20 essential elements of a bestselling thriller

7/18/2019 20 Essential Elements of a Bestselling Thriller

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20 Essential Elements of a Bestselling Thriller, by Jodie RennerPosted by Jenny Milchman

20 Essential Elements of a Bestselling ThrillerWe all want the same thing, right? No, not *that* thing. What we

suspense writers and fans of the genre want is a book that leaes usdraped oer the edge of our seats, hanging on the author!s eery ne"tword. While no one can guarantee a seat#of#the#pants ride##there!s acertain ine$able magic that takes place on the page between writerand reader##in this week!s blog post Jodie %enner comes close.

Follow these tips, breathe them in and internali&e them, and you willhae done the thing we!re all here for. 'ou!ll hae written a thriller. (fyou want your thriller or romantic suspense to be a compelling page#turner, make sure you)e included most or all of these twentyelements

+ 1. A protagonist whos both ordinary and heroi!.%atherthan haing a -uperman inincible#type hero, it)s moresatisfying to the readers if you use a regular person who)s throwninto stressful, then increasingly harrowing situations, and mustsummon all of his courage, strength and inner resources tooercome the odds, sae himself and other innocent people, anddefeat eil.

/. A li"eable, sympatheti! protagonist 0he readers need to beable to warm up to your main character 1uickly, to start identifying

with her2 otherwise they won)t really care what happens to her.-ono cold, sel3sh, arrogant characters for heroes or heroines4

5. A worthy ad#ersary for the protagonist 'our antagonistneeds to be as cleer, strong, resourceful and determined as yourprotagonist, but also truly nasty, immoral and frightening.

6. An interesting setting %eaders like to 3nd out about placesthey haen)t been, whether it)s the seedy side of 7hicago, glit&y8ollywood, rural 9entucky, the mountains of 7olorado, or thebayous of :ouisiana ; or more distant, e"otic locations. <nd milk

your setting for all it)s worth.

=. A story that $ts the protagonist and #i!e%#ersa (f it doesn)t,change your protagonist ; or your story line. 'ou can always useyour present one in another noel.

>. An in!iting in!identWhat happens to the main character to setthe story eents in action? Make it tense and compelling.

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http://www.blogger.com/profile/04410805792044518458



. A great plot, with ongoing !on&i!t and tension 'ou need abig story 1uestion and plenty of intrigue. <nd eery scene shouldcontain tension and !on&i!t of some kind. (f it doesn)t, delete it.

@. 'ots of s(spense 9eep the readers on the edge of their seats,turning the pages to 3nd out what)s going to happen ne"t. -ee myblog post, 8eightening the -uspense, -ept. />, athttpAAcrime3ctioncollectie.blogspot.com.

B. )(ltiple #iewpointsNarrating the story from arious points ofiew, including that of the illain, will add interest, comple"ity andsuspense to your noel. Cut don)t head#hop within a scene4 Wait fora new scene or chapter to change iewpoints.

+D. A tight, generally fast%pa!ed writing style-treamline your

writing to improe Eow and pacing. Fo through and take out allunnecessary words, sentences, and paragraphs, and any repetitiephrases, eents or ideas. 0hrillers are not the genre to wa"elo1uent.

++. *n!reasing danger 9eep putting your hero in deeper anddeeper trouble, to stretch his courage, determination, physicalabilities and inner resources to the ma"imum ; and increase thereader)s admiration and emotional inestment in him4

+/. Tro(bles that hit homeGndanger the protagonist or someone

close to her, to add a personal dimension and more stress to thethreats and conEicts.

+5. *nternal str(ggling of the protagonistFie her a moraldilemma2 show his inner conEict. Make them comple" andfascinating2 neer perfect, complacent, or oerly con3dent.

+6. +riti!al t(rning points Present your hero with life#or#deathdecisions and show his an"iety, tension, and indecision.

+=. bsta!les in the way 'our heroine runs out of gas on a lonely

road2 your hero)s weapon falls into the rier far below2 he iswounded and can)t run2 her cell phone battery is dead2 whateercan go wrong does, and more.

+>. Eno(gh !l(esCe fair. Hse foreshadowing and layer in clues andinfo as you go along, to slowly reeal the plot points and characterba!"story and motiation to the reader.

http://crimefictioncollective.blogspot.com/

http://crimefictioncollective.blogspot.com/



+. Twists and s(rprisesWrite in a few une"pected plot twists, butmake sure that, in retrospect, they make sense to the readers.

+@. A !ompelling !lima- Put the protagonist at a disadantage inthe 3nal conEict with the antagonist, to heighten the stakes. Pile on

the adersity the hero has to oercome at the end.

+B. A satisfying ending :eae the unhappy or unresoled endingsfor literary 3ction. :et the good guy oercome the bad guy ; by ahair.

/D. sy!hologi!al growth and !hange in the hero/heroine<dersity has made him or her stronger, braer, wiser, a betterperson.

7opyright I Jodie %enner, -eptember /D++

http://www.jodierennerediting.com/

http://www.jodierennerediting.com/



10 Elements of the *ntelle!t(al Thriller

<N7< <P%(: +, /D++

Ceing a species of the genus known as Cestselling Noel, the

(ntellectual 0hriller is not necessarily intellectual, nor is it much of athriller, but ( hae chosen to use this particular denomination sincecalling it by its real name which is 9ind of Predictable -tory about aMystery that (noles Members of the <cademia and 8as an <ctually9ind of Meh Gnding would obiously re1uire typing too many lettersoer and oer again. 0he (ntellectual 0hriller can take on seeral forms.Kirst and foremost, there is 0he (ntellectual 0hriller with a Name#Lropping 0itle. 8ere, the mystery surrounds a Prestigious 8istoricalPerson. 0he 7lub Lumas by <rturo Pre&#%eerte and 0he Poe -hadowby Matthew Pearl are e"amples of such (ntellectual 0hrillers, along withanother book whose title ( choose not to mention, assuming that

eeryone is already tired of hearing it. 'ou)re welcome. 0here is also atype of intellectual thriller where a Prestigious 8istorical Person iscalled upon to inestigate a series of Fruesome Murders. 8enryWadsworth :ongfellow, -igmund Kreud and scar Wilde may countthemseles among those who hae receied this kind of treatment.

ther (ntellectual 0hrillers, like Liane -etter3eld)s 0he 0hirteen 0ale or-carlett 0homas) 0he Gnd of Mr. ' prefer to introduce a 3ctional literary

http://listverse.com/authors/?Anca

http://listverse.com/authors/?Anca



3gureAscientist, also inducing disappointment among the ranks of fans,who will then hae to hear their local librarian)s answer of Neerheard of himAher. 0o spice things up, the authors sometimes throw insome elements of the supernatural. Kor instance, in one of theaforementioned books, the :oe (nterest Osee number = on the list

turns out to be a demon the ( fought alongside :ucifer, but we gotkicked out kind of demon.

<ll this is not to say that ()m Qoining the Obestselling book burners. (nfact, (ntellectual 0hrillers may be 1uite engaging and Qolly good fun.8oweer, it is of the utmost importance to keep in mind that the%enaissance was something that did not happen to Lan Crown. Casedon my encounters with the genre and without any further ado, here arethe +D Glements of the Hltimate (ntellectual 0hriller.

+

Listurbing ccurrence

Glement 0he %eally Listurbing ccurrence



<ny self#respecting (ntellectual 0hriller must begin with a %eallyListurbing ccurrence. 0he nature of the occurrence is not crucial initself, as long as it takes place on a campus or inside a museum or anyother type of cultural institution. 0hus, the %eally Listurbingccurrence may consist of a gruesome murder, seeral gruesome

murders, an all#consuming 3re, the collapse of a building or a togaparty. Whateer its nature, it must be as its name may suggest really, really disturbing and described in laish detail. Most authorsseem to faor the gruesome murder, but in order to fully achiee thedesired e$ect, ( would like to suggest that the murder be committedduring a toga party taking place inside a museum.:RSPG%MS<rticleSmiddle

T

T

/

7hosen ne



Glement 0he 7hosen ne

Ceing the protagonist of the (ntellectual 0hriller, the 7hosen ne is, inalmost all cases, a member of the author)s own gender. Lespite beingthe best looking and most intelligent thing around, the 7hosen ne is ashy loner deoid of any sort of fashion sense, whatsoeer. Gither inorder to emphasi&e the 7hosen ne)s status as 7hosen ne, or inorder to make himAher appear less like the result of a genetice"periment to produce the best looking and most intelligent thingaround Oor for both reasons, the author may choose to bestow uponhimAher an oddly shaped scar or birthmark. Pre#%eally Listurbingccurrence, the 7hosen ne)s faorite pastime consisted of gentlycaressing the pages of an e"tremely rare mid#to#late +th century

Krench edition of <ristotle)s Metaphysics, and sighing as heAshecontemplated the prospect of an intellectually rewarding, butunbearably lonely <cademic e"istence. Post#%eally Listurbingccurrence, the 7hosen ne suddenly reali&es that heAshe is the onlyperson who can possibly proide an e"planation to the mystery. Cut3rst, heAshe must speak toU

5



0he Mentor

Glement 0he MentorPreferably sharing the 7hosen ne)s Oand author)s gender, the Mentoris a kindly older specialist in the former)s 3eld of study. 0he Mentor hasalways belieed in the 7hosen ne)s potential and intellectual abilities.Pre#%eally Listurbing ccurrence the Mentor liked to e"press hisAherfaith and con3dence by haing 7hosen ne carry hisAher luggage, passthe sugar or retriee hisAher glasses from a second#hand bookstoredowntown during rush hour. Post#%eally Listurbing ccurrence, theMentor is willing and ready to o$er hisAher adice. 0his adice must, byall means, be deliered in racle of Lelphi fashion though not asclear and straightforward, and sans to"ic fumes. 0hus utterly confused

yet 3lled with con3dence and hope, the 7hosen ne embarks uponU

6

0he -earch



Glement 0he -earch for No ne Must 9now for -ure What 0his drags on for most of the noel and in order to keep the readerawake, it is necessary for the author to introduceU

=

0he :oe (nterest



Glement 0he :oe (nterest

0he :oe (nterest is easily identi3able, being the 3rst person ofopposite gender that 7hosen ne encounters during the story. 0herefore, the author need not be bothered by minor matters such ascharacter deelopment. (t is preferable for :oe (nterest to be an eagerstudent, or a specialist either in 7hosen ne)s 3eld of study or in acomplementary one. Neertheless, the <cademic 1uali3cations are nottruly releant, as it is by pure accident that :oe (nterest stumblesuponU

>

%are (tem



Glement 0he %eally %are (tem<t a super3cial glance, 0he %eally %are (tem is the one obQect thatcould help sole the mystery. (n reality, its role is to underline thedepth of the romance between 7hosen ne and :oe (nterest. Now isthe right time for the author to introduce a bit of seriously ris1udialogue, along the lines of7hosen ne Cut ( thought this type of incunabulum was but a legend,a dreamU Lo you suppose ( could, you know, touch it?:oe (nterest 0ouch it? 'ou can *hae* it47.. <re you sure you want me to?

:.(. 'es, take it4 (t)s all yours47.. CutU (t belongs in a museum4:.(. 'ou)re 1uite right. 0hen again, it belongs whereer you say itdoes.

-uperillain



Glement 0he Mentor 0urning ut to Ce a -uperillain Who Was <ctuallyCehind <ll of 0his <ll <long7ompletely unashamed to barge in on such an intimate conersation,the Mentor suddenly steps up holding an anti1ue weapon an obQectwhich is to be described in utmost detail by the author and snatchesthe %eally %are (tem. 7hosen ne and :oe (nterest take a moment toassess the situation, then conclude that the Mentor Qust 0urned ut toCe a -uperRillain Who Was <ctually Cehind <ll of 0his <ll <long. 0he

7hosen ne ocali&es hisAher disillusionment with the Mentor)streacherous ways, omitting all possible mentions of hisAher owngullibility.

@

0he 9ey



Glement 0he 9ey to the MysteryVuite sure of hisAher ictory, 0he Mentor is struck by a seere case oferbal incontinence. 0he ne"t =D pages or so are therefore dedicatedto the Mentor reealing how heAshe had orchestrated the %eallyListurbing ccurrence in order to obtain the %eally %are (tem withoutactually haing to search for it. O0hat being 7hosen ne)s task.

B

0he 7ops



Glement 0he Police e" Machina

Hnfortunately for the Mentor, the Police had arried Qust in time tolisten to the entire confession and had managed to somehow remainunheard and unseen during the whole of the =D pages. 0hey reealthemseles right at the end of the confession, disarm the Mentor andrespectfully escort himAher to the Police ehicle.

+D

8appily Ger <fter



Glement 0he 8appy Gnding<s be3ts common sense, logic and professional regulations, the Policeallow the two main witnesses and possible co#suspects to simplywalk away. 0hus, 7hosen ne and :oe (nterest step out into thesunlight and continue the conersation that the Mentor hadinterrupted. < lot of wink#winking and nudge#nudging is inoled. (ncase you were wondering, the %eally %are (tem does end up in amuseum.

20 essential elements of a bestselling thriller

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