Mastering Suspense, Structure, and Plot: How to Write Gripping Stories That Keep Readers on the Edge of Their Seats

by Jane K. Cleland, Hallie Ephron (Foreword by)

Overview

With case studies, exercises, and dozens of examples from best-selling authors, Mastering Suspense, Structure, & Plot is the key to writing compelling stories that leave your readers wanting more.

Suspense is one of the most powerful tools a writer has for captivating readers – but it isn't just for thrillers. From mainstream fiction to memoir, suspense creates the emotional tension that keeps readers on the edge of their seats. Mastering Suspense, Structure, & Plot is your hands-on guide to weaving suspense into your narrative. Award-winning author Jane K. Cleland teaches you how to navigate genre conventions, write for your audience, and build gripping tension to craft an irresistible page-turner.

Inside, Cleland will teach you how to:
• Implement thirteen no-fail techniques to construct an effective plot and structure for your story
• Use Cleland's Plotting Road Map to add elements of suspense like twists, reversals, and moments of danger
• Write subplots with purpose
• Improve your descriptions, character development, sentence structure, and more

"Indispensable! For newbie authors and veterans alike, this terrific how-to is your new go-to. Don't write your book without it – it's a treasure."
– Hank Phillippi Ryan, Agatha, Anthony, Macavity and Mary Higgins Clark award-winning author

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781599639673
Publisher:	Penguin Publishing Group
Publication date:	04/28/2016
Pages:	240
Product dimensions:	5.40(w) x 8.40(h) x 0.90(d)

Table of Contents

Foreword 1

Introduction 4

Part 1 Thinking

Chapter 1 Know Your Readers 8

Chapter 2 Structure is King 19

Chapter 3 Jane's Plotting Road Map 35

Chapter 4 Set the Stage 53

Chapter 5 Layer in Two Subplots 70

Chapter 6 Isolate Your Protagonist-and Everyone Else 82

Chapter 7 The Devil Made Me Do It 100

Part 2 Writing

Chapter 8 Add Surprise-Sparingly 114

Chapter 9 Get Into Your Readers' Heads 133

Chapter 10 Whisper, Don't Shout 155

Chapter 11 Illuminate Fear and Dread 172

Chapter 12 Reveal Answers Slowly 186

Chapter 13 Write Sentences That Work 201

Chapter 14 Conclusion 214

Afterword 222

Editorial Reviews

"Award-winning author Jane Cleland has crafted an insightful and entertaining page-turner about crafting page-turners. Mastering Suspense, Structure, & Plot belongs on every writer's shelf." —Wendy Corsi Staub, New York Times best-selling author
 
"Unputdownably indispensable! For newbie authors and veterans alike, this terrific how-to is your new go-to. Don't write your book without it—it's a treasure." —Hank Phillippi Ryan, Agatha, Anthony, Macavity and Mary Higgins Clark award winning author

"Masterful!  I love this book. Oh, how I wish I'd had it when I was struggling with my first crime novel. This is a gold mine of information, of insight on how to structure and pace the novel. Brilliant. And even as I write my current book I find myself reflecting on her insights, and using them. This isn't about being formulaic. It's about first understanding the structure, and then making it your own. Mastering Suspense, Structure, & Plot is an absolutely extraordinary resource for anyone serious about writing not just a crime novel, but any book. —Louise Penny, #1 New York Times best-selling author

"Jane Cleland had drawn a detailed road map for navigating the suspense-writing journey. In a well-thought-out and artfully constructed way, she concisely covers it all. I wish I had read Mastering Suspense, Structure, & Plot before I ever started writing mysteries, but I sure am glad to have this book now." —Mary Jane Clark, New York Times best-selling author

"Leave it to Jane Cleland, the reigning queen of the traditional mystery, to reveal the secrets of suspense—and to take the sweat out of writing today's hottest genre!" —Paula Munier, senior literary agent at Talcott Notch Literary Agency and author of Plot Perfect

From the Publisher