Suspense. Where does it start?

Great post on Edit Torrent to discuss Suspense. Join us!


http://edittorrent.blogspot.com/2011/04/suspense-where-does-it-start.html

#Southfield Public #Library PR CSI Southfield #michigan

Phone 248.796.4362 Fax 248.796.4365  News Release Date: March 2, 2011 Contact: Community Outreach For Release: Immediate                         CSI:Southfield @ the Southfield Public Library   Southfield, MI – Come to the Southfield Public Library on Tuesday, March 15 at 7:00 pm in Meeting Room to meet a real life crime scene investigator from the Southfield Police Department.   For nearly a decade, the trendy network television drama CSI: Crime Scene Investigation has fascinated viewers with high-tech crime fighting tools and accomplished something many writers and authors have struggled to do – making science exciting! CSI Southfield will look through the lens of an experienced crime scene investigator and explore the relationship between real life forensic science and popular media's adaptation.   This program is presented in conjunction with Everyone's Reading The Lincoln Lawyer by Michael Connelly.  Find out more information about Everyone's Reading at www.everyonesreading.info.               Southfield Public Library is located in the Southfield Municipal Complex, 26300                                                     Evergreen Road.  Visit the Library's Home Page at www.southfieldlibrary.org. For            further information, please call the Guest Services Desk at 248.796.4224.   ### Sylvia Hubbard Author, Blogger and Founder of Motown Writers Network & The African American Electronic Literary Network Author of Romance & Suspense and Internet Marketing for Writers & Business NOW AVAILABLE: Secrets, Lies and Family Ties order your copy now Coming Soon: Tanner's Devil www.redrosepublishing.com --- On Wed, 3/2/11, Jane Sloan <jsloan@sfldlib.org> wrote: From: Jane Sloan <jsloan@sfldlib.org> Subject: Southfield Public Library PR CSI Southfield To: "Jane Sloan" <jsloan@sfldlib.org> Cc: "Jane Sloan" <jsloan@sfldlib.org> Date: Wednesday, March 2, 2011, 1:17 PM                                                                                      Phone 248.796.4362 Fax 248.796.4365  News Release Date: March 2, 2011 Contact: Community Outreach For Release: Immediate                         CSI:Southfield @ the Southfield Public Library   Southfield, MI – Come to the Southfield Public Library on Tuesday, March 15 at 7:00 pm in Meeting Room to meet a real life crime scene investigator from the Southfield Police Department.   For nearly a decade, the trendy network television drama CSI: Crime Scene Investigation has fascinated viewers with high-tech crime fighting tools and accomplished something many writers and authors have struggled to do – making science exciting! CSI Southfield will look through the lens of an experienced crime scene investigator and explore the relationship between real life forensic science and popular media's adaptation.   This program is presented in conjunction with Everyone's Reading The Lincoln Lawyer by Michael Connelly.  Find out more information about Everyone's Reading at www.everyonesreading.info.               Southfield Public Library is located in the Southfield Municipal Complex, 26300                                                     Evergreen Road.  Visit the Library's Home Page at www.southfieldlibrary.org. For            further information, please call the Guest Services Desk at 248.796.4224.   ###

Part XI Suspense - Creating A Villain

A “bad guy” appears in all suspense, mystery and thriller novels. He can be focused on one individual, a series of individuals, the country or the world. The villain, as you know, must have redeeming qualities as well as evil attributes, and often he can hid beneath another persona and is not suspected. If the story introduces a character who seems evil, sinister or suspicious, you can almost bet he’s not the villain.

To create an edge-of-the-seat suspense, the author spends much time crafting the villain. A villain must be a worthy opponent. This has been covered in other articles on this blog, but it is worth reminding. The villain needs to be cunning, amoral or believes he has the right, and dangerous.

He must have valid motivation for his desired crime or continuing crime, such as: revenge, righting a wrong, protecting his possessions or loved ones, vindicating an action he believes went unpunished. He must have the opportunity to have committed the crime, and the appearance of innocence. This is why sometimes the protagonist becomes a suspect. He can be the charming insurance man or the kindly crossing guard. He can hid beneath his role in the story while the author provides only hints of information that can be put together like a puzzle to help tilt the protagonist in the right direction. The villain can be involved in the characters lives and appears innocent, but in some types of suspense, the villain can be known to the reader and unknown to the protagonist. Yet creating the villain follows the same procedure.

Killers can use many methods of committing murder. Select an appropriate method of perpetrating the crime (the modus operandi) that fits your character. Provide the villain with the kind of knowledge, know-how, strength and ability to be successful. Make his choice plausible. If he poisons someone, how would he know the poison will work? What career or opportunity would he have to steal or purchase what he needed? The old movie and play Arsenic and Old Lace is the story of two elderly women who poison lonely men with elderberry wine and bury them in the basement with their mentally-handicapped brother’s help.

Villains can be diabolical or as sweet as the two sisters in Arsenic and Old Lace, but make them real by providing them with realistic motivation, ability equal or greater than the protagonist, and a credible modus operandi to fit their physical and mental ability.

Posted by Gail Gaymer Martin

About Me

Multi-award-winning author, Gail Gaymer Martin writes Christian fiction for Steeple Hill and Barbour Publishing. She has forty-seven contracted novels with over three million books in print. Gail is the author of Writers Digiest’s Writing the Christian Romance. Gail is a co-founder of American Christian Fiction Writers, a keynote speaker at churches, libraries and civic organizations  and presents workshops at conference across the US. Gail live in the Detroit area.

www.gailmartin.com
www.gailmartin.blogspot.com 
www.writingright-martin.blogspot.com 

A Dad Of His Own - Coming March 2011
Dad In Training, Groom in Training, Bride in Training - Steeple Hill Love Inspired
Monterey Memories - Barbour Publishing
Writing The Christian Romance - Writers Digest 

Part X Suspense - Goals and Motivation

For believable characters, all readers need to understand the character’s motivation for committing or solving a crime. Suspense tends to be fast paced and depends on action and psychological tension so a clear motivation provides reality for the reader.

A novel offers two significant ways to provide information different from a movie or TV.
• Time - The character has the advantage of multiple scenes to show motivation.
• Introspection - The character can reveal motivation, goal and attitudes in his thoughts.

Goals are best understood when the reader understands the motivation. Why does he kill children? Why is he stalking the woman? Why does she marry and then kill her spouse? Why does he steal?

Goals and motivation are important for all main characters in the novel, especially the antagonist and protagonist. The victim may also have significant backstory to help explain the crime.

Protagonist
While the protagonist’s goal in suspense is usually to punish the criminal, stop the villain from following through on dire threats, or squelch a dangerous situation. His backstory will reveal if he is only doing his job or if he has a greater motivation that causes him to strive for success. Has the incident affect his life or a loved ones? Does he feel threatened? Is it a moral or spiritual issue? Does the crime go against a deep value? The motivation of the goal can be a complex blend of reasons.

Antagonist
A villain needs to be believable, and the author does that by providing him with at least one redeeming quality and reasonable motivation, even if it is skewed or wrong. The most despicable person may love his dog or is kind to his parents, but he will strive to harm someone who has disgraced his family’s name.

Suspense has many sub-genres that affects the types of goals and motivations of he characters. Use a search engine to review the specifics for each genre. As an example of differences, I will review psychological suspense and romantic suspense.

Psychological Suspense
Psychological suspense involves moral danger, and usually two plots run through the story for the protagonist. The first plot is stopping the crime or catching the criminal. The second plot line is a personal weakness, dilemma or conflict in the life of the protagonist—sick child, failing marriage, money problems, or an variety of issues.

The villain also needs motivation that makes sense. Often it is revenge or power, and usually a goal or motivation warped by a twisted worldview.

Romantic Suspense
A popular form of suspense involves romance. The focus is on both the hero and heroine, usually one is in trouble and the other is trying to solve the problem. The story often leads to suspicion placed on one or the other and the character begins to view the person as a threat.

In romantic suspense, the antagonist can be a sexual predator, a character with an obsession or a person out for revenge against the individual or her family.

When dealing with goals and motivation, remember:
• Goals are unique for each character.
• Motivation comes from backstory and/or the result of a recent action.
• Both protagonist and antagonist have strengths and weaknesses that affect goals & motivation.
• Ask yourself I the action is realistic. Would you react this way under the same circumstances?
• Readers want excitement and reality.

Posted by Gail Gaymer Martin

About Me

Multi-award-winning author, Gail Gaymer Martin writes Christian fiction for Steeple Hill and Barbour Publishing. She has forty-seven contracted novels with over three million books in print. Gail is the author of Writers Digiest’s Writing the Christian Romance. Gail is a co-founder of American Christian Fiction Writers, a keynote speaker at churches, libraries and civic organizations  and presents workshops at conference across the US. Gail live in the Detroit area.

www.gailmartin.com
www.gailmartin.blogspot.com 
www.writingright-martin.blogspot.com 

A Dad Of His Own - Coming March 2011
Dad In Training, Groom in Training, Bride in Training - Steeple Hill Love Inspired
Monterey Memories - Barbour Publishing
Writing The Christian Romance - Writers Digest