title: Writing the Thriller: How to Craft Page-Turning Suspense with Instruction from Best-Selling Authors
author: T. MacDonald Skillman
description: The first thing T. Macdonald Skillman sets out to do in <i>Writing the Thriller</i> is define the thriller. Unlike the mystery, she says, "Suspense is emotional. It's surprise and confusion and fear and anticipation. And suspense is danger. Immediate danger." Thrillers come in a variety of guises: action-adventures; legal, medical, techno-, and political thrillers; psychological suspense; romantic-relationship suspense; women-in-jeopardy suspense. Skillman addresses each element of fiction writing--such as setting, dialogue, and point of view--as it applies to the various types of thriller. For all thrillers, she says, it is best to begin "in the midst of the action or danger"; any subsequent back story should "add a new dimension to the suspense itself." And the pacing should be "like climbing a long, steep series of stairways.... As you cling to the railing at the bottom of the last set of stairs, your heart is pounding; your lungs are burning." Most useful here are Skillman's case studies in plotting, for which she creates eight plots (one for each type of thriller) using the same cast of characters.
zlib_text: > PRAISE FOR SNARE
  
  > ‘Snare is a smart, ambitious, and hugely satisfying thriller, striking in
  > its originality and written with all the style and poise of an old hand.
  > Lilja is destined for Scandi super stardom’ Eva Dolan
  
  > ‘Clear your diary. As soon as you begin reading Snare, you won’t be able to
  > stop until the final page’ Michael Wood
  
  > ‘An emotional suspense rollercoaster on a par with The Firm, as desperate,
  > resourceful, profoundly lovable characters scheme against impossible odds’
  > Alexandra Sokoloff
  
  > ‘For a small island, Iceland produces some extraordinary writers, and Lilja
  > is one of the best. Snare is an enthralling tale of love and crime that
  > stays with you long after you have turned the last page’ Michael Ridpath
  
  > ‘Zips along, with tension building and building … thoroughly recommended’
  > James Oswald
  
  > ‘Crisp, assured and nail-bitingly tense, Snare is an exceptional read,
  > cementing Lilja’s place as one of Iceland’s most outstanding crime writers’
  > Yr