, it had better be used in the third." I could be wrong, but I think the person who expressed that thought was Chekhov. Now, I bow to no man in my admiration of Chekhov (he is, in fact, the finest of all dramatists, in my opinion), but it's not unreasonable to point out that he made this statement in the late 19th (or possibly early 20th) century, when melodrama was a more widely accepted form than it is today. I wonder if a modern-day Chekhov would suggest that introducing a gun in the first act might be useful as a way of tantalizing the audience. He might NOT wish to satisfy the audience's expectation that the gun will be fired in Act Three. I suppose I should mention in this context that I've recently completed a play that will be performed next year that consciously (and portentously) does introduce a gun early in the play but, later, uses references to the gun as a joke. After the performances of my play, I'll have a better idea if the technique I'm trying works as satisfactorily as I hope it will.<br /><br />Now, at last, to dialogue: "Vergil's" advice is excellent, I think, so my observations are intended to support, not contradict, his. A truism about dialogue used in the theatre is that the character may be speaking the truth, may be withholding part of the truth, or may be lying. (Of course, this can become more complicated: if the character is withholding the truth, WHY is he doing so? What does it tell us about him? What does it say about the person he's addressing? How does it affect our understanding of the situation in which he finds himself? Has an outside force [or forces] been responsible in persuading him to shade the truth? Are the outside forces threatening or benevolent? Does the character even know that he possesses only a part of the truth? Etc., etc.) It is always true in the theatre that what a character DOES is more indicative than what the character SAYS. Similarly, in fiction, a character may say one thing, but -- if the author hasn't violated the reader's trust -- the author can later demonstrate that the character was not telling the truth, for his behavior has contradicted his statement. In fact, if a writer is skillful enough, the reader will know (or strongly suspect) that the character is lying or withholding the truth even before the narrative has made that clear. If the writer is supremely skillful, it may not even be necessary for him or her to demonstrate the character's dishonesty, for the way in which the story or novel has been arranged may make the point without the author having to point it out. Indeed, that's probably the best method.<br /><br />These are only a few random responses to THE IMPORTANCE OF SUSPENSE. Many others could be made, but I'll pick this response up another time.jaredhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00639956420983249105noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-259810607439728423.post-44262443070120405642009-07-15T12:05:00.004-05:002009-07-23T00:58:34.356-05:00Writing Media Releases; A Shameless Promotional Announcement -- 1<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjH0cbcnCAkZ-yHPSWF19y664B7hViO2BNdac62BCIcpwCIinJbLkG2_Rc6hbGqs3epypkTjGJQwxCdJm1Vq6XfFl_PnKGmkFMdyYcGWRZIA5bKJDpxayWQ7H4sdPPF1B9egU0EaTFL94qE/s1600-h/BLEEDER+FINAL+COVER.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5358738397415901762" style="margin: 0px 0px 10px 10px; float: right; width: 128px; height: 200px;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjH0cbcnCAkZ-yHPSWF19y664B7hViO2BNdac62BCIcpwCIinJbLkG2_Rc6hbGqs3epypkTjGJQwxCdJm1Vq6XfFl_PnKGmkFMdyYcGWRZIA5bKJDpxayWQ7H4sdPPF1B9egU0EaTFL94qE/s200/BLEEDER+FINAL+COVER.jpg" border="0" /></a>"Press Releases" or, more appropriately, "Media Releases," are a standard part of book promotion. Too often in the local paper I see an author's Press Release that looks amateurish, copied-and-pasted by the over-worked editor without any re-writing. Here are some tips for composing a professional Media Release for your published (or soon to be published) book.<br /><div></div><br /><div>Below you'll see the Media Release I'm sending out to announce the publication of my contemporary mystery, <strong><em>BLEEDER</em></strong>. Actually, it's one of a few, as I'm targeting others for different audiences: libraries, radio stations, and so on. This is the more 'general' version suitable for newspapers. With an official issue date of August 15 (as I just learned), now is the time to send out the news so every recipient has a little lead time to process and schedule it. Some papers will run it 'as is,' some will re-write to suit their style, and others will use it as a news lead, calling me for a personal interview (I hope). </div><br /><div></div>Now, a few notes about 'releases' -- First, it should look professional and follow the usual format of a media release, with contact information up front and a release date (if time sensitive). The body ought to look like a regular news story, in format and language, without puffery or self-congratulatory statements. You have to imagine someone else - a sympathetic reporter, perhaps- writing the thing on your behalf. So it will be kindly disposed, yet have an objective tone, referring to you, the author, in third person ("I am SO excited to announce that my new book is FINALLY being published and I'm sure you'll LOVE it!" won't do).<br /><div></div><br /><div>Paragraphs should be kept very short so the piece is easy-to-read in a narrow newspaper column, without huge blocks of text that readers skip. Write an engaging opening (the 'lead'), include a brief summary of the story (something you did when you pitched the book to agents and editors already), provide a brief bio and purchase info with links to your web site and blog. Let media people know where to find and download .jpg photos for their coverage (a mug shot of you, cover art for the book). Include a couple of brief 'quotes' by yourself, as though someone had interviewed you for the news story. A 'kicker quote' at the very end is a time-honored journalistic technique.</div><br /><div></div>Most newspapers prefer to receive "Press Releases" online and their sites might do away with all your paragraphing/formatting. That's ok. The important thing is to send it and provide a link to your web site where they can copy/paste to their liking.<br /><div></div><br /><div>At the end of the Media Release, write -30-, a symbol to indicate that the article has ended. It dates from telegraph days when reporters wired stories and ended their transmission with XXX - which is 30 in Roman numerals. </div><br /><div></div>OK, here is the Media Release (without some of the italics and a few other formatting things). Besides serving as a model for your own PR, I invite you to copy and paste and forward it hither and yon, to thine kith and kin, maybe to your own local newspapers and radio stations, bloggers, whoever - please!<br /><div></div><br /><div>Media Release</div><br /><div></div>For Immediate Release<br /><div></div><br /><div>Contact: </div><br /><div>John Desjarlais(you'd put your mailing addy and phone here)</div><br /><div>jjdesjarlais@johndesjarlais.com</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>Mystery novel BLEEDER explores higher mysteries</div><br /><div></div>Novelist John Desjarlais has “the usual suspects” in his contemporary small-town mystery <strong><em>Bleeder</em></strong>: a smart amateur sleuth, a cunning villain, baffled police and colorful locals. But in considering the mysterious death of a stigmatic priest – a priest bearing the wounds of the crucified Christ – Desjarlais explores ‘higher mysteries.’<br /><div></div><br /><div>“I don’t necessarily mean ‘religious’ mysteries,” Desjarlais explains. “Murder mysteries in general get close to our deepest motives and fears, showing humans <em>in extremis</em>. Such stories have a built-in opportunity to explore life's higher mysteries – not just the mystery of death, but the mystery of undeserved suffering.”</div><br /><div></div>In <strong><em>Bleeder</em></strong>, classics professor Reed Stubblefield, wounded in a school shooting, retreats to a cabin in rural Illinois to recover and to write a book on Aristotle in peace. But the town of River Falls is filled with the ill and infirm -- all seeking the healing touch of the town’s new parish priest, reputed to be a stigmatic.<br /><div></div><br /><div>Skeptical about religion since his wife’s death from leukemia, Reed is nevertheless drawn into a friendship with the cleric, Rev. Ray Boudreau, an amiable Aquinas scholar who collapses and bleeds to death on Good Friday in front of horrified parishioners. A miracle? Or bloody murder?</div><br /><div></div>Once Reed becomes the prime “person of interest” in the mysterious death, he seeks the truth with the help of Aristotle’s logic. But not everyone in town wants this mystery solved.<br /><div></div><br /><div>A former producer with Wisconsin Public Radio, Desjarlais teaches journalism and English at Kishwaukee College in Malta, Ill. His short fiction has appeared in a variety of magazines. A member of Mystery Writers of America, he is listed in Who’s Who in Entertainment and Who’s Who Among America’s Teachers. </div><br /><div></div>Desjarlais’ medieval thriller, <strong><em>Relics</em></strong>, set in Crusader Palestine, was re-issued by Thomas Nelson Publishers in May this year and is available at Amazon.com.<br /><div></div><br /><div><strong><em>Bleeder</em></strong> (Sophia Institute Press, trade paper, 272 pages, ISBN: 978-1-933184-56-2, $14.95) will be issued August 15, 2009 and will be available at Amazon.com and bookstores everywhere.</div><br /><div></div>Readers may visit <a href="http://www.johndesjarlais.com/">http://www.johndesjarlais.com/</a> for reviews, photos, links related to the novel, and interaction with the author. A 30-second YouTube trailer is at <a onmousedown="'UntrustedLink.bootstrap($(this)," href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ht1OnlLnwKo" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ht1OnlLnwKo</a>.<br /><div></div><br /><div>“I wrote <strong><em>Bleeder</em></strong> as an entertaining read, a requirement of the mystery genre,” Desjarlais says. “But I hope it also leaves a reader thinking – and in wonder.”</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>-30-</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>(well, we lost some formatting here, too. That's ok. I think you get the idea. Say, if you forward this to any person, store or media outlet, please let me know so I can follow up. Thanks!)</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-259810607439728423.post-3712852024322876002009-06-21T15:03:00.016-05:002009-09-06T02:12:10.918-05:00The Importance of Suspense -- Part 10Part 10<br /><br />Here is the tenth installment of the thread called “The Importance of Suspense", which is examining "The Categories of Suspense in Mystery-Writing: How to Launch and Maintain Them”. This segment concludes what I wish to say on the topic, and now it’s your turn. I see the thread as a community enterprise, though so far there’s been little participation from bloggers. Thanks to those of you who have posted encouraging comments. The rest of you, please join in. As writers and readers of mysteries, please share your thoughts and experiences regarding Suspense.<br /><br />E-mail contact: frabjous@comcast.net<br /><br />________________________________________<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Withholding information</span><br /><br />As I’ve defined it for literary contexts, Suspense is a state of mind created when readers (a) <span style="font-style: italic;">do not know</span> what’s coming next in the narrative or what the outcome of a conflict or sequence of events will be, but (b) <span style="font-style: italic;">want to know</span>, and (c) <span style="font-style: italic;">care about what happens. It follows, then, <span style="font-weight: bold;">that authors can increase or intensify readers’ Suspense by withholding the desired information.</span></span> There are several ways of doing this. (See also Part 7)<br /><br />When the requisite information is something (knowledge of motive, occurrence of event, results of analysis or interpretation, etc.) which <span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">structurally</span> pertains to the setup of the crime, the dynamics of character interaction, the unfolding of the mystery, or the developmental working out of a solution, etc., the following tactics for withholding might apply:<br /><br />a) <span style="font-style: italic;">The author can let the reader know that the desired information does exist but is currently not accessible.</span> Various characters may make reference to it (though it may be equally inaccessible to them): [Joanna was getting impatient. “Look, I saw him take the ring from his dead mother’s hand; but I don’t know where he hid it, and now he’s dead too.”]. Or, the author or <span style="font-style: italic;">first-person narrator</span> may hint—broadly or subtly—that the information will be forthcoming, but postpone revealing it till a later time: [“I can’t talk now. I’ll meet you for breakfast at Adolph’s at nine-thirty tomorrow and explain the whole thing. You’ll be amazed.”] If a <span style="font-style: italic;">third-person omniscient narrator</span> does the hinting directly (without using a character as intermediary), the intimation comes close to being <span style="font-weight: bold;">“there-you-have-it” foreshadowing</span> (see Part 6): [Harriet promised Herbert that she’d bring the letter to the office so he could see for himself. He breathed a sigh of relief. “Should I tell John?” he asked. Oh hell, Harriet thought; Herbert always jumps the gun. “Not yet,” she said. “We’ve got to get our signals straight before letting him in on it. There’s too much at stake.”]. Or, in Eric Ambler’s <span style="font-style: italic;">A Coffin for Dimitrios:</span> [Marukakis speaking to Latimer: “’If you find out any more about him in Belgrade I should like you to write to me. Would you do that?’ ‘Of course.’ But Latimer was not to reach Belgrade.”2].<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">To the extent that readers are sure (1) that the information withheld is crucial to understanding the mystery’s key components or (2) promises grave potential consequences for characters or the outcomes of important events, their Suspense can only be heightened by the delay.</span><br /><br />b) <span style="font-style: italic;">Authors may interpose actions or particular events which delay the reader’s obtaining the desired information.</span> <span style="font-weight: bold;">In addition to increasing readers’ Suspense through the delays caused by these interventions, <span style="font-style: italic;">authors can capitalize on the inherent capacities of the interposed actions and events themselves to generate their own types of Suspense.</span> </span><br /><br />c) <span style="font-style: italic;">For various reasons, characters within the story who claim to possess the desired information may fail to share it with other characters [and the reader] (through inadvertence, or being distracted or interrupted):</span> [“I was waiting for your call. I can only talk a minute, but I need to tell you what happened at the funeral; it’s very important. Oh, just a minute, Grace. I’ll be right back; someone’s at the door.”]). <span style="font-style: italic;">Or, they may be unable to share it (through absence, death, or being comatose), or may choose not to.</span> <span style="font-weight: bold;">Whatever the reason(s), the reader’s frustration at having the information withheld when closely within reach greatly augments the Suspense they feel. For authors, this type of withholding may also help to structure the narrative and calibrate the story’s pacing. </span>However, they must keep in mind that <span style="font-style: italic;">it’s not good to frustrate the reader too much</span>; at a certain point most people get irritated with being held off at arm’s length. <span style="font-style: italic;">Performing this fine-tuning (just enough but not too much) is one of the author’s most difficult tasks.</span><br /><br />d) <span style="font-style: italic;">In a first-person narrative, the protagonist or sidekick/observer who knows the required information may choose not to tell the reader</span> (Philip Marlowe, Dr. Watson). (Both are telling the story after the events have occurred and, as they “write it out”, for <span style="font-style: italic;">them</span> the mystery “has been solved.” But, hoping to entertain and (perhaps) challenge their readers, they avoid “connecting the dots” that show how the events and clues fit together, and do not reveal the final solution until the story’s end.)<br /><br />e) <span style="font-weight: bold;">In a third-person narrative (limited or omniscient) it’s usually the author directly, and <span style="font-style: italic;">not</span> the protagonist or sidekick, who keeps desired information from readers, or, alternatively, allows them just enough to be tantalized (which further increases their Suspense.).</span> In third-person limited and omniscient-narrator stories, the <span style="font-style: italic;">protagonists</span> themselves may not have the requisite information either.<br /><br />f) <span style="font-style: italic;">Readers may be deceived by some character who, having the requisite information, misrepresents it by telling lies.</span> In a first-person protagonist narrative, it will be the narrator/protagonist who is lied to. If that narrator says: “Judy told me he was her father, and I believed it. But I found out later she was lying,” there is no suspense generated in the reader, because there is no information withheld. If, on the other hand, the first-person protagonist (Philip Marlowe) or the first-person sidekick/observer (Dr. Watson) suppresses his “retrospective knowledge” that the information was untrue when he first received it and withholds that information from readers until such later time in the story that he himself came to realize the lie [see (d), above], <span style="font-style: italic;">that revelation will be news to the readers (even as it was to the narrator/observer) and will perhaps come as a startling surprise.</span> In rare cases, an unreliable first-person narrator may be the one telling the lies.<br /><br />In writing a third-person limited or third-person omniscient narrative, the author can simply have a character tell a lie (which, for the reader, may pass for the truth), and wait till later for the unmasking [see (e), above]. <span style="font-style: italic;">If authors use this device as a means of withholding, at some point they must enable readers to become aware of the deception in order to rectify their false impression. Finding that a crucial piece of information thought to be true is actually a lie forces readers to reassess their previous assumptions, speculations, and understandings. <span style="font-weight: bold;">Having to arrive at a new mental configuration produces its own type of Suspense. </span></span><br /><br />g) <span style="font-style: italic;">If they’ve missed the cues and clues that the author has planted, or have been misled by the author’s false trails and misdirections, readers may not be aware that the information they desire <span style="font-weight: bold;">is</span> accessible.</span> Allowing for this possibility, authors—to play fair—should probably provide additional clues or alternative avenues of revelation which would help a careful reader obtain the required information. (This is the redundancy principle put to good use.)<br /><br />____________________________________<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Flashbacks</span><br /><br />A flashback is a narrative device that takes the reader backward in time to observe “firsthand” the dramatization of events that took place prior to the story’s present unfolding. Structurally a flashback is an inset piece within the frame narrative of the story proper. <span style="font-weight: bold;">Readers’ knowledge that they’re witnessing past events which have a bearing on the “present” may dilute whatever Suspense the action of the flashback might have engendered in its own right.</span> While readers’ curiosity may prompt a desire to know precisely <span style="font-style: italic;">what</span> effects the depicted actions had on subsequent events (a kind of Suspense), observing those actions (known to be in the past) may not have the same urgency as experiencing the progressive unfolding of the main narrative. <span style="font-weight: bold;">Flashbacks may not have the same potency for generating Suspense as actions whose outcomes are not yet determined, and authors should be aware of this. </span><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;"> </span><br /><span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">A particular flashback may be one of a series of flashbacks depicting a sequence of steps that collectively develop a composite picture. Watching this incremental shaping of an emerging complexity can generate Suspense.</span> As an example, I will use the analogy of a classic motion picture, familiar to many, that illustrates the principle clearly (in this case, a picture <span style="font-style: italic;">is</span> worth ten thousand words)—Orson Welles’s <span style="font-style: italic;">Citizen Kane</span>:<br /><br />Within the frame narrative of a reporter’s quest to understand the complexities of the deceased Charles Foster Kane, a portrait of the tycoon emerges from the dramatized recollections of people who knew him. It’s only a partial portrait, of course, because each of the sources has only personal, limited knowledge of Kane to recall. The movie opens with a flashback: Kane’s death, and his final word, the mysterious “Rosebud”. Determined to learn the meaning of ‘Rosebud’, the reporter reads a diary and interviews a number of people. He learns much (and the audience learns it with him, through watching dramatized flashbacks), but he doesn’t learn the significance to Kane of his dying word. He admits defeat, and, as central observer, leaves the stage. The camera’s eye, assuming the role of omniscient narrator, then zooms to a bonfire consuming the detritus of Kane’s life; and there, for one moment, the audience sees the child’s sled which had been important to Kane in his loveless and blighted childhood, its painted brand name blistering in the flames: ROSEBUD. And, for the audience, much becomes clear.<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Flashbacks may help to explain “how we got here”, but they tend to reveal information rather than withhold it. </span><span style="font-weight: bold;">Watching a dramatized flashback may generate topical or immediate suspense in readers as the action plays out; and the information that a flashback provides may indeed answer questions raised by present action in the main narrative. But this topical, localized Suspense generated by particular flashbacks is separate from that which arises from experiencing the accumulation of information provided by a <span style="font-style: italic;">series</span> of flashbacks.</span> The essence of flashback is dramatizing what happened, not telling about it. Telling without showing is simply recounting, or abstract summary. <span style="font-weight: bold;">Abstract summary doesn’t generate Suspense.</span><br /><br />__________________________________________<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Playing fair with readers’ needs and expectations</span><br /><br />Authors must respect their readers. They can’t afford to alienate them, talk down to them, irritate, or bore them. Readers have discretion, after all, to choose which books they wish to commit part of their life-time to reading. It’s therefore to authors’ advantage and material benefit to regard their readers as friends and allies, engaging with them in a shared (and hopefully enjoyable) experience.<br /><br />Mystery-writers (particularly of the whodunit variety, who set puzzles for readers to solve) engage with their readers in a mutually-understood game. Their job is to keep readers from discovering the truth before the story’s end. Readers who choose to play will accept the challenge and try to solve the mystery before the protagonist does. This friendly competition between author and reader, like all games, is governed by rules of play. <span style="font-style: italic;">Since authors—knowing all along “who done it”—have the advantage over readers, they must play fair by providing readers all of the essential clues which the protagonist uses to solve the crime.</span> These clues may be disguised, hidden in a welter of detail, or upstaged by misleading “red herrings” drawn across the trail—but all of that is within the rules of the game; and readers, expecting to be misled, know that they’ve got to be on their toes. <span style="font-style: italic;">But the clues have to be there.</span> Otherwise, the author is <span style="font-style: italic;">not</span> playing fair.<br /><br />The author must be mindful of readers’ needs and expectations: <span style="font-style: italic;">one of their expectations is that the author will play fair.</span> No last-minute revelations for which there’s been no preparation. No rabbits out of hats, no forgotten wills popping out of secret drawers, no parking tickets or hotel receipts that no one knew existed, no gods descending with ropes and creaking pulleys from the flyloft to set things right. If readers decide that an author hasn’t played fair with them, but has hedged, or fudged, or cheated, they very well may choose not to read more of that author’s books.<br /><br />_______________________________________<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Narrative jokes analogous to mystery stories in the creation of Suspense</span><br /><br />For writers of mysteries concerned with maximizing readers’ Suspense, a useful analogy might be found in the suspensefulness typical of narrative jokes. These jokes are fictional constructs cast in a story-telling format. [Other sorts of jokes—puns, knock-knock jokes, question-and-answer jokes (Why does a chicken cross the road?, How many psychiatrists does it take to change a light bulb?, What did the plumber say to the priest from under the sink?, etc.), dirty limericks, and satiric epigrams—achieve their humorous effects through different means and won’t be discussed here.]<br /><br />Humor in narrative jokes arises from reversals of expectation, juxtaposition of unusual or contradictory elements, ludicrous situations, misunderstandings, hyperbole and exaggeration, the deflation of pomposity, and the intellectual appreciation of verbal wit. The <span style="font-style: italic;">essence</span> of the humor in narrative jokes is <span style="font-weight: bold;">surprise</span>: <span style="font-style: italic;">the audience must not be able to predict the outcome of the narrative (the punchline, or conclusion).</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">If the outcome is predictable, or if listeners realize they’ve heard the joke before, there is no surprise or expectation of surprise, and hence no narrative Suspense.</span> Knowing this leads tellers of jokes to say “Stop me if you’ve heard this one.” Or, “Did you hear the one about …?”. If a listener knows what’s coming, telling the joke isn’t worth the effort. Which raises the question, <span style="font-style: italic;">Why</span> do people tell jokes?<br /><br />Beyond establishing a kind of social bonding and setting an affable tone for subsequent personal interactions, telling jokes provides a highly stylized medium for sharing pleasurable experience and producing laughter. The teller hopes to give pleasure and make the listener laugh. Accomplishing this is pleasurable to the teller. The listener chooses to listen to the joke in the hope that it will be funny. This process produces anticipatory Suspense for each: the tellers hope that the joke won’t fall flat and dread that it might; the listeners hope that the joke will be worthwhile (surprising and funny), and dread that it won’t be, or that it will prove to be in bad taste or embarrassingly bad, in which case they will have to feign enjoyment or register offense if truly offended. <span style="font-weight: bold;">These anticipations and anxieties create much Suspense: and neither party knows how things will go until the joke is told. </span><br /><br />The suspense generated by waiting for the punchline can be enhanced by the teller’s mode of telling. Most narrative jokes are told from the third person omniscient point of view; the teller is not personally involved but tells the story from “outside”: [“Three nuns were crossing the street…”, or “Old George liked his beer; could polish off two bottles and a half while everybody else was opening their first; then he’d laugh at them for being so slow. Well, Harley Sipes, he got tired of this and decided to play a trick on George…”]. Humorous narratives told in first-person tend to be personal anecdotes.<br /><br />Some people are better at telling jokes than others. One component of telling a joke well is the teller’s skill at being able to increase and maintain the listener’s Suspense in moving toward the punchline. As with any story-telling, a great deal hinges on pacing and timing. If there is dialogue within the joke, the “speeches” must be rendered well; and if there are ethnic dialects among the “characters”, the teller can enhance the experience by mimicking their traits. Some jokes, like some children’s stories, are episodic, with repetitive features that incrementally build to a climax (“Goldilocks and the Three Bears”, “The Little Red Hen” [“Who will help me bake the bread?” “Not I,” said Ducky Lucky, Goosey Poosey, Turkey Lurkey, and Foxy Loxy…], “The Three Billy Goats Gruff“ (who have to deal with the Troll under the Bridge—and do). In the skillful telling of jokes all of these structural considerations contribute to the listener’s Suspense.<br /><br />And sometimes there is a significant intellectual component as well. I will conclude with a joke of layered complexity: a geriatric joke with physical disability at the core, but benign and humorous for all that, and speaking to the human condition we all share. The teller should differentiate the voices of the three speakers. It's a joke of just the right length, totally unpredictable on first hearing—and even when familiar still capable of evoking a smile:<br /><br />Three elderly Englishmen are on a train. One looks out the window and says, “Good Lord, it’s Wembley!”<br />The second says, “No, it's not. It’s Thursday.”<br />The third says, “So am I. Let’s get a drink.”<br /><br />_____________________________________<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Conclusion</span><br /><br />In a literary context, <span style="font-weight: bold;">Suspense is a state of mind created when readers (a) <span style="font-style: italic;">do not know</span> what's coming next in the narrative or what the outcome of a conflict or sequence of events will be, but (b) <span style="font-style: italic;">want to know</span>, and (c) <span style="font-style: italic;">care about what happens.</span></span> In the course of a well-written narrative, readers will experience many types of Suspense generated by various structural and tactical devices that authors have ready to hand. <span style="font-style: italic;">All</span> elements of a story can (and should) contribute to the creation of Suspense: plotting, pacing, characterization (and characters' interactions); challenges and difficulties to overcome, dangers to face, problems to solve; crises and the withholding of information; dialogue that characterizes, looks forward and backward, and both reveals and conceals; choice of words and sentence structure (so that readers do not know with certainty, even in a particular phrase, what word is coming next). To maximize Suspense, authors must <span style="font-style: italic;">eliminate predictability (that Great Enemy) </span>whenever possible, and <span style="font-style: italic;">establish clearly the expectation of surprise.</span><br /><br />Suspense is a chief component of narratives that people want to read. It is the <span style="font-style: italic;">sine qua non</span> of mystery-writing, and a major requirement for <span style="font-style: italic;">most</span> types of writing. Without it, pages will not turn.<br /><br />________________________<br /><br />2Eric Ambler, <span style="font-style: italic;">A Coffin for Dimitrios</span>. In <span style="font-style: italic;">Intrigue: Four Great Spy Novels of Eric Ambler</span> (Alfred A. Knopf, reprint, 1960), p. 202<br /><br /><span style="font-size:85%;"><br />Copyright © Robert D. Sutherland, 2009 </span>Vergilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13045687055267007493noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-259810607439728423.post-21693167550294398772009-06-12T17:14:00.013-05:002011-02-12T00:49:50.525-06:00The Importance of Suspense -- Part 9Part 9
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<br />Here is the ninth installment of the thread called “The Importance of Suspense", which is examining "The Categories of Suspense in Mystery-Writing: How to Launch and Maintain Them”. I see the thread as a community enterprise, though so far there’s been little participation from bloggers. Thanks to those of you who have posted encouraging comments. The rest of you, please join in. As writers and readers of mysteries, please share your thoughts and experiences. E-mail contact: frabjous@comcast.net
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<br />I plan a brief concluding statement for Part 10.
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<br />(Vergil)
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<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Exploiting readers’ subliminal and archetypal fears</span>
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<br />I’ll mention one other tactical device for generating Suspense: <span style="font-weight: bold;">authors’ exploiting in their fiction readers’ subliminal and archetypal fears.</span> There are some fears that seem to be endemic to the human species. They’re widely distributed around the globe, among diverse peoples and cultures and civilizations (including those that have never been in contact). Very ancient, many of these fears are represented through event, symbol, and metaphor in mankind’s oldest literary texts and incorporated into the sacred writings, symbology, myths, and doctrines of the world’s great religions. When these fears are stoked and fostered, they produce powerful emotional responses, including anxiety and terror. <span style="font-weight: bold;">If authors are adept at evoking such fears through their writings, they have at hand a ready tool for creating Suspense. Readers who experience these fear-based emotions will want them assuaged; but not knowing if or when or how the author will accomplish this, they must keep reading to find out.</span>
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<br />Without becoming too Jungian, I’d suggest that these fears constitute a kind of “racial memory”, expressed—perhaps overtly, perhaps obliquely through metaphor—in ancient myths, legends, and the grimmer sort of folk and fairy tales. In human affairs, they’ve manifested themselves for thousands of years as superstitions, warnings to the unwary, and diverse rituals designed to cure, exorcise, or forestall evils that the fears attest.
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<br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Many of these archetypal fears exist subliminally, in the pre-conscious, until something occurs to bring them to the surface.</span> In mystery fiction, they and the Suspense they engender may be central to the story, or perhaps peripheral to other elements. But if authors want to evoke these ancient, universal fears to generate Suspense, they must use narrative means to force them out of the shadows into the characters’ <span style="font-style: italic;">and</span> <span style="font-style: italic;">readers’ <span style="font-weight: bold;">conscious awareness.</span></span> [“Yes, dear Character (and Gentle Reader), there really is a Bogeyman, and he’s waiting for you just there, in the dark at the top of the stairs.” Or, “You, Character, have sinned, and we’re going to punish you by cutting off your nose and gouging out your eyes and sending you into the world with a tin cup to beg your bread.”] These fears are the stuff of nightmare. I’ll list a few. You can probably come up with more.
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<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">a) Fear of the supernatural</span>: (ghosts, demonic possession, zombies, mummies (the undead generally), ghouls, trolls, vampires, werewolves, -tigers, -jaguars, witches, formal curses, etc.
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<br />[Why is the Vampire so evocative and pervasive as an iconic figure of terror? Western culture, at least, will not let it go.] Don’t take it as a joke when I say, Vampires have existed for a very long time—in various guises, with mixed qualities of horror and eroticism. Yes, Bram Stoker’s <span style="font-style: italic;">Dracula</span> (1897) is wordy and a little stuffy (told through long journal entries!), but it does have an exciting and scary climax. And yes, though Tod Browning's and Bela Lugosi’s memorable film version (1931) may look a little campy now, it too was an iconic event that spawned a host of vampire movies that have continued to the present day (a large part of the actor Christopher Lee’s career was devoted to playing the Count). So familiar has the figure of the vampire become, it lends itself to parody and self-parody; it may be that the fascination which the figure still exerts (<span style="font-style: italic;">Why</span> the fascination?) which brought forth all the stories, films, TV shows, and comic books, allowed people to be comfortable with and even feel affection for a creature which, on its own terms and undomesticated, would be too frightening to contemplate. Has this relaxed acceptance of the Vampire diluted and neutralized its capacity to inspire terror, and enabled people to de-fang the object of their fear? Perhaps so. (<span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">But, still …</span>)
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<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">b) Fear of the permanent loss of something precious</span> (a child, something entrusted to one’s safekeeping, a rare and potent talisman, one’s eyesight, one’s “immortal” soul)
<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">c) Fear of abandonment, abduction, being physically lost</span> (in the woods, in the desert, in the mountains, at sea)
<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">d) Fear of the dark and what might be lurking in it unseen</span> (total eclipses of the sun, blackouts, the thing under the bed)
<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">e) Fear of the Evil Eye and of being cursed</span> (by opening the mummy’s tomb, by the ire of the voodoo priestess, by the Australian aborigine pointing the bone, etc.)
<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">f) Claustrophobia</span> (small closets, long sewer pipes, caves, mines (the underground generally), being trapped or confined (cornered). (In the 19th century, premature burial was a pervasive fear.)
<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">g) Agoraphobia</span> (fear of open spaces and going out among people)
<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">h) Fear of snakes, spiders, and wild beasts</span> (snakes have had a bad rap since long before the Book of Genesis in the Old Testament; and the ancient Greeks had Medusa, whose face with snaky hair turned folks to stone.)
<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">i) Fear of fire and being burned</span>
<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">j) Fear of disfigurement
<br />k) Fear of being exiled and cast out </span><span>(from the tribe, the Elect, the family, the homeland, the village, the Faith; into the wilderness, outer darkness, perpetual wandering, the lake of eternal pain)</span><span style="font-weight: bold;">
<br /></span><span style="font-weight: bold;">l) Fear of heights, of falling</span>
<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">m) Fear of losing one’s identity or memory</span>
<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">n) Fear of losing one’s sanity</span>
<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">o) The doppelganger, or double, or “fetch”</span> (<span style="font-style: italic;">Gilgamesh</span> (c. 1300 B.C.); Poe, “William Wilson”; Stevenson, “Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde”; Wilde, <span style="font-style: italic;">The Picture of Dorian Gray</span>; Conrad, “The Secret Sharer”; Charlotte Perkins Gilman, "The Yellow Wallpaper"; Henry James, “The Jolly Corner”)
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<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Evoking any of these fears could be an effective way for an author to create Suspense.</span>
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<br />NARRATIVE STRATEGIES
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<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Point of view</span>
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<br />A story is told from one or more vantage points of observation; this principle has traditionally been called adoption of a “point of view”. An author’s selection of the point of view from which a story is told is <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">a strategic decision</span>. That choice will determine the structure of the narrative, open certain avenues for characters’ observations and interactions and foreclose others, dictate either a narrow or a panoramic scope in relating action and revealing information, provide or deny characters certain types of knowledge, and—for the author—allow or disallow certain devices for generating Suspense. <span style="font-weight: bold;">Choosing the narrative point of view is one of the most important decisions an author makes.</span>
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<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">The points of view conventionally available to authors are 1) first-person; 2) second-person; 3) third person limited; 4) third-person omniscient. Let’s take each of these options in turn and see what it provides for creating Suspense, and what it precludes.</span>
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<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">FIRST PERSON</span>
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<br />Sometimes <span style="font-style: italic;">one (or more) of the characters tells the story</span>—in which case the Narrator of the moment is designated “I” (though of course s/he may have a given name as well, such as V. I. Warshawski or Philip Marlowe). This mode of telling is called ‘first-person point of view’.
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<br />ADVANTAGES — Immediacy: it draws the reader in. The “I” who narrates the story may be the protagonist, an associate or friend of the protagonist, another character, or someone “outside” the story proper—someone in a frame narrative, perhaps, who is telling a story within the story, or perhaps a fictional scholar who’s editing a manuscript text of the story, etc. <span style="font-weight: bold;">Using the first-person point of view enables authors to create a complex and detailed persona as storyteller who has a full-blown personality with values, tics, biases, perhaps blind spots and personal problems (raising the possibility of authors’ ironic exploitation if the “I” is untrustworthy, dense, insane, or a liar). With a first-person narrative, readers get to know the personality, thoughts, opinions, and habits of the protagonist “from the inside.”</span>
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<br />As a bonus in adopting the first-person point of view, authors can use the persona of the protagonist as a proxy to register their <span style="font-style: italic;">own</span> opinions, judgments, political commentary, or social criticisms. Since readers tend to identify with the “I” narrator, they may find themselves “sharing”, or giving credence to, the protagonist’s views. When using the third person-limited point of view, or the third-person-omniscient, authors can put their opinions and commentary into the mouths of particular characters as well; but in “first-person” narrative there is an intimate immediacy in doing so.
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<br />LIMITATIONS — The author, committed to the point of view of “I,” who is narrating the story, is not free to range through time and space at will, or get into other people’s heads. <span style="font-style: italic;">Only what “I” sees, hears, is present at, or learns can be known to “I”. And, since “I” is the one telling the reader about it, <span style="font-weight: bold;">that’s all the reader knows.</span></span>
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<br />Now, what implications does all this have for generating Suspense?
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<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Protagonist as first-person narrator</span>
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<br />If the protagonist is the first-person narrator, s/he is telling the audience about events <span style="font-style: italic;">after they have happened and the mystery is solved</span>. Thus, since readers <span style="font-style: italic;">know</span>, as a base-line, that the first-person narrator survives to tell the tale (i.e., that all dangers will have been circumvented), <span style="font-style: italic;">they don’t have to endure the Suspense of dreading the protagonist’s demise.</span> <span style="font-weight: bold;">[They still experience the suspenseful anticipation of learning how s/he survived the dangers, and they experience the immediate Suspense of watching the escapes. And of course there is the Suspense of watching the unfolding of events, the coming of crises, and the perils faced by other characters.]</span>
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<br />This point of view enables the author easily to withhold information from the reader. 1) Since everything is seen from “I’s” perspective, what “I” doesn’t know, the reader doesn’t know. 2) As first-person storyteller, the protagonist reveals only what s/he wants to be revealed <span style="font-style: italic;">while the story progresses</span> (i.e., the narrator can choose to keep readers in the dark as to events and thought processes, or, conversely, can share with readers as the story unfolds). <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Bottom line: the protagonist, “looking back” to tell the story, knows EVERYTHING that happened up to the time of the telling; and, as narrator (and “purported author” of the story), can withhold whatever information from readers that s/he wishes.</span>
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<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">The first-person point of view is a powerful way of telling a story and engendering Suspense. It’s been very popular with mystery writers, particularly those whose protagonists are private investigators or amateur sleuths.</span>
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<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Unreliable first-person narrator</span>
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<br />A rarely encountered subclass of the first-person narrative is <span style="font-weight: bold;">the story told from the point of view of an unreliable narrator.</span> There are various reasons why the narrator might be unreliable: s/he might be hiding a personal secret, might be a compulsive liar, might be self-deluded, might be the guilty party, might be mentally deranged. If readers recognize that there’s something “fishy” about the narrator, then a skeptical guessing game will begin in earnest as to what is, and what is not, to be believed; if they don’t recognize the fishiness, they’ll be in for frustrating ambiguity or a major surprise.
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<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Frame narrative</span>
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<br />Stories may be told as stories-within-stories, typically as a frame narrative containing one or more inset narratives. In the first-person frame narrative, the author creates a persona who tells a fictional audience a story in which s/he is a participating character, or an eye-witness to the events recounted. This is a standard narrative device used since ancient times in many cultures.
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<br />In English literature, Chaucer used it in writing <span style="font-style: italic;">The Canterbury Tales</span> where, as author, he created a character representing himself on the pilgrimage to Canterbury. Chaucer (poet) created Chaucer (pilgrim) to introduce the other pilgrims who told stories in their own right. Chaucer (pilgrim) referred to himself as ‘I’. But Chaucer (poet) is not Chaucer (pilgrim). In <span style="font-style: italic;">Heart of Darkness</span>, Joseph Conrad created a character named Marlow who tells a group of listeners the story of his trip to the heart of the Belgian Congo in search of the mysterious Kurtz. The character named Marlow who narrates the inset story as a participant is to be distinguished from the character Marlow in the frame narrative who recounts the story-within-a-story. Both, in their respective narratives, refer to themselves as ‘I’. And of course neither of them is Conrad.
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<br />(Theoretically, there’s no limit to the number of frames and stories that can occur in a single work: the work can assume a structure like that of a Russian doll containing ever smaller versions, one nesting within the other. In practical terms, however, such a structure could become burdensome to both author and reader, the device ultimately calling attention to itself to the detriment of the piece as a whole.). <span style="font-style: italic;">To reach closure (and logical coherence) in writing a narrative with multiple frames and inset stories, the author must come out again sequentially in reverse order through the various frames to the starting place. </span>
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<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">First-person narrator a companion/observer of the detective protagonist</span>
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<br />A good example of the companion/observer is Dr. Watson, the first-person narrator in most of the Sherlock Holmes stories. As a reliable narrator, and a character distinguished by his honesty, intelligence, courage, loyalty, and occasional humor he merits the reader’s trust. But, by not being as good at deductive reasoning as Holmes is, he must always be enlightened at the conclusion of the mystery. His need to know (which matches the readers’) provides a foil to highlight the detective’s brilliance. (“Dear me, Holmes, I confess I’m baffled. However did you figure that out?” And Holmes always obliges by telling him. <span style="font-weight: bold;">That Holmes doesn’t let Watson know his thinking while solving the problem is Doyle’s way of maintaining his readers in a state of anticipation and Suspense.</span>)
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<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">First-person narration through diary entries and exchange of letters</span>
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<br />Stories have been told through sequences of diary or journal entries, through a series of personal letters sent and received, and through extended monologues. All of these would, as a baseline, employ first-person point of view<meta name="Title" content=""> <meta name="Keywords" content=""> <meta equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"> <meta name="ProgId" content="Word.Document"> <meta name="Generator" content="Microsoft Word 2008"> <meta name="Originator" content="Microsoft Word 2008"> <link rel="File-List" href="file://localhost/Users/robertdsutherland/Library/Caches/TemporaryItems/msoclip/0/clip_filelist.xml"> <!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <o:officedocumentsettings> <o:allowpng/> </o:OfficeDocumentSettings> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:worddocument> <w:zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:trackmoves>false</w:TrackMoves> <w:trackformatting/> <w:punctuationkerning/> <w:drawinggridhorizontalspacing>18 pt</w:DrawingGridHorizontalSpacing> <w:drawinggridverticalspacing>18 pt</w:DrawingGridVerticalSpacing> <w:displayhorizontaldrawinggridevery>0</w:DisplayHorizontalDrawingGridEvery> <w:displayverticaldrawinggridevery>0</w:DisplayVerticalDrawingGridEvery> <w:validateagainstschemas/> <w:saveifxmlinvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:ignoremixedcontent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:alwaysshowplaceholdertext>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:compatibility> <w:breakwrappedtables/> <w:dontgrowautofit/> <w:dontautofitconstrainedtables/> <w:dontvertalignintxbx/> </w:Compatibility> </w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:latentstyles deflockedstate="false" latentstylecount="276"> </w:LatentStyles> </xml><![endif]--> <style> <!-- /* Font Definitions */ @font-face {font-family:Cambria; panose-1:2 4 5 3 5 4 6 3 2 4; mso-font-charset:0; mso-generic-font-family:auto; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:3 0 0 0 1 0;} /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-parent:""; margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ascii-font-family:Cambria; mso-fareast-font-family:Cambria; mso-hansi-font-family:Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman";} @page Section1 {size:8.5in 11.0in; margin:1.0in 1.25in 1.0in 1.25in; mso-header-margin:.5in; mso-footer-margin:.5in; mso-paper-source:0;} div.Section1 {page:Section1;} --> </style> <!--[if gte mso 10]> <style> /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ascii-font-family:Cambria; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast; mso-hansi-font-family:Cambria; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;} </style> <![endif]--> <!--StartFragment--><span style=";font-family:Cambria;font-size:12pt;color:black;" >—</span><!--EndFragment--> although any of these forms might contain anecdotal material (as reports or gossip) in the third-person point of view ("I remember Charlie's first date with Marilyn. They went to Barney's for fish-and-chips, and then they caught the ferry . . ."). Such anecdotes, constituting stories-within-a-story, cause the diaries, letters, or monologues that contain them to serve virtually as frames for the embedded narratives <span style="font-style: italic;">while they are being recounted.</span> But on the macro level, the diaries, letters, or monologues have their own <span style="font-style: italic;">first-person</span> stories to tell.
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<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">SECOND PERSON</span>
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<br />Rarely, a rather disembodied, nameless narrator addresses the reader as “you”; this is called <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">‘second-person narrative’</span>. In prose fiction it’s rarely encountered; it tends to work best in short passages, for it’s difficult to sustain. <span style="font-weight: bold;">It’s a form not conducive to generating Suspense.</span>
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<br />ADVANTAGES — immediacy: it draws readers in by addressing them directly as “you” and making them undergo the actions and events; the reader becomes a character in the story (and the protagonist).
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<br />LIMITATIONS — the author is not free to range through time and space without taking “you” (the reader) along as baggage. Since “you” must always be talked at, the name <span style="font-style: italic;">you</span> is constantly repeated (<span style="font-style: italic;">unless the directive imperative mood is adopted, in which case the ‘you’ is omitted</span>). This point of view quickly becomes tedious unless very skillfully handled. For long works, it should be avoided.
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<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">THIRD PERSON </span>
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<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Third-person (Limited)</span>
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<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">“Third-person / Limited” is a type of “third-person point of view” in which a single character (called by name, or ‘he’ or ‘she’ by the nameless Narrator) is followed through the story as a central observer, and everything is seen through his or her eyes; the reader is thus limited to seeing and knowing only what this central observer sees and knows. </span>
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<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">A variation of this mode allows the author to choose at will </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">different</span><span style="font-weight: bold;"> characters to serve as the central observer now and again as the story progresses; in this type of narration, with its shifting central observer, the point of view, with its attendant limitations, is restricted to only </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">one character at a time</span><span style="font-weight: bold;">. Each character may see and know different things from the others; the </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">reader</span><span style="font-weight: bold;"> will see and know what each of them sees and knows. It follows that the reader may develop a complex composite understanding of events, etc. that surpasses the knowledge of the main central observer, or protagonist. This state of affairs gives the author opportunities for building Suspense of various kinds, and for injecting irony and humor into the story. </span>
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<br />ADVANTAGES — the author can get into the central observer’s head, can describe or otherwise delineate the character’s feelings and opinions. <span style="font-weight: bold;">In order to generate Suspense, information can easily be withheld from the central observer and thus from the reader as well (as in first-person narrative).</span> Though the reader can still be made to identify with the protagonist, there <span style="font-style: italic;">is</span> a slight distancing (the reader is more a spectator here than in the first-person mode of narration, where identification with the “I” character makes the reader a “character”, or “participant”, in the story). If authors so desire, <span style="font-weight: bold;">the possibility of seeing things from the point of view of various central observers could allow the author to sequentially dramatize the same single event from multiple points of view.</span>
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<br />LIMITATIONS — the author is committed to the point of view of whichever character is the central observer at any given moment; thus no information can be provided the reader beyond what that character knows through direct experience or hearsay. When <span style="font-style: italic;">a single character</span> is taken as the central observer (the protagonist, or a sidekick such as Dr. Watson) and rigorously followed throughout the story, the nameless Narrator does not have the possibility of ranging through time and space to depict various theaters of action or reveal other characters’ thoughts. However, when <span style="font-style: italic;">multiple characters</span> take their turns at being the central observer, the nameless Narrator has more freedom to range over time and place, and the enjoys some of the flexibility possessed by the Omniscient Narrator (see below). A typical technique is to use <span style="font-weight: bold;">Omniscient</span> for general overviews or summaries and for bridges between scenes, and then to use <span style="font-weight: bold;">Third-person / Limited</span> (choosing a particular character as central observer) for <span style="font-style: italic;">specific scenes</span>. It might be the <span style="font-style: italic;">same</span> character for each scene throughout, or <span style="font-style: italic;">different</span> characters for different scenes. This combination technique provides the author more flexibility, a chance to avoid the limitations of the pure form of <span style="font-weight: bold;">Third person / Limited [one central observer]</span>, and, when different characters take turns at being the central observer, expanded opportunities for developing characterization.
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<br />Some stories are more effectively told with first-person point of view, some with third-person / limited, some with third-person / omniscient, and conceivably even some with second-person.
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<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Third-person / Omniscient Narrator</span>
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<br />Sometimes the story is told by <span style="font-style: italic;">a nameless Narrator who sees all, knows all; who can range over time and space, and get into any character’s head: this is <span style="font-weight: bold;">“omniscient narration”. It usually employs ‘third-person point of view’, in which characters are referred to by name, or by ‘he’, ‘she’, and ‘they’.</span> In a sense, an Omniscient Narrator is outside the story, looking “in”, seeing it all—not a character in any conventional sense of the term. </span>
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<br />ADVANTAGES — <span style="font-weight: bold;">authors</span> have great flexibility; they see all, know all from the disembodied Omniscient Narrator’s point of view, can depict simultaneous actions in different locations, for time and space present no boundaries. The author chooses how “external” or how “internal” the narrative is to be at any particular time. The author can get into any character’s head to reveal their thoughts and feelings (while still selecting and choosing what the reader is to know, and what information is to be withheld). Readers get to share in this all-encompassing view, and, through various identifications, find it easy to become vicarious participants in the story.
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<br />LIMITATIONS — There are some dangers the author should guard against. If not well handled, the omniscient point of view can lack immediacy, can fail to engage readers and draw them in, holding them off at arm’s length, so to speak. There might also be a tendency to ramble, or get wordy, or drift into long discursive passages, to forfeit ECONOMY and TACT. Such a wealth of available information to choose from can cause the author to lose sight of priorities and bury the important in the trivial. There is also a danger of <span style="font-style: italic;">telling</span> too much, and not <span style="font-style: italic;">showing</span> enough through dramatization; <span style="font-style: italic;">explaining</span> too much, drawing conclusions for readers rather than letting them draw their own.
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<br />ILLUSTRATIONS:
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<br /><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">First-person narrative:</span> “I climbed the stairs and saw Sheila standing near the window. She seemed to be crying. Before she saw me, I turned and went down again so as not to embarrass her.”
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<br /><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Second-person narrative—discursive:</span> “You climb the stairs and see Sheila standing near the window. She seems to be crying. Before she sees you, you turn and go down again so as not to embarrass her.” <span style="font-style: italic;">(NOTE that verbs are in the present tense.)</span>
<br />Or, second-person can be couched as a <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">directive</span>:
<br />“Climb the stairs. See Sheila standing near the window. She seems to be crying. Turn and go down again so as not to embarrass her.”
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<br /><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Third-person narrative (limited):</span> “He climbed the stairs and saw Sheila standing near the window. She seemed to him to be crying. So as not to embarrass her, he turned and went down again before she saw him.”
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<br /><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Third-person narrative (omniscient): </span> “He climbed the stairs and saw Sheila standing near the window. She seemed to him to be crying, though in fact she wasn’t. So as not to embarrass her, he turned and went down again before she saw him. He needn’t have worried; Sheila was preoccupied with watching Charles and Henrietta playing croquet on the lawn. ‘Bloody bitch,’ she thought.”
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<br />Note that <span style="font-style: italic;">second-person narrative</span> is told in the present-tense of the verb, or else in the imperative mood. <span style="font-style: italic;">First-</span> and <span style="font-style: italic;">third-person narratives</span> may be told in either the present or past tense. The past tense has been used in the examples above. Compare those with these present-tense versions: “I climb the stairs and see Sheila standing near the window. She seems to be crying. Before she sees me, I turn and go down again...” and “He climbs the stairs and sees Sheila standing near the window. She seems to him to be crying, though in fact she isn’t....”
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<br /><span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Present-tense</span> confers a kind of immediacy to the narration, pulling the reader in</span>; it can be overdone—and if that occurs, the mode becomes heavy-handed and tedious. <span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Past tense</span> slightly distances the narration (tending to put the reader more into the role of a spectator than a participant); but if the narrative is sufficiently compelling and well-told, the reader is drawn in nonetheless.</span> Past-tense is the traditional, usual, and “natural” way that we recount stories: “The last man on Earth sat alone in a room. There was a knock on the door...”.
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<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Which mode of narration authors adopt for telling the story, which point of view(s) they choose to tell it from, which tense they choose to put the verbs into—all of these are crucial strategic decisions which must be made. For particular aims, and for particular narratives, there might be a </span><span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">best</span><span style="font-weight: bold;"> way to do it. If so, the author’s job is to find that best way.</span>
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<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Each of these modes of narration has advantages and limitations, both inherently, and with regard to creating Suspense for the reader.</span>
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<br />Copyright © Robert D. Sutherland, 2009</span>Vergilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13045687055267007493noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-259810607439728423.post-54936693769339257382009-06-08T12:23:00.009-05:002009-09-07T15:29:45.539-05:00The Importance of Suspense -- Part 8Here is the eighth installment of the thread called “The Importance of Suspense", which is examining "The Categories of Suspense in Mystery-Writing: How to Launch and Maintain Them”. I see the thread as a community enterprise, though so far there’s been little participation from bloggers. I feel I’m flying by the seat of my pants. Thanks to those of you who have posted encouraging comments. The rest of you, please join in. As writers and readers of mysteries, please share your thoughts and experiences. E-mail contact: frabjous@comcast.net<br /><br />(Vergil)<br />_______________________________<br /><br />Authors can maintain readers’ Suspense not only by reducing redundancy to increase unpredictability, but also by making word choices consciously designed to keep readers alert, curious, and moving forward. These tactical maneuvers can strengthen <span style="font-style: italic;">any</span> type of writing.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Verbs are authors’ friends.</span> They move the action by <span style="font-style: italic;">creating</span> it; they determine and reveal what happens to characters and <span style="font-style: italic;">how</span> things happen; they prepare the way for future events, evoke visceral responses in readers, and present fresh views of otherwise familiar (and even dull) territory. They enable authors to avoid <span style="font-style: italic;">telling</span> about actions by helping them find ways of <span style="font-style: italic;">dramatizing</span> them.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Authors can accomplish this dramatization by choosing <span style="font-style: italic;">action verbs</span>—those that exhibit pith and sinew, express vigor and precision, and promise some type of consequence.</span> In the sentence I’ve just written, <span style="font-style: italic;">accomplish, choose, exhibit, express,</span> and <span style="font-style: italic;">promise</span> are action verbs.<br /><br />Flaccid, vague, neutral, and passive verbs should be avoided. I could have written the sentence this way: “Authors can do this by using action verbs—those that have pith and sinew, allow for vigor and precision, and suggest some type of consequence.” Now, this is a perfectly adequate sentence, and it says much of what the first sentence does: but <span style="font-style: italic;">do, use, have, allow for,</span> and <span style="font-style: italic;">suggest</span> do not have the “action edge” of the verbs I initially chose; do not have the precision of connotation, muscular force, and capacity for freight and forward drive. By merely “standing in place”, they don’t take the reader anywhere. Fortunately, to implement the “action edge”, writers don’t have to stretch themselves to find exotic verbs (and, in fact, stretching for the exotic is generally a grievous mistake). There are plenty of common action verbs available for the plucking. Context will point the way.<br /><br />Whenever possible, authors should use <span style="font-style: italic;">active voice</span> instead of <span style="font-style: italic;">passive voice</span>.<br />ACTIVE VOICE: “The President signed the order.”<br />PASSIVE VOICE: “The order was signed by the President.”<br /> “The order was signed.” (suppressed agent: who signed it?)<br /> “It was decided that none should go.” [<span style="font-style: italic;">Who</span> decided?]<br /><br />If verbs are authors’ friends, <span style="font-weight: bold;">adjectives are frequently false friends and not to be trusted. Authors should avoid using adjectives whenever possible, and avoid using vague adjectives in particular.</span> In the following example, only two adjectives occur: one of them is vague.<br /><br />“Linda started down the steps in the dark, keeping her hand on the wall to guide her descent. The stones were covered with slime. Now and then something slithered away from under her fingers. She gagged as the stench of rotting flesh rose to meet her. Then suddenly she heard a weird noise.”<br /><br />The adjective ‘rotting’ is necessary to characterize the stench that causes Linda to gag. Rotting flesh possesses a highly distinctive odor, and Linda would know what it was. Most readers would too.<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Weird</span>, on the other hand, is like <span style="font-style: italic;">eerie, awful, strange, bizarre, horrific, horrible, nasty, terrible, ghastly, spooky, foul, hair-raising, blood-curdling, bone-chilling, sinister, shocking, and grim</span>: all say very little when serving as attributive adjectives. <span style="font-weight: bold;">Because these adjectives <span style="font-style: italic;">appear</span> to have potency and emotional “grab”, unsophisticated and lazy writers frequently use them, assuming (hoping?) that they will do their work for them to establish mood, create sensation, build suspense, and scare the reader. But they can’t do the author’s work. They are inherently vague and do not specify what it is in the things they’re characterizing that <span style="font-style: italic;">makes</span> those things “strange”, “shocking”, “blood-curdling”, etc. Rather than asserting the quality of an experience, authors should dramatize it <span style="font-style: italic;">so that readers can discover for themselves what to think and how to feel.</span></span><br /><br />In the above passage, where there is a great deal of sensory detail, ‘weird’ adds nothing to the creation of Suspense. The reader would much prefer to <span style="font-style: italic;">share</span> Linda’s auditory experience. <span style="font-style: italic;">What</span> was the noise she heard? Snuffling? hissing? giggling? rhythmic thudding? a squeal? a crash? tinkling? buzzing? the flapping of wings? Encountering any of those “sounds” would be far more interesting, stimulating to the reader’s imagination, and productive of Suspense than simply being told that there was ‘a weird noise’. <span style="font-weight: bold;">Precision in characterizing sensory experience can usually be achieved through use of action verbs and concrete nouns.</span><br /><br />_____________________________________________________<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Using language as a tool for generating suspense</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Suspense can be created and maintained by using language to speed up the narrative. Short sentences tend to move readers forward more quickly; long and complex ones tend to slow them down. In building to climaxes, it’s usually good to speed up the narrative, and shorter sentences help to accomplish this.</span><br /><br />Authors should avoid long-winded descriptions and expository explanations. Suspense is lessened when the reader is bogged down with verbosity and extraneous detail. The author Elmore Leonard provides sound advice to authors in his “10 Rules of Writing”, several of which he mentioned during an interview by Charlie Rose on May 27, 2009: pertinent here, “leave out the parts that people tend to skip (long blocks and descriptive passages)” and “stay away from descriptions unless you’re good at it. Do descriptions from point of view of the character.”<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Authors should not let language be a bar to readers’ understanding.</span> If they are writing to be read beyond the present moment, <span style="font-weight: bold;">they should avoid the heavy use of slang that, though speaking for its era, becomes dated as time passes, and ultimately strikes readers as opaque and quaint. Some of the pulp fiction of the 1930’s and ‘40’s reprinted in recent anthologies reveals this.</span> Here is an example from “Homicide Hunch” by Robert Leslie Bellem, author of the popular Dan Turner mysteries: “He had a narrow mulish puss with black sideburns running down past his ears to emphasize the glitter in his slitted glims. …He grinned as he thrust the roscoe against my favorite vest. ‘Want a hole in your tweeds, snoop?’ …I glued the measuring glimpse on him, wondered how much chance I had of swatting his rod aside and planting a set of fives on his sneery panorama. …I set fire to a gasper, took a hinge around the joint. ….When I piped this divan, I widened my peepers and choked: ‘What the—?’ There was a blonde quail stretched out on the glossy cushions, trussed hand and hoof with knotted ropes. Her piquant pan would have been gorgeous even without its heavy makeup.” (quoted in <span style="font-style: italic;">Tough Guys and Dangerous Dames</span>, ed. Robert E. Weinberg, Stefan Dziemianowicz, and Martin H. Greenberg (Barnes & Noble Books, 1993), pp. 462-463).<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Authors should be sparing in the use of simile and metaphor.</span> (Raymond Chandler, who was proficient at coining similes, perhaps used them too much. (“Oh, here’s another one,” the reader says.) When similes begin to call attention to themselves, they tend to slow the reader down (e.g., The sunset was like an open wound.) and thus jeopardize the intensity of the Suspense that’s been established.<br />__________________________________<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Writing dialogue; use of speech ascription tags</span><br /><br />In Part 6, I said that dialogue is a highly efficient way to move the story, create suspense, enhance dramatic intensity and interest, and provide information. In writing mystery fiction (or fiction of any type), authors should use dialogue as much as possible. <span style="font-weight: bold;">In addition to everything else it does, it removes the necessity for long passages of expository description, and therefore contributes to the creation of suspense by speeding things up.</span><br /><br />There are some rules for writing effective dialogue that immediately come to mind. <span style="font-weight: bold;">(1) Speeches should reflect the way people actually talk—using contractions, sentence fragments, ejaculations and swear-words—in keeping with the speaker’s character, upbringing and habits, the physical environment, and the contextual circumstances in which the dialogue occurs. </span><br /><br />Equally important: <span style="font-weight: bold;">(2) authors should make sure that all the characters don’t talk the same way. Their speech should be consistent with their regional and social dialects, social and educational standing, habits of mind, temperament, aims and motives.</span><br /><br />In writing dialogue, <span style="font-weight: bold;">(3) authors should use as few ascription tags as possible, identifying speakers by their order in sequence, verbal echoes, providing answers to questions that clearly follow from the questions asked, and other internal cues, such as—at <span style="font-style: italic;">long</span> intervals—use of the other speaker’s name:</span><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;"> </span><br />She stared at him in disbelief. “Oh, John, do you really believe that?”<br />He shook his head. “Not since I was ten years old.”<br />“Good. I thought I was going to have to call in a psychiatrist.”<br />“You should’ve let me know. I could’ve recommended one.”<br />“Oh, I have my own.”<br /><br />When speech ascription tags are needed, authors would be wise to use ‘said’, ‘asked’, ‘replied’, (<span style="font-style: italic;">maybe</span> ‘shouted’) almost exclusively. The frequent use of ‘said’ does not constitute “repetition” in the usual sense. Readers barely notice the occurrences, taking them more as iconic sign-posts than actual words. The redundancy these verbs confer because of their familiarity enables readers to log them in subliminally in passing; they do not call attention to themselves as would more exotic ascription verbs, such as <span style="font-style: italic;">screamed, opined, ruminated,</span> (“Oh really?” she <span style="font-style: italic;">smiled</span>.), <span style="font-style: italic;">hissed, squealed,</span> (“I’ll get you,” he <span style="font-style: italic;">threatened</span>), <span style="font-style: italic;">whinnied, mumbled,</span> (“I want my supper!” he <span style="font-style: italic;">thundered</span>.), <span style="font-style: italic;">laughed, snorted, cackled, smirked, sobbed, cried,</span> etc. On <span style="font-style: italic;">Charlie Rose</span>, Elmore Leonard advised, “Never use another verb to identify speaker except ‘said’” and “never use an adverb to modify ‘said’” (i.e., ‘he said quickly’).<br /><br />Ascription tags are usually required when there are more than two people talking together. Even so, there are various ways of avoiding ascription tags: line two in the passage above (‘John shook his head.’) is an example of just one of them.<br />_________________________________________________<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Narrative pacing</span><br /><br />In narrative, <span style="font-weight: bold;">pacing</span> is the relative speed at which action proceeds, plot elements proliferate, and information becomes available; the speed is ”relative”, because the <span style="font-style: italic;">rates</span> at which plot incidents occur and revelations emerge are <span style="font-style: italic;">variable</span>, and of the author’s choosing. In an extended work, this variability is valuable for providing diverse dynamics: propulsive, pell-mell forward motion, incremental tightening of the screws for climactic showdowns, textural contrasts, opportunities for character development, and, for readers, breathing space and time for reflection.<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Pacing has both a macro and a micro dimension.</span> There is the pacing of the work seen as a whole, and, in addition, there are the separate pacings of the subordinate component parts. Each of these parts, having its own distinct integrity, contributes to the arc of the whole.<br /><br />Each mystery, being unique unto itself, will have its own macro-pacing requirements. Perhaps it will have a slow beginning, “setting the stage” for what’s ahead, or perhaps it will leap forward as at the crack of an opening gun. Perhaps in the middle, it will race straight down the track leaping hurdles as they come, or perhaps it will lead protagonist (and reader) into a labyrinth of complications booby-trapped with perils. The ending will perhaps be a straightforward unmasking of the murderer and an orderly recounting of clues that led to the solution; or perhaps it will plunge the protagonist into a crisis with an outcome far from certain.<br /><br />Macro-pacing pertains to largescale structures. If we go to music for an analogy, we see that in a symphony or concerto, there is a large unified structure with a beginning, middle, and ending and an aggregate pattern of pacing; and that frequently this whole is divided into sections, or movements, each of which has its own structure (beginning, middle, end), developmental needs, and pacing. In both the whole and in the subordinate parts, the structures exhibit the development of melodic materials, recurrent motifs, and variations on specific themes. Since musical expression, writing, and reading literature are phenomena that occur during a span of time, there is ample occasion and strong arguments for shifts in pacing. These in music have their analogs in mystery-writing: changes in tempo (fast/slow) and dynamics (loud/soft; stressful/calm), building of tension to climax and closure. <span style="font-weight: bold;">In fiction, each unit of plot development, each sequencing of events, each individual scene and dramatic encounter, each instance of dialogue will have its own internal micro-pacing that will create and maintain the reader’s Suspense.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Finally, authors should be <span style="font-style: italic;">extremely</span> sparing in their use of assertive “there-you-have-it” foreshadowings</span> (see Part 6), <span style="font-weight: bold;">for, while they <span style="font-style: italic;">do</span> generate suspense of a rudimentary sort, people get tired of them; and frequent use gives readers the impression that the author is blatantly “priming the pump.” </span><br /><br />_________________________________________________<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Use of setting, locale, and atmosphere to generate Suspense</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Since stories typically take place <span style="font-style: italic;">somewhere</span>—in a city’s mean streets or the Kansas wheat fields, in prisons, high-rise office suites, hospitals, automobiles, schools, gambling casinos, factories, graveyards, jungles, governmental agencies, oceanside resorts, etc.—authors should turn those environments to account to generate Suspense.</span> Imagine what different kinds of mysteries could be written with settings as diverse as Dartmoor; Vienna, 1882; the Mayan ruins at Chichén Itzá; a large hotel; a tramp steamer adrift in the Pacific; a ski resort; a university common room; a morgue.<br /><br />In some stories, it’s setting that makes the story possible (Jack London’s “To Build a Fire”; the Yorkshire moors in <span style="font-style: italic;">Wuthering Heights</span>); in many others, setting has a major role to play in establishing mood and determining incident. And therefore, <span style="font-weight: bold;">in setting and locale authors have a powerful tool for creating Suspense.</span><br /><br />In <span style="font-style: italic;">The Hound of the Baskervilles</span>, for example, while suspense is created in part by the family legend of the supernatural hound and by the eccentric neighbors, it’s the physical environment that contributes most: the isolation of the moor, the obscuring fog (which hides life-threatening dangers), the gloomy Hall, the dark of night, and (to be shunned) the Great Grimpen Mire which can suck down men as well as ponies. Contrariwise, in what appears to be a cozy village nestled in the countryside, with jolly neighbors and sunlit church bazaars, cold-blooded murder can occur among the rhododendrons, and unspeakable horrors lurk behind locked attic doors. Highly specialized settings can provide unusual and intriguing business: e.g., backstage at the theater, a scientific outpost in the Antarctic, a rodeo, a cruise liner in the Caribbean, a traveling carnival or circus, a séance, a highway construction site, an art museum, a restaurant, a hunting trip in the African or Canadian wilderness, a concentration camp).<br /><br />To illustrate how setting can be made to establish atmosphere and mood, and to generate suspense by hinting of unpleasantness to come, I’d like to quote the opening sentence of “The Fall of the House of Usher” by Edgar Allan Poe, the great-great-grandfather of us all.<br /><br />“During the whole of a dull, dark, and soundless day in the autumn of the year, when the clouds hung oppressively low in the heavens, I had been passing alone, on horseback, through a singularly dreary tract of country, and at length found myself, as the shades of the evening drew on, within view of the melancholy House of Usher.” (60 words)<br /><br />Though Poe has used more adjectives that I would normally recommend, he uses them quite effectively; note how many of them <span style="font-style: italic;">concretely</span> (as opposed to vaguely) characterize the nouns they modify. We know <span style="font-style: italic;">what kind of a day it is</span>: dull, dark, and soundless, with clouds hanging oppressively low; we know <span style="font-style: italic;">when the day is in the calendar</span> (in the autumn of the year); we know <span style="font-style: italic;">who is speaking</span>: a character named ‘I’ who has been traveling <span style="font-style: italic;">alone</span> on horseback for the whole day; we know <span style="font-style: italic;">something of the locale</span>: a <span>singularly dreary</span> tract of country; we know <span style="font-style: italic;">the time of day</span>: evening (with its ominous creeping shadows) and we know <span style="font-style: italic;">what the speaker sees in the distance.</span> The adjective ‘melancholy’ is evocative, and we want to know <span style="font-style: italic;">why</span> the house is so characterized. Since we don’t know why the traveler sees it so, and he merely asserts it, is this adjective perhaps self-indulgent on Poe's part? At any rate, Poe accomplishes a great deal in this sentence—with consummate efficiency.<br /><br />[As an aside, contrast this with the opening sentence of Poe’s “The Cask of Amontillado”, which also generates suspense:<br /><br />”The thousand injuries of Fortunato I had borne as I best could; but when he ventured upon insult, I vowed revenge.” (21 words)<br /><br />We don’t know who Fortunato is; we don’t know what the thousand injuries consisted of; we don’t know the nature of the insult; and maybe we don’t need to know. But we do know that the ‘I’ has vowed revenge. And though as readers we <span style="font-style: italic;">don’t know</span> yet what this will be, we certainly <span style="font-style: italic;">want to know</span>.]<br /><br />Finally, as a subclass of the category of setting/locale, I’ll mention <span style="font-weight: bold;">the power of <span style="font-style: italic;">isolation</span> to generate suspense</span>. [Examples: an empty road through a blasted heath, a mountain cabin in a blizzard, a secluded island with no helicopter, boat, or telephone, a dark cellar (“No one will hear your screams.”)] <span style="font-weight: bold;">Anxiety, fear, and a sense of helplessness arise when characters are cut off from contact with other people, from means of succor, rescue, or support. Empathizing with the characters, readers share in these emotional responses and thus have a deeply vested concern with what happens; not knowing the outcome, they desperately <span style="font-style: italic;">want</span> to know. Many mystery writers have found <span style="font-style: italic;">physical isolation</span> to be an effective device for generating suspense. When featured in a story in combination with other types of suspense-generating devices, <span style="font-style: italic;">isolation</span> can augment and enhance the effects of those.<br /><br /></span><br /><span style="font-size:85%;">Copyright © Robert D. Sutherland, 2009</span>Vergilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13045687055267007493noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-259810607439728423.post-44141415975408026132009-06-04T02:30:00.013-05:002009-08-19T14:26:55.243-05:00The Importance of Suspense -- Part 7Here is the seventh installment of the thread called “The Importance of Suspense", which is examining "The Categories of Suspense in Mystery-Writing: How to Launch and Maintain Them”. I'm exploring this topic for the first time as the thread progresses; everything is tentative and provisional. I see it as a community enterprise, though so far I’ve been struggling with it alone; and sometimes it feels as though I’m chopping my way through a dense jungle with a dull machete. Thanks to those of you who have posted encouraging comments. I’d be very happy if interested bloggers would weigh in, state areas of agreement and disagreement, and share insights and examples from their own experience.<br /><br />(Vergil)<br /><br />__________________________________________________<br />Before moving on to discuss tactical maneuvers, I’d like to mention two further structural devices that authors frequently use to create Suspense:<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Withholding of information</span> (from reader or protagonist)<br /><br />Suspense is intensified when readers' urgent need or desire to know is thwarted, blocked, or put on hold. By exploiting their anxiety and impatience to know, an author is able to “up the ante”, or increase the readers' suspense-quotient, by providing impediments and delays. One way of doing this is simply to withhold information. If necessary information is withheld from <span style="font-style: italic;">protagonists</span> who are attempting to solve a crime, <span style="font-style: italic;">their</span> resultant anxiety and puzzlement are shared by readers who are identifying with them and don’t have the information either. The frustration the protagonist feels, combined with their own frustration, increases readers’ Suspense. (The exception is the “inverted mystery story” discussed in Part 2, where the readers know from the beginning who the murderer is, and the suspense they experience comes from watching the detective work the case and nail the perp.)<br /><br />On the other hand, in a typical whodunit, information possessed by the detective protagonist (perhaps resulting from ratiocination—Poirot’s “little grey cells” or Holmes’s “science of deduction”—or simply basic good luck) is withheld from <span style="font-style: italic;">readers</span>, who, desiring that information, are thereby kept in a perpetual state of Suspense, with no choice but to keep reading. However, in a well-written whodunit, the author will have “played fair” with readers by embedding clues throughout the text which would enable careful readers with ratiocinative skills to gather the same information as possessed by the detective. Since the author’s aim is to sustain readers’ Suspense at a high level by keeping them “guessing”, these embedded clues may be disguised, hidden, submerged in extraneous material, or surrounded by false or misleading signifiers (“red herrings”). Readers who find themselves baffled will have to wait till the end for terminal action and/or the detective’s explanation to “reveal all.”<br /><br />Still, even astute readers who <span style="font-style: italic;">have</span> found all the right clues and put them together and think they have the mystery solved <span style="font-style: italic;">don’t know for sure until they’ve read all the way to the end.</span><span style="font-weight: bold;"> <span style="font-style: italic;">Their</span> Suspense arises from having to wait to see if their solution is right.</span> And, if they’re in the hands of very skillful authors, they may be surprised to discover at the end that they are <span style="font-style: italic;">wrong</span>. Though having played fair with readers and provided all of the requisite clues to enable them to arrive at the true solution, the authors have still managed to mislead them.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Reader’s knowledge of something unknown to the detective or other characters</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Authors writing in the third-person omniscient point of view can create acute Suspense for readers by giving them knowledge or awareness of something important (frequently a danger or threat) of which the protagonist and other characters of concern are ignorant.</span> For example: if the author allows readers to observe a hit man making plans to kill someone of concern (the detective, or the Prime Minister, or the sweet old lady in the corner candy store), and then forces them to watch the plan inexorably unfold, Suspense arises as a blend of the readers’ anticipatory dread, inability to warn the victim, and impotence to prevent the killing. Or, if readers have been made aware that something constitutes an important clue, they feel suspenseful anxiety or disappointment when the unaware detective overlooks or misinterprets it. Or, if knowledgeable readers watch the unwitting detective walking into a carefully set trap. Or, if readers know that something horrible—a headless corpse, an axe murderer, a spitting cobra, or (feasibly, worst of all) a malevolent Unknown Menace—is waiting in the closet as young Jennifer comes skipping down the hallway to hang up her coat, they want to shout “Don’t open the door!”—but can’t, of course, and must simply go on reading to see what happens.<br /><br />This device does not work in a first-person narrative, where a character identified as ‘I’ (often the detective protagonist) is telling the story. It must be set up by author acting as the omniscient narrator who sees all, knows all, and, in this case, is letting the reader know things that the protagonist or other characters don’t.<br />________________________________________________<br /><br />The ways of generating and maintaining suspense I’ve so far mentioned strike me as essentially <span style="font-style: italic;">structural devices</span>—relatively complex strategems which, in accord with their respective sets of rules and requirements, address largescale concerns. These include: revealing and withholding information, establishing internal continuity and texturing, managing the content of dialogue within the context of the whole narrative, ascertaining how characters will interact with events and with each other, planning and orchestrating the crises and dangers to be faced, planting clues, mapping the incremental emergence of facts that point to solutions, deciding whether or not to use cliffhangers and foreshadowing, and (as will be discussed later) determining what narrative point(s) of view to adopt to best tell the story.<br /><br />I would like to discuss next another set of tools which I call <span style="font-style: italic;">tactical devices</span>. They too serve the strategic aim of generating and maintaining readers’ Suspense. <span style="font-style: italic;">While they are just as important as the structural devices discussed above, they operate on a smaller scale in a more immediately delimited field: the palette knife as opposed to the broad brush. Fine-tuning as opposed to macro-scanning.</span> In deployment and overall effect, the various types of structural and tactical devices inevitably exhibit some overlap, crossover, and interfusion; but I think that conceptually separating the two provides some very useful distinctions.<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">TACTICAL DEVICES</span><br /><br />Exciting action. The solving of intriguing puzzles. The threat of danger. Observing the interplay of interesting characters in challenging situations. The Suspense produced by all of these keeps readers turning pages. But there are other means at the author’s disposal for producing Suspense. These are <span style="font-style: italic;">tactical devices</span> which, though often unnoticed by readers, are pervasive in their effects, and include some of the author’s most powerful tools. They include: authors’ word choices; narrative pacing; withholding of information; use of setting, locale, atmosphere; and exploiting readers’ subliminal and archetypal fears.<br /><br />SUSPENSE AS A FUNCTION OF:<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Authors’ word choices</span><br /><br />I’ve suggested that readers’ experiencing of Suspense arises through the process of their <span style="font-style: italic;">not knowing what comes next</span>, but <span style="font-style: italic;">wanting to know</span>, and <span style="font-style: italic;">caring about</span> what information will emerge. Getting readers to care about what happens is an author’s primary responsibility, because if readers don’t care, they won’t finish the story. Once readers have been made to care, the author maintains their Suspense by not allowing them to know with certainty what will be coming next. This fuels their desire to know and keeps them reading. But they’re not just reading pages, or paragraphs, or sentences to see what’s coming next: <span style="font-style: italic;">they’re also reading words in sequence.</span><br /><br />Previously I’ve said that in dialogue it’s not possible for readers to know for certain what the next speech will be, or what response will be made to a particular utterance. <span style="font-weight: bold;">Now I will go further and suggest that Suspense is generated when readers do not know for certain what the next word will be in a sequence of words. To maximize Suspense, it’s necessary for the author to keep the reader wondering what the next word will be and reading on to find out.</span><br /><br />In Lewis Carroll’s <span style="font-style: italic;">Through the Looking-Glass</span>, Alice encounters an apparent nonsense rhyme in the first stanza of “Jabberwocky”:<br /><br />'Twas brillig, and the slithy toves<br />Did gyre and gimbel in the wabe:<br />All mimsy were the borogoves,<br />And the mome raths outgrabe.<br /><br />Although she can’t understand it, Alice says, “It seems to fill my head with ideas—only I don’t exactly know what they are.” In <span style="font-style: italic;">The Structure of English</span> (1952), the linguist Charles Carpenter Fries holds the view that her “ideas” are “without doubt the structural meanings for which the framework contains the signals”; and he isolates the structural signals as follows:<br /><br />Twas _______, and the _______y _______s<br />Did _______ and _______ in the _______:<br />All _______y were the _______s,<br />And the _______ _______s _______.<br /><br />The structural signals which suggest to Alice the functions of the nonsense words that fit the blanks in Fries's frame are part of the grammar of English, which all users of the language know, and which native speakers gain in childhood as they acquire it: (1) word order, which is that of conventional English; (2) function words, such as <span style="font-style: italic;">it</span>, <span style="font-style: italic;">was</span>, <span style="font-style: italic;">and</span>, <span style="font-style: italic;">the</span>, <span style="font-style: italic;">did</span>, <span style="font-style: italic;">in</span>, <span style="font-style: italic;">all</span>, <span style="font-style: italic;">were</span>; (3) inflectional markers, such as <span style="font-style: italic;">–s</span> (noun plural) and indications of verb tense and number; and (4) co-occurrence phenomena, such as ‘were the (NOUN)s’ (plural verb, plural noun).<br /><br />In an English utterance, the blanks in the structural frame will be filled with “content words”—nouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs—in accord with the given structural signals. Thus, in the original poem, <span style="font-style: italic;">brillig</span> is either an adjective or a noun; <span style="font-style: italic;">slithy</span> is an adjective; <span style="font-style: italic;">toves</span> is a noun plural; <span style="font-style: italic;">gyre</span> and <span style="font-style: italic;">gimbel</span> are verbs; <span style="font-style: italic;">wabe</span> is a noun; <span style="font-style: italic;">mimsy</span> is an adjective; <span style="font-style: italic;">borogoves</span> is a noun plural; <span style="font-style: italic;">mome</span> is probably an adjective [possibly a noun]; <span style="font-style: italic;">raths</span> is probably a noun plural [possibly a verb in the present tense]; <span style="font-style: italic;">outgrabe</span> is probably a verb [and probably in the past tense because of past-tense ‘were’ in the line above]. By virtue of the structure, the blank could possibly contain a noun ['The boy eats cake'], but probably not in this context, because that would make <span style="font-style: italic;">raths</span> a present tense verb in non-agreement with past-tense ‘were’. An adjective could also feasibly occur in the last blank: [And the painted lips red'].<br /><br />All of this analysis is simply to establish (1) that there are both function [structure] words and content words in English; function words signify how the content words relate to one another, while content words have meanings that can be found in cultural usage and in standard dictionaries; (2) that English has quite rigid word-order patterns which must be conformed to; (3) that content words in forming phrases have a preferred word order (e.g., ADJ+ NOUN: ‘They are ADJ+NOUN PHRASE [true friends].' or ‘He is ADJ [tired].', etc.; (4) that, within their given syntactic structural frames, content words have considerable flexibility, and potentially a high degree of unpredictability. Thus:<br /><br />’Twas autumn, and the shiny leaves,<br />Did gleam and glisten in the wood:<br />All icy were the riverbanks,<br />And the tall trees stood.<br /><br /><br />’Twas lunchtime, and the hungry girls<br />Did munch and gobble in the cafeteria:<br />All mushy were the burritos,<br />And the refried beans cold.<br /><br />This potential for unpredictability allows authors to avoid cliché, inject humor, make sudden surprising turns, and keep readers in suspense not knowing what to expect (since they find their expectations frequently being reversed).<br /><br />Insofar as possible within the necessary linguistic boundaries that make communication possible, and in accord with requirements of maintaining contextual integrity and logical consistency, <span style="font-weight: bold;">even on the word-level readers should be kept in the suspenseful state of not knowing with certainty what’s coming next.</span><br /><br />In normal discourse, language provides certain standardized cues (subliminally interpreted by speakers and readers) which insure that communication does occur. These are called ‘redundancy features’. They include rules of word order, inflectional endings on nouns verbs, adjectives, and adverbs, the rules that determine which words can go with which. [She did it <span style="font-style: italic;">to</span> him, <span style="font-style: italic;">for</span> him, <span style="font-style: italic;">with</span> him, <span style="font-style: italic;">after</span> him, <span style="font-style: italic;">before</span> him, and <span style="font-style: italic;">through</span> him, but NOT<span style="font-style: italic;"> at</span> him. ( One can’t do things <span style="font-style: italic;">at</span> people. ) But: She threw the ball <span style="font-style: italic;">at</span> him (one can throw things <span style="font-style: italic;">at</span> people—as well as <span style="font-style: italic;">to, for, with, after</span>, and <span style="font-style: italic;">before</span> them: but NOT <span style="font-style: italic;">through</span> them).]<br /><br />Redundancy features constitute a multiplicity of interacting signals and cues which work together to insure that communication can occur. With various pointers to aid in designating meaning, if interference knocks one or more of them out, the remaining cues can still enable the intended message to get through. In normal language use, these features work on the unconscious level to keep readers comfortably skimming along on a current of predictability, with redundancy preventing difficulties from arising.<span style="font-size:100%;"> (If too many of the redundancy cues are omitted or drop out through interference, the intended message may not get through.) </span><span style=";font-family:Cambria;font-size:100%;" ><b style=""><i style=""></i></b></span><span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;"> The purpose of redundancy features is to provide predictability. But as I’ve said repeatedly, predictability is the great enemy of Suspense. Therefore, if authors wish to increase readers’ Suspense, they have to decrease the influence of pervasive redundancy features. </span><span style="font-style: italic;">(This has to be done judiciously, for some redundancy is necessary for communication to occur. Having too little redundancy can disrupt communication through allowing the creation of ambiguity or nonsense.)</span><br /><br />With reduced redundancy, readers will quickly learn that they’ve got to pay attention to the words. They can’t go skimming along “on automatic pilot” thinking that they know what’s coming next. If authors are committed to establishing and maintaining readers’ Suspense, their language choices will help to weave a complex, inescapable net. Reduced predictability will mean that people don’t dare to skip things, for fear they will miss something important. It’s only a slight exaggeration to say that readers must never know <span style="font-style: italic;">with absolute certainty</span> what the next substantive (“content”) word will be.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">The challenge for authors: they must strike a balance between allowing sufficient redundancy to make smooth reading and coherent sense, and removing enough redundancy to diminish predictability and increase suspense.<br /><br /></span><span><br /><span style="font-size:85%;">Copyright © Robert D. Sutherland, 2009</span></span><span style="font-weight: bold;"><br /></span>Vergilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13045687055267007493noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-259810607439728423.post-29258467834802427582009-05-29T23:19:00.014-05:002009-09-07T14:59:31.392-05:00The Importance of Suspense -- Part 6Part 6<br /><br />Here is the sixth installment of the thread called “The Importance of Suspense", which is examining "The Categories of Suspense in Mystery-Writing: How to Launch and Maintain Them”. I'm exploring this topic for the first time as the thread progresses; everything is tentative and provisional. <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">I'd be very happy if interested bloggers would post comments, register points of agreement and disagreement, provide insights and examples from their own experience, and join in this effort.</span> (Vergil)<br /><br />__________________________________________________<br /><br />Suspense generated by:<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Foreshadowing (perhaps in dialogue): giving the reader something to anticipate</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Foreshadowing occurs when authors insert into the text hints and intimations of events or situations that ostensibly will come later in the narrative. Foreshadowing, a highly effective means of generating Suspense, is to be distinguished from foretelling, and from planning future actions, as in a “caper novel”.</span><br /><br />Foreshadowings presage, prefigure, or raise the possibility of future events. Foreshadowing may take many different forms—a passing remark, a puzzling artifact discovered in an old desk, an eccentric person’s observed habits, the arrival in a small town of a notorious person just released from prison, a cluster of disturbing physical symptoms that may presage a serious illness, a casual discussion regarding the nature of avalanches, floods, earthquakes, tsunamis, and other natural disasters (in environments where these things could happen).<br /><br />There’s a maxim from theatrical production that’s useful here: “If a gun is introduced to the audience in the first act, it had better be used in the third.” (I suppose Ibsen’s <span style="font-style: italic;">Hedda Gabler</span> is one of the best examples of this principle in action.) Conversely, if someone is shot in Act 3, it’s helpful for the audience to have been made aware in Act 1 of the gun’s presence onstage. (And of course, if much is made of the gun in Act 1, the audience’s having to wait to see how it will ultimately be used will contribute to <span style="font-style: italic;">their</span> Suspense).<br /><br />The playwright’s revelation of the gun in Act 1 is a “plant”(a device which I would contrast with foreshadowing). Though the gun’s appearance in Act 1 is a preparation for its later use, its “planting” does not per se specify <span style="font-style: italic;">how</span> it might be used in Act 3—just that it will have <span style="font-style: italic;">some</span> role to play. On the other hand, I’d suggest that, while sometimes vague in precisely what they portend for later narrative incidents, <span style="font-style: italic;">foreshadowings</span> are generally less open-ended than plants because they tend to point forward in <span style="font-style: italic;">specific directions</span>, toward <span style="font-style: italic;">particular</span> situations and events.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Foreshadowings can have several functions. By hinting at potential future events, (1) they prepare the way and generate suspense by whetting the reader’s anticipation. By occurring in the text prior to the events and situations they presage, (2) they lay a foundation which lends credibility to the events and situations when they <span style="font-style: italic;">do</span> occur. And (3) if they take place in dialogue, they may possibly reveal the speakers’ anticipations, opinions, hopes and fears regarding the matters presaged—if they do, those revelations will have the collateral benefit of contributing greater depth to the speakers' characterizations.</span><br /><br />Available to authors writing in the first person point of view and in the third-person omniscient, there’s a heavy-handed version of <span style="font-style: italic;">assertive</span> intimation which I call <span style="font-weight: bold;">“there-you-have-it” foreshadowing</span>. Like the cliffhanger, it is frequently seen as a blatant attempt to generate suspense: “I got home late and went straight to sleep. When the alarm woke me at six, I got dressed and went to the office. I should have stayed in bed.” Or, “After some soul-searching, she did XYZ. It would prove to be a mistake.” Or, “He decided not to send the gift. Later he wished that he had.” Open-ended, for sure, and inherently vague. Of note: implied <span style="font-style: italic;">negative</span> consequences seem to be more capable of generating suspense than implied positive consequences: “Thelma wondered if she should divorce George or kill him. She finally decided to kill him—the best decision she could have made.” These <span style="font-weight: bold;">“there-you-have-it” foreshadowings </span>leap off the page. If used often in a single work, they come to be extremely obnoxious. If they’re to be used at all, it should be only rarely, when they are the best way of achieving some sought-after special effect; and, possibly, with authors’ tongue-in-cheek awareness that their presence can evoke genre-based self-referential humor.<br /><br />__________________________________________________<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">The growth of misunderstanding or the emergence of crucial revelations within dialogue</span><br /><br />In writing fiction, <span style="font-style: italic;">dialogue</span> is one of the author’s most powerful tools for advancing the story. What characters <span style="font-style: italic;">say</span> can look backward to what’s already happened, point forward to what might happen in the future, and engage immediately with the ongoing present. And more: <span style="font-weight: bold;">dialogue can establish story-line continuity; make possible evaluative and critical assessments of past events; remind readers of what they should remember; foreshadow events to come, increasing readers’ anticipation; highlight those things that speakers regard as important; deepen the speakers’ characterizations by showing how they say things, what they reveal, what they withhold, and if they dissemble (their habits of mind as well as speech). </span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Dialogue can suggest a vital key to a puzzle or introduce red herrings to confuse the trail; empower debate/joint planning/teamwork in fashioning hypotheses and sketching possible scenarios for solving crimes; present opportunities for making apologies and promises, issuing admonitions and warnings; allow occasions for witty repartee and humor, as well as invective, put-down, sarcasm, and insult; and, finally, teach readers useful facts about bee-keeping, poisons, family relationships, history, law, gambling, the environment, forensic technology, the binomial theorem, monastic life, military matters, the square on the hypotenuse, etc.</span><br /><br />In addition to all of the above, <span style="font-weight: bold;">dialogue is one of the author’s most powerful tools for intensifying readers’ Suspense</span>. Not only because of what speakers say regarding future events and the making of plans, but also <span style="font-style: italic;">because the sequential give and take of verbal exchanges between two or more people is <span style="font-weight: bold;">inherently</span> dramatic and suspenseful.</span> Dramatic because verbal exchanges demonstrate in “real time” the interactions of personalities with issues at stake. Suspenseful because <span style="font-style: italic;">it’s not possible for readers to know with absolute certainty how one person will respond to something said by the other.</span> (Even the response to a simple yes-or-no question might result in surprise: if from previous knowledge readers know that, to be truthful, the responder should say ‘yes’ and expects that this will be the answer, the responder, in fact, might lie and say ‘no.’ Or the responder might equivocate, or throw up a verbal smokescreen (“Now why would I do that?”). Or not answer at all (silence is a response, too).<br /><br />It is impossible for readers to know for certain what will occur next in conversation as utterances alternate between speakers, each of whom has personal needs, concerns, motives, purposes, and a unique view of the world. Readers can <span style="font-style: italic;">guess</span> what the response will be to a particular utterance, but they cannot <span style="font-style: italic;">know</span> for sure. <span style="font-style: italic;">To find out, they must continue reading.</span> Not knowing what’s coming next, but wanting to know, and caring about the outcome constitutes Suspense.<br /><br />In addition to its <span style="font-style: italic;">inherent</span> suspensefulness, dialogue can also intensify readers’ Suspense through <span style="font-style: italic;">specific</span> means. Let’s look at a few of these—not an exhaustive list; I’m sure you can come up with others.<br /><br />Suspense can be created through dialogue when:<br /><br />a) on the basis of their prior knowledge, readers can observe that the speakers unwittingly are talking at cross purposes, or past each other; or watch with dismay as a fundamental misunderstanding worsens and grows more profound (or heated) as the dialogue progresses.<br /><br />b) when readers share the frustrations felt by protagonists or material witnesses who, truly knowing what happened/where the bodies are buried/the names behind the cover-up/the identity of the masked man, etc., try to impart this information to others but can’t get anyone to take them seriously or believe what they say. (Won’t Cassandra <span style="font-style: italic;">ever</span> be believed? the reader wonders.) This device is used so often it’s more than a cliché; it’s an iconic fixture of the mystery genre, frequently predictable in the plotline and therefore tedious:—but still capable of creating Suspense as frustration builds (despite readers’ possible irritation at having encountered the too-familiar device yet once again).<br /><br />c) when readers, having identified with the protagonist (an amateur sleuth or private eye), experience frustration/irritation when that detective is shown disrespect, condescension, contempt, or outright hostility by the professional police investigators. (This too is an iconic fixture of the genre, frequently encountered.) (An analogous parallel occurs in the police procedural, when friction develops because of jurisdictional rivalries or turf battles—municipal police versus the FBI; precinct vs. precinct; Homicide vs. Vice; regulars vs. Internal Affairs).<br /><br />d) when through observing a series of conversations—perhaps the detective’s interviews with witnesses or the murder victim’s associates, or brainstorming sessions among members of an investigative team—readers gain assorted facts (or encounter crucial revelations) which enable them to start fitting things together and formulating a theory of the crime. <span style="font-weight: bold;">(Suspense arises through excitement and anticipation as the picture emerges.)</span><br /><br />e) when something is said in conversation that gives readers crucial information (perhaps recognized as such because of things they’ve “heard” in earlier conversations), but whose significance is not grasped by the speakers themselves. <span style="font-style: italic;">(The reader then comes to know and understand something that the speakers don’t.)</span><br /><br />f) when a speaker says something that readers know to be untrue. <span style="font-weight: bold;">(The suspense arises from knowing that the other speaker is being lied to, or misled, and wondering what later consequences this will have.) </span><br /><br />In <span style="font-style: italic;">The Maltese Falcon</span><span>1</span> Dashiell Hammett wrote a masterful bit of dialogue which illustrates some of the points I’ve been making. Detective Sam Spade and “the fat man”, Casper Gutman, have met for the first time in a context of mutual suspicion and distrust. Each is trying to get the measure of the other. [I have stripped away most of the narrative description and the ascription tags identifying the speakers to reveal more clearly what Hammett has accomplished through dialogue alone. It’s interesting to observe that in excellent dialogue (with only two speakers) ascription tags generally aren’t needed for readers to know which character is talking (alternating speeches and internal cues do the job).<br />________________________________________________<br /><br />(Gutman pours Spade a glass of whiskey, and Spade does not stop his pouring by saying “When.”)<br /><br />Gutman: We begin well, sir. I distrust a man that says when. If he’s got to be careful not to drink too much it’s because he’s not to be trusted when he does. … Well, sir, here’s to plain speaking and clear understanding. … [They drink.] You’re a close-mouthed man?<br /><br />Spade: I like to talk.<br /><br />Better and better! I distrust a close-mouthed man. He generally picks the wrong time to talk and says the wrong things. Talking’s something you can’t do judiciously unless you keep in practice. … We’ll get along, sir, that we will. … A cigar, sir. [Gives Spade a cigar. They light up.] … Now, sir, we’ll talk if you like. And I’ll tell you right out that I’m a man who likes talking to a man that likes to talk.<br /><br />Swell. Will we talk about the black bird?<br /><br />Will we? … We will. … You’re the man for me, sir, a man cut along my own lines. No beating about the bush, but right to the point. ‘Will we talk about the black bird?’ We will. I like that, sir. I like that way of doing business. Let us talk about the black bird by all means, but first, sir, answer me a question, please, though maybe it’s an unnecessary one, so we’ll understand each other from the beginning. You’re here as Miss O’Shaughnessy’s representative?<br /><br />I can’t say yes or no. There’s nothing certain about it either way, yet. … It depends.<br /><br />It depends on—?<br /><br />If I knew what it depends on I could say yes or no.<br /><br />Maybe it depends on Cairo?<br /><br />Maybe.<br /><br />You could say, then, that the question is which of them you’ll represent?<br /><br />You could put it that way.<br /><br />It will be one or the other?<br /><br />I didn’t say that.<br /><br />Who else is there?<br /><br />There’s me.<br /><br />That’s wonderful, sir. … That’s wonderful. I do like a man that tells you right out he’s looking out for himself. Don’t we all? I don’t trust a man that says he’s not. And the man that’s telling the truth when he says he’s not I distrust most of all, because he’s an ass that’s going contrary to the laws of nature.<br /><br />Uh-huh. Now let’s talk about the black bird.<br />_______________________________________________<br /><br />Encountered in this form, Hammett’s dialogue has a theatrical effect—a story advanced through speeches and minimal physical business (like a stage play). If <span style="font-style: italic;">heard</span>, accompanied by sound effects (the clink of glasses, the pouring of whiskey, the striking of a match), it could be a radio drama (and has indeed been presented in that format). What does the dialogue accomplish? It provides information about the personalities, temperaments, purposes, and verbal habits of the speakers. It advances the story by bringing Spade and Gutman into an edgy first encounter and intimates that information regarding the black bird will be forthcoming.<br /><br />It pulls Brigid O’Shaughnessy and Joel Cairo (whom both Spade and the reader have met previously) into the ambient mix, and suggests to the reader that anyone who distrusts as many types of people as Gutman does is perhaps not to be trusted himself. Spade clearly doesn’t trust him, as evidenced by his laconic answers. Gutman, who doesn’t trust Spade, puts off for as long as possible discussing the black bird—a man who clearly likes to hear himself talk, and is himself willing to “beat about the bush” with high-sounding repetitious filler to avoid telling Spade anything of substance until he’s “sure” of where the detective stands. Spade, with singular focus, will not be deflected from wanting to know about the bird.<br /><br />The dialogue shows clearly how difficult it is for readers to predict with certainty what the content will be of any response to a particular utterance. Readers must read on to discover these responses, and in so doing will try to glean what they can of reliable and pertinent information relating to the problem or puzzle at hand. <span style="font-weight: bold;">While readers may not consciously analyze what the dialogue is accomplishing from the author’s point of view, careful readers will at the very least assimilate the gist of what it is the author’s trying to impart regarding characterization and story. All of this, the conscious and the subliminal, contributes to the readers’ Suspense.</span><br /><br /><br />QUERY TO FRIENDS AND BLOGGERS: IS THIS MAKING SENSE?<br /><br />I NEED SOME FEEDBACK. THANKS. (Vergil)<br /><br /><br /><br />1 <span style="font-style: italic;">The Maltese Falcon</span> © renewed by Dashiell Hammett, 1957<br />_______________________________<br /><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-size:85%;">Copyright © Robert D. Sutherland, 2009</span>Vergilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13045687055267007493noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-259810607439728423.post-74540613876854074832009-05-25T01:59:00.009-05:002009-09-06T02:36:50.695-05:00The Importance of Suspense -- Part 5Part 5<br /><br />Here is the fifth installment of the thread called “The Importance of Suspense", which is discussing "The Categories of Suspense in Mystery-Writing: How to Launch and Maintain Them”. I'm exploring this topic for the first time as the thread progresses; everything is tentative and provisional. I'd be very happy if interested bloggers would post comments, register points of agreement and disagreement, provide insights and examples from their own experience, and join in this effort. (Vergil)<br />______________________________________<br /><br />Suspense is generated by:<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Interaction of characters</span> (competition, misunderstanding, hostility, love relation, distrust, deceit, betrayal)<br /><br />Characters are the lifeblood of mystery fiction. Without them, there would be no mystery demanding solution; it’s human consciousness, after all, that interprets a set of circumstances and events as constituting a mystery.<br /><br />In large measure, readers read to associate with the characters—enjoying their diverse personalities, observing them responding to events, identifying with them, fearing for them, urging them on, second-guessing them, judging them, wishing them well. And of course authors enjoy the characters too: they’re fun to create, launch into play, and orchestrate in their interactions. <span style="font-weight: bold;">Suspense as I’ve defined it arises from characters’ interaction with events, or their interactions with each other. </span>I’ll discuss the former in the next section. Here I want to discuss Suspense that arises from “interpersonal” engagements.<br /><br />Many types of human interaction are capable of generating Suspense. People disagree, compete, fall in love, harbor bigotry and prejudice, mistrust others’ motives, lie, cheat, betray, nurse grudges, seek revenge, pass judgments, and enter into seductions. The <span style="font-style: italic;">particular</span> interactions that might produce Suspense for the reader are as infinite as the individual characters that authors create to people their stories.<br /><br />The following types of interactions come to mind by way of illustration: any conflict with an uncertain outcome; any misunderstanding needing to be resolved; a proposal of marriage; providing counsel or advice to a close-minded, headstrong person (who might be in denial); convincing an aged but stubborn parent to give up the car keys; disagreements regarding the significance of something; a person’s making a report and telling a truth, but not being taken seriously, nor believed; betrayal of a trusting friend for personal advantage; hiding a shameful secret from someone who has a need or right to know; mistrusting someone (insurance salesman, lawyer, nursing home director, cop, judge, or mortician) who promises something of benefit; a child’s providing emotional support to a grandparent at a time of crisis; spouse’s deceiving spouse to hide an adulterous affair, etc. And of course the necessary baseline conflict between the protagonist(s) and antagonist(s) is a given. <span style="font-weight: bold;">For readers, Suspense arises from not knowing the outcome of the particular interactions the fictional characters engage in, but wanting to know, and reading on to see what happens.</span> (Will she say yes, or reject him? will Aged Parent give up control of the keys? will “Cassandra”, who knows the truth, ever be believed? will Millicent find out that Edward is cheating on her?)<br /><br />_________________________________________<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Characters’ engagements with action or event</span> (the chase, the pursuit, a coming assassination, will they find the child in time? Etc.)<br /><br />Characters’ interactions with events are a common source of Suspense for readers. These interactions include characters’ responses to events that have already happened or are currently in process, as well as those yet to come that they’re anticipating or planning for. Some stories are chockablock with stressful events that hurl the protagonist from crisis to crisis so fast there’s no breathing space or oasis of calm. In a long work, such a rapid and unremitting pace can fatigue the reader; and by the narrative’s always being in a state of crisis, <span style="font-style: italic;">particular</span> crises lose their force, emotional impact, and what special meaning they might’ve had.<br /><br />The manufacturing of crises whose outcomes aren’t immediately certain is, I think, a relatively easy way to create Suspense: simply put the hero in harm’s way, push the button, and let the chips scatter as they must. Authors who wish to write thrillers (and even lazy authors) can fabricate a reasonably propulsive tale that satisfies readers who enjoy, and are content with, the titillation of constant Action. <span style="font-weight: bold;">But this ease of using crisis to generate Suspense should be a warning to authors who aspire to write fiction of a different sort than action-thrillers.</span><br /><br />And truly, “event” encompasses much more than crisis. It can be something as small as opening a door, or cleaning a wound, winning a bet, or sending an e-mail. On the other hand, it can be a longterm process, like settling a labor strike, or writing a novel, planting a garden, or planning a heist. <span style="font-weight: bold;">It’s by identifying with characters as they interact with events which have significant but uncertain consequences, and thereby vicariously sharing in this interaction, that readers themselves experience Suspense.</span><br /><br />Some actions and events are inherently more suspenseful than others. A standard device for generating suspense is The Chase. Though they are a cliché, chases <span style="font-style: italic;">do</span> quicken the reader’s pulse; it’s their effectiveness at doing so that’s <span style="font-style: italic;">made</span> them a cliché. And to be sure, they contribute legitimate suspense to a story (unless there are too many of them, in which case they become repetitious and a drag). For all his story-telling skills, the late Robert Ludlum seems to have been much given to The Chase: in the books of his I’ve read (and I stopped after six) it seemed that his protagonists were always on the run. <span style="font-weight: bold;">A final word regarding The Chase: for the reader, pursuit can be as suspenseful as flight.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Suspense is created when characters are forced to interact with events that present them with overwhelming odds, that hinder them with apparently insurmountable obstacles, that confront them with catastrophic situations which can be defused only by luck, pluck, cleverness, and speed.</span> (Can the protagonist forestall the scheduled assassination and thus prevent a war? find and deactivate the ticking bomb in the next four minutes? discover where the kidnapped girl’s been hidden and rescue her before she goes into diabetic coma? Etc.)<br /><br />Again, these devices frequently embody cliché: just consider how many novels, short stories, stage plays, radio dramas, films, and crime & detective TV series have used them. But skillful writers are able to avoid readers’ seeing them as clichés by employing them in fresh and surprising ways—so effectively that readers don’t consciously recognize them as something they’ve seen before. <span style="font-style: italic;">And they haven’t:</span>—because in the hands of skillful mystery writers the devices come to have a new life in unique surroundings, freshly minted in a space not visited before, a space inhabited by original, interesting characters embarked on what for them is an uncharted journey. Once enmeshed in the author’s well-woven web of suspense, readers have little choice but to join in and continue the journey with these characters, responding to events and circumstances as they come.<br /><br />____________________________________________<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">A series of connected events whose sequential unfolding produces consequences (the domino effect) that can be partially foreseen</span><br /><br />A useful way of generating suspense is for the author to plan a logical series of connected events which, when set in motion, go down sequentially like dominoes to produce consequences which readers can <span style="font-style: italic;">partially</span> foresee. (Each of these consequences, in turn, becomes a new event with its own potentials for generating suspense.)<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">When this device is used, readers’ Suspense arises from a (partial) understanding of the projected series of events and the fact that the occurrence of one will trigger the occurrence of the next, and so on. To the extent that readers can foresee the sequence, they feel excitement and suspenseful anticipation based in either hopefulness or dread.</span> (Frequently the “caper novel” exemplifies the use of this device.)<br /><br />I stress that the reader’s foreknowledge must be only <span style="font-style: italic;">partial</span>, because, as I said in Part 1, “Predictability is the great enemy of Suspense. Readers should not be allowed to know with certainty what lies ahead, and authors should sprinkle the path with surprises.” <span style="font-weight: bold;">While generating Suspense through partial foreknowledge and anticipation, authors must always allow for an element of surprise and the unexpected. Knowing (from experience) that the author they’re reading is inclined to spring surprises also intensifies the readers’ Suspense.<br /><br />___________________________________<br /><br /></span>Yet to come:<br /><br />• Foreshadowing (perhaps in dialogue): giving the reader something to anticipate<br />• The progress of misunderstanding or crucial revelations within dialogue<br />• Reader’s knowledge of something unknown to the detective: “Don’t open that closet!” (Not available in 1st. person)<br /><br />SUSPENSE AS A FUNCTION OF:<br /><br />• Verbal choices by the author<br />• Narrative pacing<br />• Withholding of information (from reader or protagonist)<br />• Setting, locale, atmosphere (Dartmoor, Vienna 1882, Mexico, a large hotel, a ski resort, a morgue)<br />• Isolation (mountain cabin in blizzard, secluded island with no helicopter or telephone, a dark cellar (“No one will hear your screams.”)<br /><br />GENERAL COMMENTS:<br /><br />Narration:<br /><br />Point of view (1st, 2nd, 3rd limited, 3rd omniscient narrator) and how each can or cannot generate certain types of Suspense<br /><br />Multiple points of view to tell the story<br /><br />The unreliable or untrustworthy first person narrator<br /><br />The frame narrative (first or third person)<br /><br />The first-person narrator an observer/sidekick/companion of the detective protagonist<br /><br />Ways of withholding information (to increase Suspense and trigger Surprise)<br /><br />Flashbacks?<br /><br />Miscellaneous:<br /><br />Playing fair with readers’ needs and expectations<br /><br />Jokes as creators of Suspense (an analogy with mystery-writing)<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-size:85%;">Copyright © Robert D. Sutherland, 2009</span>Vergilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13045687055267007493noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-259810607439728423.post-26090362045503765592009-05-23T02:16:00.012-05:002009-05-25T01:16:38.496-05:00The Importance of Suspense -- Part 4PART 4<br /><br />Here is the fourth installment of the thread called “The Importance of Suspense", which hopes to explore "The Categories of Suspense in Mystery-Writing: How to Launch and Maintain Them”. I'm exploring this topic for the first time as the thread progresses; everything is tentative and provisional. I'd be very happy if interested bloggers would post comments, register points of agreement and disagreement, provide insights and examples from their own experience, and join in this effort. (Vergil)<br />_________________________________________<br /><br />Merriam-Webster’s <span style="font-style: italic;">New Collegiate Dictionary</span> (1973) defines ‘suspense’ as “<span style="font-weight: bold;">2 a</span>: a mental uncertainty: ANXIETY <span style="font-weight: bold;">b</span>: pleasant excitement as to a decision or outcome [a novel of ~].” To my mind, this definition is neither specific nor detailed enough to provide much insight into what readers experience in reading mysteries, or much help to authors in deciding how best they can keep their readers turning pages.<br /><br />Therefore, in Part 1 of this thread, I presented the following general definition of ‘Suspense’ as, hopefully, more suggestive and useful to writers as they ply their craft: “<span style="font-style: italic;">In a literary context,</span> Suspense is a state of mind created when readers (a) <span style="font-style: italic;">do not know</span> what’s coming next in the narrative or what the outcome of a conflict or sequence of events will be, but (b) <span style="font-style: italic;">want to know</span>, and (c) <span style="font-style: italic;">care about what happens</span>.<br /><br />Since authors use various tactical narrative devices to induce the “state of mind” defined by (a-c) above, and since these devices create many <span style="font-style: italic;">different types</span>, or <span style="font-style: italic;">categories</span>, of suspense, I suggested in Part 2 that it would be useful to conceive ‘Suspense’ as a <span style="font-style: italic;">plural</span>. These diverse categories feed into and undergird the inherent baseline Suspense that readers experience in reading a mystery: and, in so doing, they produce a state of mind constantly assaulted, tweaked, and played upon by combinations of stressors which delay, impede, misdirect, and complexify readers’ attempts to satisfy their need to know. Suspense is intensified by readers’ encounters with deceitful people and shocking events, threats and perils, unforeseen twists in storyline, dark forebodings, frightening images, physical dangers, the expectation of surprise, etc., etc. These the author plans and choreographs to maximize readers’ pleasure and to keep them turning pages.<br /><br />Continuing to unpack the toolbox— Suspense is generated by:<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Danger to be faced or escaped from</span><br /><br />Danger (however manifested, and whether anticipated, immediately threatened, or actually in process) produces anxiety and requires some sort of defensive response (evasion, forestalling, flight, counter-threat/-strike, escape). <span style="font-weight: bold;">Suspense arises (1) from readers’ not knowing whether, or how, the protagonist will successfully withstand or neutralize or escape from the danger, (2) from (perhaps) not knowing the source of the danger or the shape it will take, or (3) from knowing full well what the nature of the danger is, and what its consequences will be. Suspense also can arise from readers’ identifying with protagonists as they face additional and subsidiary dangers in battling to survive or in making their escape.</span> Most thrillers, whether focused on action, psychology, or the supernatural, rely on actual, threatened, or anticipated dangers to propel their narratives.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Being confronted, stalked, or endangered by an Unknown Menace</span><br /><br />A subclass of the preceding is danger emanating from an Unknown Menace. <span style="font-weight: bold;">Suspense of high intensity can be generated by readers’ identifying with protagonists who (1) are aware of their being threatened with danger, or are actually experiencing it, but (2) do not know <span style="font-style: italic;">why</span> they are. And, feasibly, (3) do not know <span style="font-style: italic;">who</span> or <span style="font-style: italic;">what</span> is behind it. </span>A shadowy “faceless” menace (perhaps diffuse or indiscriminate in its victims) is inherently frightening, because one does not know what the extent or parameters of the danger might be, what forms it will take in manifesting itself, or even what is motivating it. The source might be a solitary anonymous stalker, a criminal conspiracy (drug cartel, combine of multinational corporations, rogue government agency, terrorists, etc.), an individual or group threatened by the protagonist’s activities, or—in the novel of paranormal terror—a malevolent supernatural force (e.g., Anson’s <span style="font-style: italic;">The Amityville Horror</span>, Lovecraft’s “The Dunwich Horror”, Blackwood’s “The Wendigo”, Dorothy McArdle’s <span style="font-style: italic;">The Uninvited</span>, etc.) (I am not including in this discussion the suspense generated by stories of disaster we’re all familiar with: volcanic eruptions, earthquakes, burning skyscrapers, epidemics, mountain climbing accidents, and sinking ocean liners. Somebody else can explore that topic.)<br /><br />Readers tend to identify with protagonists in peril (and thus share with them whatever Suspense <span style="font-style: italic;">they</span> experience). This is a boon to story-tellers. To increase readers’ Suspense, authors simply have to augment and intensify the dangers faced by the protagonists and the anxiety <span style="font-style: italic;">they</span> feel. However, the relative ease of revving things up presents a danger to <span style="font-style: italic;">authors themselves</span>. Simply stated, they may fail to make the conclusion fulfill the promise of the buildup. They paint themselves into a corner, their imagination peters out, they find that their initial premise (window dressing aside) is thin and lame.<br /><br />After they have caused readers to experience keen anxiety and to eagerly anticipate a resolution commensurate with their emotional investment, authors have an obligation to provide a worthy outcome. When I read <span style="font-style: italic;">The Da Vinci Code</span>, I thought it started well. But somewhere around the middle of the book I began to sense signs of strain, a falling off of novelty and imaginative vigor, a kind of repetition, growing predictability. I began to lose interest, fearing the worst. It came, with an ending so weak I <span style="font-style: italic;">almost</span> felt that I had wasted my time. It’s not the only suspenseful book I’ve read that let me down at the end. I’ll bet you’ve read some, too.<br /><br />But authors who hope to satisfy their readers and gain a following cannot afford to let people down. When people pick up a book to read, they are committing part of their <span style="font-style: italic;">life-time</span> to the effort. Authors should remember this and make sure the reader's experience is worth that very precious time.<br /><br />Yet to come:<br /><br />SUSPENSE GENERATED BY:<br /><br />• Interaction of characters (competition, misunderstanding, hostility, love relation, distrust, deceit, betrayal)<br />• Action or event (the chase, the pursuit, a coming assassination, will they find the child in time?, etc.)<br />• Sequence of connected events (the domino effect) which (perhaps) can be partially foreseen<br />• Foreshadowing (perhaps in dialogue): giving the reader something to anticipate<br />• The progress of misunderstanding or crucial revelations within dialogue<br />• Reader’s knowledge of something unknown to the detective: “Don’t open that closet!” (Not available in 1st. person)<br /><br />SUSPENSE AS A FUNCTION OF:<br /><br />• Verbal choices by the author<br />• Narrative pacing<br />• Withholding of information (from reader or protagonist)<br />• Setting, locale, atmosphere (Dartmoor, Vienna 1882, Mexico, a large hotel, a ski resort, a morgue)<br />• Isolation (mountain cabin in blizzard, secluded island with no helicopter or telephone, a dark cellar (“No one will hear your screams.”)<br /><br />GENERAL COMMENTS:<br /><br />Narration:<br /><br />Point of view (1st, 2nd, 3rd limited, 3rd omniscient narrator) and how each can or cannot generate certain types of Suspense<br /><br />Multiple points of view to tell the story<br /><br />The unreliable or untrustworthy first person narrator<br /><br />The frame narrative (first or third person)<br /><br />The first-person narrator an observer/sidekick/companion of the detective protagonist<br /><br />Ways of withholding information (to increase Suspense and trigger Surprise)<br /><br />Flashbacks?<br /><br />Miscellaneous:<br /><br />Playing fair with readers’ needs and expectations<br /><br />Jokes as creators of Suspense (an analogy with mystery-writing)<br /><br /><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-size:85%;">Copyright © Robert D. Sutherland, 2009</span><br /></span>Vergilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13045687055267007493noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-259810607439728423.post-12569183807957524302009-05-18T08:13:00.004-05:002009-06-09T00:25:39.956-05:00Thriller Writing MistakesHere are "The Six Most Common Mistakes That Thriller Writers Make," lifted from David Montgomery's summary of Joseph Finder's presentation at ThrillerFest a while back. This was posted at David's Crime Fiction Dossier blog and I hope he won't mind it being posted here as well. I think I need to memorize these as I get into the sequel to <strong><em>BLEEDER</em></strong> this summer.<br /><br /><br />MISTAKE #1: The Passive Hero<br /><br />Too many thrillers have heroes who don't act; they remain passive while events take place around them. The hero must advance the plot; s/he must take action. The hero can't simply investigate what's going on -- he must do something about it.<br /><br />MISTAKE #2: The Long Setup<br /><br />The story takes too long to get moving. Authors shouldn't just dump story on the reader; they should reveal it through action. Too many books start with a good opening, but then slow down to a crawl. One way to avoid this is to start the story as late as possible. If necessary, you can then go back and fill in details later on.<br /><br />MISTAKE #3: The Weak Second Act<br /><br />Too many books bog down in the middle, degenerating into repetitive conflict and simply regurgitating the same plot points over and over. The characters aren't progressing and changing. The conflict of a plot must progress and escalate; the plot points must change and vary throughout the narrative. This escalation of conflict, as well as variance of conflict, will not only keep the reader's interest, but help to develop and reveal character as well. The introduction of subplots will also help keep the second act moving. Whenever things start to get dull, remember: REVERSE, REVEAL, SURPRISE. Every scene must advance the plot.<br /><br />MISTAKE #4: Predictability<br /><br />Authors should never underestimate their readers, most of whom have read a lot of books and seen even more movies and TV shows. Readers know the tropes and cliches of the genre. If the story is predictable, they'll see where it's going a long way off and get bored. The key is to surprise them. Veer off from the expected course. If the obvious development is to take the plot in a certain direction, consider taking it in a different direction instead. One way to avoid this trap is not to over-outline. Be spontaneous in your writing. Allow the characters and the plot to surprise you.<br /><br />MISTAKE #5: The Lousy Ending<br /><br />Too many books send the reader off on a sour note by finishing with a lousy ending. A great ending is second only to a great beginning in importance. The ending should not consist of explaining everything that happened before or tying up all the loose ends. You should explain as little as possible; let the reader figure out the smaller details on his/her own. Great endings off have symmetry to the beginning. Twists can be good, but they must be earned. They must be set up earlier in the book and prepared for. When you finish the book, get out of there ASAP. Don't draw things out.<br /><br />MISTAKE #6: Showing Off<br /><br />Too many writers make the mistake of: "I've done the research; I'm going to cram it all in there." You should tell the reader the minimum they need in order to understand the plot; just the tip of the iceberg. Pare it down, leaving only the juiciest nuggets behind. Too much info will only slow down the story.<br /><br />BONUS MISTAKE #1: Overly Explicit Dialogue<br /><br />People don't narrate a story when they speak; they don't dump details and information.<br />People speak elliptically. Watch out for expository dialogue.<br /><br />BONUS MISTAKE #2: All Plot, No People<br /><br />The story won't matter if we don't care about the characters. On its own, the plot is abstract; it requires the characters to make it real and make it matter to the reader. Also, the stakes of the plot must matter to the characters in order for us to care as readers.<br /><br />BONUS MISTAKE #3: Action Is Boring<br /><br />Unlike in film where action scenes can be exciting, in books they too often are boring. What is interesting to the reader is how the characters react to the action and how they interact with each other. There should also be variety in your scenes; don't follow an action scene with another action scene and another action scene. Vary the pace, vary the types of scenes, slow down and speed up in order to give the reader a break and keep them interested.<br /><br />BONUS MISTAKE #4: Backstory Dump<br /><br />Don't make the mistake of dumping the characters' backstory on the reader all at once. It will bring your plot to a halt and bore the reader. Reveal the backstory slowly, in pieces, as necessary. Drop references in here and there; include mentions in dialogue; intersperse little details throughout the plot. There is always a trade-off of CHARACTER vs. PACE. It's important to find the balance of revealing enough about the characters in order to make them interesting and make the reader care about them, versus the need to keep the plot moving.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-259810607439728423.post-84415749556822503632009-05-17T02:49:00.013-05:002009-05-25T01:00:43.700-05:00The Importance of Suspense -- Part 3PART 3<br /><br />Here is the third installment of the thread called “The Importance of Suspense", which hopes to explore "The Categories of Suspense in Mystery-Writing: How to Launch and Maintain Them”. I'm thinking through this topic for the first time as the thread progresses; everything is tentative and exploratory. I'd be very happy if bloggers would make comments, register points of agreement and disagreement, provide insights and examples from their own experience, and join in this effort. (Vergil)<br />____________________________________________<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Cliffhangers</span><br /><br />A “cliffhanger” is a break or pause at a critical juncture in narrative flow which leaves unresolved a crisis in action or plot development that cries for resolution. <span style="font-weight: bold;">It creates Suspense for engaged readers by temporarily withholding knowledge regarding the crisis’s outcome which they desperately want to have.</span> When a cliffhanger occurs, it’s usually at the end of a chapter or installment. The use of cliffhangers was common in the 19th and early 20th centuries, when popular magazines published long novels in serial installments. Cliffhangers were a device to ensure that readers, to learn what happened, would eagerly anticipate (and purchase) the magazine’s next issue.<br /><br />Nowadays many people hold cliffhangers in low esteem as a cheap and “easy” way to generate suspense. In books, where chapters are contiguous, and resolutions follow fairly quickly on the heels of crises, the use of cliffhangers is transparently obvious as an attempt to create suspense, and can, if badly handled, smack of sensationalism. As a tactic, the cliffhanger’s value is further diminished when it’s used too frequently in a work, or when readers find the eagerly-awaited resolution to be a disappointing letdown that trivializes the crisis which aroused their concern. It does authors no good for readers to feel that their trust, good will, and emotional investment have been manipulated through the use of a device which is seen to be little more than a cheap trick, or, worse, a type of cheating.<br /><br />That said, it’s nonetheless true that cliffhangers can and do create Suspense. If well-managed and used judiciously, they have a legitimate place in the author’s inventory of devices for ensnaring readers. And there might well be particular occasions where they would be especially effective. But, all in all, cliffhangers should be used sparingly.<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Solution of problem or puzzle</span> (Can it be done? It better be!)<br /><br />By definition, mystery stories embody and dramatize the solving of puzzles: discovering truth in obscure and murky situations, ascertaining the motives behind unethical and criminal acts, reconstructing time-lines and sequences of events, establishing accountability and determining guilt, forecasting and preventing future harm, interpreting clues to find a missing “treasure”.<br /><br />These activities produce many types of Suspense, whether the puzzle-solvers are police professionals, amateur sleuths, insurance investigators, or private eyes. Detectives, like readers, are motivated by “<span style="font-style: italic;">not</span> knowing, but <span style="font-style: italic;">wanting</span> to know, and <span style="font-style: italic;">caring about</span> what it is they learn”. How they go about solving their puzzles, and whatever types of suspense they experience in pursuing that activity, echo and parallel the types of Suspense readers feel who identify with them and join their quest. It follows that, whatever else they are, mystery stories—as vehicles for the solution of puzzles—are inherently and <span style="font-style: italic;">quintessentially</span> suspenseful.<br /><br />However, for this present section, I wish to pull back from the global suspensefulness of the mystery story and focus on the specific type of Suspense that arises from requiring detectives to solve a <span style="font-style: italic;">specific</span> problem or puzzle <span style="font-style: italic;">within the narrative</span>.<br /><br />These internal problems and puzzles may be highly diverse. In a police procedural, for example, the detectives may be working against time to figure out the MO and personality traits of a serial killer, and clues implicit in the patterning of the murders, in order to save further lives. Or, before the timers detonate them, finding where on the airplane or in the convention hall the bombs have been planted. <span style="font-weight: bold;">Working against a deadline or playing “beat the clock” with dire consequences as the price of failure can greatly intensify the suspense that readers feel.</span><br /><br />The entire story frequently revolves around solving the puzzle. For example, breaking a code or cipher in espionage thrillers, where lives are at stake, or a battle can be won by monitoring the Enemy’s internal communications without their knowing. In <span style="font-style: italic;">The Da Vinci Code</span> much of the action depends on the decipherment and interpretation of arcane symbols and the messages they imply. In “The Adventure of the Dancing Men,” Sherlock Holmes cracks a pictographic cipher and learns that a woman's life is in danger, and then uses the cipher himself to trap her husband's killer; in “The Musgrave Ritual” he processes verbal clues in the form of a riddle to solve a disappearance and find a treasure. Other examples can readily be found in classical and contemporary mysteries.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">In this category, the Suspense arises from the reader’s not knowing whether the detective (1) will be able to solve the problem/puzzle, and (2) if so, whether the solution will lead to beneficial consequences, and/or will be accomplished in time to prevent some anticipated catastrophe. </span>(In some stories, part of the suspense in solving a problem or cracking a code may arise from a competition, or race, between the protagonist detective(s) and an antagonist or rival group, with something of value to be gained as the prize for winning.)<span style="font-weight: bold;"> Success in solving the puzzle must result in a significant payoff (saving lives, preserving a cultural or historical artifact, finding a treasure, etc.) both to maximize the creation of Suspense in “getting there”, and to justify the degree of Suspense which the reader has experienced.</span><br /><br />More to come:<br /><br /><br />SUSPENSE GENERATED BY:<br /><br />• Danger to be faced or escaped from<br />• Being confronted, stalked, or endangered by an Unknown Menace<br />• Interaction of characters (competition, misunderstanding, hostility, love relation, distrust, deceit, betrayal)<br />• Action or event (the chase, the pursuit, a coming assassination, will they find the child in time?, etc.)<br />• Sequence of connected events (the domino effect) which (perhaps) can be partially foreseen<br />• Foreshadowing (perhaps in dialogue): giving the reader something to anticipate<br />• The progress of misunderstanding or crucial revelations within dialogue<br />• Reader’s knowledge of something unknown to the detective: “Don’t open that closet!” (Not available in 1st. person)<br /><br />SUSPENSE AS A FUNCTION OF:<br /><br />• Verbal choices by the author<br />• Narrative pacing<br />• Withholding of information (from reader or protagonist)<br />• Setting, locale, atmosphere (Dartmoor, Vienna 1882, Mexico, a large hotel, a ski resort, a morgue)<br />• Isolation (mountain cabin in blizzard, secluded island with no helicopter or telephone, a dark cellar (“No one will hear your screams.”)<br /><br />GENERAL COMMENTS:<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Narration:</span><br /><br />Point of view (1st, 2nd, 3rd limited, 3rd omniscient narrator) and how each can or cannot generate certain types of Suspense<br /><br />Multiple points of view to tell the story<br /><br />The unreliable or untrustworthy first person narrator<br /><br />The frame narrative (first or third person)<br /><br />The first-person narrator an observer/sidekick/companion of the detective protagonist<br /><br />Ways of withholding information (to increase Suspense and trigger Surprise)<br /><br />Flashbacks?<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Miscellaneous:</span><br /><br />Playing fair with readers’ needs and expectations<br /><br />Jokes as creators of Suspense (an analogy with mystery-writing)<br /><br /><span style="font-size:78%;">Copyright © Robert D. Sutherland, 2009</span>Vergilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13045687055267007493noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-259810607439728423.post-69110022167805955212009-05-15T00:52:00.015-05:002009-08-30T14:27:01.100-05:00The Importance of Suspense -- Part 2PART <span style="font-size:100%;">2</span><br /><br />Here is the second installment of the thread called “The Importance of Suspense", which hopes to explore "The Categories of Suspense in Mystery-Writing: How to Launch and Maintain Them”. This is a subject which has interested me as a writer for a long while. I think that "Suspense" (as I define it in this installment) is a necessary component of effective and successful writing in <span style="font-style: italic;">any</span> genre (but mysteries have their own peculiar requirements and possibilities for generating Suspense which deserve special notice). I'm thinking through this topic for the first time as the thread progresses; everything is tentative and exploratory. I'd be very happy if bloggers would make comments, register points of agreement and disagreement, provide insights from their own experience, and join in this effort. (Vergil)<br />__________________________________________<br /><br />Broadly speaking, it’s Suspense that keeps readers moving forward through a story. If predictability, the great enemy of Suspense, once manages to come within the gates, readers’ interest will be undermined; indifference and boredom will likely ensue. To hold their readers, authors must, at all costs, avoid boring them.<br /><br />It strikes me that Suspense is like the head of steam that drives a train or turns the screws that propel an ocean liner on its course. The author's job is to maintain the pressure so that forward movement never flags. There are many ways that authors can do this, many devices and maneuvers that will bind readers fast and keep them turning pages. All these tactics serve the double strategy of making readers <span style="font-style: italic;">want</span> to know what happens, and <span style="font-style: italic;">care about</span> what happens. Since in their diversity these discrete tactics result in various <span style="font-style: italic;">kinds</span> of Suspense, <span style="font-weight: bold;">it might be wise to conceive ‘Suspense’ in the plural. Successful authors will empower all of these “suspenses”—whatever their source and causative agency—to work together as a whole to net readers in a web from which they can’t escape.</span> Let’s examine some of these tactics and see where they take us.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">STRUCTURAL DEVICES</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">The “inverted” detective story: reader as spectator</span><br /><br />• Pioneered in the early 20th century by R. Austin Freeman, the “inverted detective story” employs a narrative structure where, early on, readers witness the crime and know who the murderer is. What the reader doesn’t know is whether, and by what means, the killer will be caught. <span style="font-weight: bold;">Suspense arises from reading on to discover these things, and from watching the detective reconstruct the crime, gather evidence, and apprehend the perpetrator.</span> (The inverted detective story has been represented in recent years by the popular <span style="font-style: italic;">Columbo</span> TV series, with Peter Falk as the detective.) Foreknowledge of the murderer’s identity tends to put readers into the role of spectators rather than that of being detectives in their own right working to unravel the mystery alongside the protagonists or in competition with them. (Readers who like playing detective, or solving puzzles, or matching wits with the protagonist and/or the author, may not be as gripped by the inverted detective story as they would be by a more conventional whodunit. Those who enjoy watching a problem-solving protagonist at work, or observing the psychological unraveling of a criminal ego, may greatly enjoy the inverted detective story.)<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">The caper: reader as observer/”participant”</span><br /><br />• In the subclass of crime novel called “the caper”, the plot entails an illegal undertaking (usually a theft of money, jewels, or rare artifacts—or feasibly an assassination or act of sabotage) organized and planned by a group of conspirators each of whom has a specialized role to play in the enterprise. By the author’s focusing on the personalities of the conspirators and largely adopting their point of view, the criminals become the story’s collective protagonist. The reader is thereby led to identify with them and take an interest in the outcome of their enterprise. To that extent, the reader is not only an observer of the action as it develops, but also a vicarious “participant” in the scheme. <span style="font-weight: bold;">Suspense arises from readers’ (a) not knowing whether the undertaking will succeed, and (b) (through having “participated” in the planning of its stages) being aware, in a general sense, of what might go wrong. </span><span style="font-weight: bold;">As the action unfolds, readers’ suspense is intensified as complications aggregate—setbacks, unforeseen accidents, miscues, stumbling blocks, and interpersonal squabbles—that threaten to disrupt the caper or defeat it altogether.</span> (This tendency of well-laid plans to go astray has frequently led caper novelists to invest their stories with irony and humor. But even farce can be productive of Suspense. On the other hand, some capers are deadly serious; and one type of suspense <span style="font-style: italic;">these</span> generate is anticipatory dread.)<br /><br />Coming up:<br /><br />SUSPENSE GENERATED BY:<br /><br />• Cliffhangers<br />• Solution of problem or puzzle (perhaps against a deadline of some sort), or the cracking of a “code” (can it be done? It better be!)<br />• Danger to be faced or escaped from<br />• Interaction of characters (competition, misunderstanding, hostility, love relation, distrust, deceit, betrayal)<br />• Action or event (the chase, the pursuit, a coming assassination, will they find the child in time?, etc.)<br />• Sequence of connected events (the domino effect) which (perhaps) can be partially foreseen<br />• Foreshadowing (perhaps in dialogue): giving the reader something to anticipate<br />• The progress of misunderstanding or crucial revelations within dialogue<br />• Reader’s knowledge of something unknown to the detective: “Don’t open that closet!” (Not available in 1st. person)<br /><br />SUSPENSE AS A FUNCTION OF:<br /><br />• Verbal choices by the author<br />• Narrative pacing<br />• Withholding of information (from reader or protagonist)<br />• Setting, locale, atmosphere (Dartmoor, Vienna 1882, Mexico, a large hotel, a ski resort, a morgue)<br />• Isolation (mountain cabin in blizzard, secluded island with no helicopter or telephone, a dark cellar (“No one will hear your screams.”)<br /><br />GENERAL COMMENTS:<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Narration:</span><br /><br />Point of view (1st, 2nd, 3rd limited, 3rd omniscient narrator) and how each can or cannot generate certain types of Suspense<br /><br />Multiple points of view to tell the story<br /><br />The unreliable or untrustworthy first person narrator<br /><br />The frame narrative (first or third person)<br /><br />The first-person narrator an observer/sidekick/companion of the detective protagonist<br /><br />Ways of withholding information (to increase Suspense and trigger Surprise)<br /><br />Flashbacks?<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Miscellaneous:</span><br /><br />Playing fair with readers’ needs and expectations<br /><br />Jokes as creators of Suspense (an analogy with mystery-writing)<br /><br /><span style="font-size:78%;">Copyright © Robert D. Sutherland, 2009</span>Vergilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13045687055267007493noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-259810607439728423.post-29303557807521529032009-05-12T08:29:00.004-05:002009-05-26T22:16:39.729-05:00Rules for Suspense and Thrillers(In 1994, John Grisham revealed to NEWSWEEK that he credited the following article by Brian Garfield with giving him the tools to create his ground-breaking thriller, THE FIRM , as well as subsequent books. Garfield himself is a noted bestselling novelist, as well as a screenwriter, producer, and nonfiction writer. He won the Edgar Award for HOPSCOTCH, which was made into the prize-winning movie of the same name, starring Walter Matthau and Glenda Jackson.)<br /><br />"The English call them thrillers, and in our clumsier way we call them novels of suspense. They contain elements of mystery, romance and adventure, but they don't fall into restrictive categories. And they're not circumscribed by artificial systems of rules like those that govern the whodunit or the gothic romance. The field is wide enough to include Alistair MacLean, Allen Drury, Helen Maclnnes, Robert Crichton, Graham Greene, and Donald E. Westlake. (Now there's a parlay.) The market is not limited by the stigma of genre labels, and therefore the potential for success of a novel in this field is unrestricted: DAY OF THE JACKAL, for instance, was a first novel.<br /><br />The game's object: To perch the reader on edge --- to keep him flipping pages to find out what's going to happen next. The game's rules are harder to define; they are few, and these are elastic. The seasoned professional learns the rules mainly in order to know how to break them to good effect. But such as they are, the rules can be defined as follows.<br /><br /><strong>1. Start with action; explain it later.</strong><br />This is an extension of Raymond Chandler's famous dictum: When things slow down, bring in a man with a gun. To encourage the reader to turn to page 2, give him something on page 1--conflict, trouble, fear, violence. I realize you've got a lot of background that needs to be established, leading up to the first moments of overt conflict, but you can establish all that in chapter 2. Flash back to it if you need to. But in Chapter 1, get the show on the road.<br /><br />2. <strong>Make it tough for your protagonist.<br /></strong>Give him a worthy antagonist and make things look hopeless. Don't drop convenient solutions in his lap. The tougher the opposition, the more everything is stacked against the protagonist, the better.<br /><br /><strong>3. Plant it early; pay it off later.</strong><br />Don't bring in new characters or facts at the end to help solve the protagonist's dilemma. He must work out his own solution based on a conflict that's established early in the story. No cavalry to the rescue, and no sudden unearthing of a revealing letter written before he died by a character who was dispatched way back in Chapter 3. (Unless, of course, you established in Chapter 4 that such a letter exists, and followed that revelation with a race between the protagonist and his enemies to see who'll get the letter first.) No cavalry to the rescue.<br /><br /><strong>4. Give the protagonist the initiative.<br /></strong>All good dramatic writing centers on conflict --- interior (alcoholism, oedipal conflicts) or exterior (a dangerous enemy, an alien secret police force). Only in poor gothic fiction is the protagonist habitually and tearfully and hand-wringingly at the mercy of evil opposing forces that push him or her around at will. The best story is usually that in which the protagonist takes active steps to achieve a goal against impossible odds, or to prevent opposing forces from overcoming him or his loved ones. The protagonist may begin by reacting, but in the end he must act from his own initiative.<br /><br /><strong>5. Give the protagonist a personal stake.</strong><br />No longer is it acceptable for the hero to solve a mystery just because it presents an interesting puzzle. The more intimate his involvement in the main conflict of the story, the better. He himself, or his aims, should be in jeopardy: His own life or those of his loved ones should be in danger, or his best friend has been murdered, or he is the kind of character whose values and principles won't let him sit by and allow injustice to destroy people around him. Whatever the conflict is, if he loses, it's going to cost him horribly; that's the essence.<br /><br /><strong>6. Give the protagonist a tight time limit, and then shorten it.<br /></strong>This doesn't always work because the logic of many stories prohibits it; don't use it unless you can work it in believably. But when time is a factor, and when the brief span of time in which the hero must resolve the conflict is then shortened, you have gone a long way toward heightening the suspense.<br /><br /><strong>7.</strong> <strong>Choose your character according to your own capacities, as well as his.<br /></strong>Don't use as your protagonist an accomplished professional spy unless you are prepared to do the research and groundwork necessary to create such a character convincingly. It is better, particularly when approaching the early stages of your own professionalism, to stick to the familiar. Some of the most successful suspense-novel protagonists --- many of Eric Ambler's, for instance --- are ordinary innocent people caught up in dangerous webs. The indignant honest idealist makes a good protagonist because his innocence makes the professional opposition all the more frightening. Yet a plot-structure for this character is often difficult to contrive because, in spite of his naiveté, he has to be clever and resourceful enough (not lucky) to prevail over his awesome enemies. The other face of this coin, of course, is the professional-crook-as-protagonist; he's easy to identify with because he's an outcast, an underdog, one man using his wits to survive against society's oppressive machinery. But the pitfalls of this genre are treacherous, and unless you know criminal procedure and feel comfortable competing with Anthony Burgess and Richard Stark, it's better to avoid the crook-hero in the beginning.<br /><br /><strong>8. Know your destination before you set out.</strong><br />The prevailing weakness of many suspense stories that are otherwise successful is the letdown the reader experiences at the end --- the illogical and disappointing anticlimax. It isn't enough to set up intriguing conflicts and obey all the other rules if you haven't got an ending that fulfills the promise of the preceding chapters. It becomes disgustingly obvious when a writer has confronted his hero with thrilling obstacles only to paint himself into a corner. Presented with his own unsolvable cliffhanger, he is reduced to bringing in deus ex machina to solve the hero's problems for him. It isn't necessary to tie up all loose ends, but the climax should resolve the principal conflict one way or another. (In recent years, to avoid the traditional clichés of virtue-triumphant or ironic-downfall, several talented novelists have resorted to obscure endings that no reader could possibly decipher. I rather hope the fad is dying out; whatever the reasons behind it, it demonstrates lazy thinking and infuriates the reader.) The best key to a good ending is to know what the ending will be before you start writing the book. Whether you write a preliminary outline or not, you should know where the journey will end, and how.<br /><br /><strong>9. Don't rush in where angels fear to tread.</strong><br />I admit this one is a catchall. Essentially I mean that it is wise to observe not only what the pros do, but also what they avoid doing. The best writers do not jump on bandwagons; they build new ones. The pro doesn't write a caper novel about the world's biggest heist unless he's convinced he can write an unusual story with a unique and important twist. Otherwise he risks unfavorable comparison with the classics in that subgenre. "Why bother with it if it's not as taut as Rififi and not as funny as The Hot Rock?" Yet this should not be taken to mean every writer must obey faddish advice, such as "Spy fiction is dead," or "Historical novels are out this season." There is no such thing as a dead genre because the human imagination is limitless, and there is never a dearth of new ideas, new twists, new talents. The question is, "Is this idea strong enough and important enough to make the story sufficiently different from its predecessors to merit publication?" If a novel is good enough, it will find a publisher whether it is a hard-boiled detective story, a western, a spy novel, a historical adventure, or a novel about bug-eyed monsters from Mars. If it isn't good enough, the publisher may reject it by saying that such novels are out of style, but this is merely a euphemism.<br /><br /><strong>10. Don't write anything you wouldn't want to read.<br /></strong>This one sounds self-evident, but I've met several young writers who decided they wanted to start out by hacking their way through gothics or westerns, just to learn the ropes, because those categories looked easy to imitate. Nuts. If you start out that way, you'll end up a hack. Now if you like to read westerns, then write a western. But don't write into a genre for which you have contempt. If you don't like gothics but insist on writing one, your contempt will show; you can't hide it. I don't say you can't sell books this way; God knows people do, all too often. But if you thoroughly enjoy sea stories --- even if you don't know a thing about nautical life --- you're better off attempting to write a sea story because you'll go into it with enthusiasm."<br /><br />© 1973, 1994 Brian Garfield (These "rules" for writing suspense fiction were published in WRITER'S DIGEST, Feb. 1973, and reprinted in the 1994 WRITER'S YEARBOOK, pp 22-23. They have since been reprinted frequently.)<br />_____________________________<br /><br />You can bet I'll be following these "rules" (maybe breaking one or two creatively) as I work on my next book this summer, a sequel to <strong><em>BLEEDER </em></strong>(Sophia Institute Press, due August 2009).Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0