I've once heard this idea summarized as: make sure that the reader always has questions that they MUST have answered so they will be compelled to keep reading.
My creative writing professors called these “narrative questions,” and while they did not say they are synonymous with “suspense,” the concept has helped my literacy students better understand the books they’re reading. Drawing awareness to narrative questions can help guide their comprehension. 😊 Oh and they’re fun lol love a good narrative question in tv series, too.
And some decent advice plus the honesty that it's her opinion, bit different from the other author tubers. That said, the reputation of the author tubers is a bit tarnished. Certainly while they published books wherein they don't practice what they preach and basically putting all the tropes in it that they tell you not to use. It is indicative of a profound lack of self-reflection, which is ironical as the educational system keeps drilling everybody, especially millennials and Gen Z with self-reflection models.... doesn't seem to stick very well.... the quality of the educational system or more specifically total lack there off is a debate for another time.
I'm writing a middle-grade novel about two children who go into the woods and find themselves in the ice age. Its called "Ice" it needs to have plenty of suspense to create the sense of adventure needed in every middle-grade adventure story.
You are 100% right. I've been writing books forever and I've looked at many "guides, but this one is probably the best. People say: believable protagonist, interesting plot, good conflict, but a lot of books have that and they don't sell well. When I look back, it's the suspense that I remember most in books. I remember when I read "The Count of Monte Christo" and had to go to school. I couldn't concentrate all the time wondering how the duel between the Count and Albert would go, because, after all, Albert couldn't be killed by Edmund. Now an example from the Chinese series "Sparrow." - I knew that the main character was not going to die (at least not until the last episode) but in each episode I felt anxiety, insecurity, what would happen next, how they would get out of the situation. I couldn't tear myself away from this drama. Thank you for this video, because it really helped me. While watching it I had some scenes from my books in front of my eyes and wondered if they were ok. They are. Unfortunately, there are a little too few of them. I need to work on multiplying them without losing quality :)
I once hear, can't remember who said it, that writers should create questions in their writing that readers can only get answered by continuing to read. I've tried to take that to heart.
Alyssa, I have been fumbling in the dark and spent a goodly sum on educating myself in the art of novel writing for three years. Finally, I have 95k of work I am reasonably pleased with and then ... I discover you. How I wish I had the benefit of your insights before now. However, you now give direction to my editing, publishing and some re-writing phase. You offer exactly what I have been finding the need of and have made an old writer very happy.
Must say -- I was blown away by your advice and have been binge-watching today, trying to catch up with all that you've offered on this channel. In the midst of writing what's turned into an epic novel, I've been trying to decide if it all belongs in one book and if the core will bear stretching into a trilogy. I went after an agent too soon [as I now see] and the idea wasn't fully formed; hadn't really taken shape. I've found so much here and thank you for adding your voice to the milling information on youtube about writing and getting published. What you're saying and the way you present it works for me and nothing else has.
I appreciate your information and your attitude. Many editors who make videos promulgate lists of “never” and “don’t” rules that choke the mind with restrictions that needn’t be brought into play during the first draft. 👏
I've saved this video for my revision & rewrite process. Wow! Alyssa, you have a good heart-a sharing one. And I appreciate your experience and wisdom. :) Thanks
So I have finished my book back in 2020 December. I started it in August 2020 and its a romance-drama-mystery genre. During the whole story I myself didn't know what I was writing. I had a small vision of the book about a girl who meets a guy and a past they shared together comes up. I wanted it to be just a short love story. And more than the romance genre I was focused on adding mystery to their personalities and friction when the two got together. Slowly as I was writing I realised there were more questions that needed to be answered. My original goal was to make it around 50-60k. But then when I tried to re-read it again, the questions just kept coming up and I myself was intrigued to see what would happen next. I kept going with the flow and the story ended up as a 110,000k book but this time with the focus on the later chapters on the guy's personality. It turned out to be extremely romantic yet really empowering. I learned that write what you want to write. As though you are living that experience. Put your own personality into your protagonist and make it realistic, give them a goal and then turn the whole universe against them. Write as though you are writing a diary. Forget important stuff for a while but mention it here and there. Honestly it comes from that inner flow. Feel how important this story is to you and keep writing. Eventually you'll see questions coming up and you'll be compelled to answer them. Now I'm editing it and trying to cut short a bit, focus on spell check, grammar etc.
I can totally agree to this, i am almost finished my first two books of the series and it is like i am just watching a movie what I just write down...and to be honest this video about suspense is exactly what happened without me knowing this specific theory (maybe in feeling but not in my mind) i heard also from test readers the same...they want to know more, they got questions, curiousity even though the first chapters could be less drama or adventure it gets them totally so good video!
I’m writing a mind blowing best seller. I have had an extremely traumatic life. With all types of twists, turns and aha moments. Things you would never even guess. This was very good advice! Liquid gold ! Thank you ❤
I started world building for my first novel. I have the overall story arc down. I decided to first write a separate short story. Hopefully to garner interest for my novel but also for more experience writing. Thank you for your videos!
Thank You. Thank YOU!! I truly appreciate your expertise because your explanation and the examples will help me to revise my little short story that I'm writing for my class. I can feel that it'll be like night and day difference!
Awesome! I’m writing my story. A life so full of miracles and loves ever changing experiences that need to be told, to make a difference! But the unfolding of the truths I’ve found most difficult I think you can help me.
Educated by Tara Westover was SUCH a fascinating, intense read. A difficult read at times, for sure, but I found it very compelling. Psychologically, emotionally, and in terms of the subject matter of fundamentalism, and, of course, on education. As soon as you shared this opening I recognized it! I'm not usually much of a memoir fan but this was a powerful one. Great video, thank you.
Just discovered your channel... Subscribed! Great content; I'm already thinking of ways to apply this to my trilogy-in-progress. I look forward to more awesome input!
suspense is the promise of possibility balanced with a degree of doubt. I was lucky to learn this long before I wrote my debut romantic memoir and was able to incorporate it. It went on to win fifteen awards and two publication offers.
Thank you very much for this! It’s helping me with shaping my piece very well. It fantasy but I’ve always had that problem with making suspense especially through the eyes of the narrator
It’s great to see your channel growing. As always, the way in which you present is refreshing, adding worked examples shows you know what you are talking about and challenges us to look at our own book bucket list. I loved the prose of When the Crawdads Sing, this is what drew me into this story. And, although, I am no expert, if a book can pose a question the reader wants an answer too, then that will draw them in and make the book successful. The question which will make the reader want to continue is, of course, variable on the genre and hence the reader. A great book can bring, say, an avid horror reader into a romance book. Keep going with the channel!
Thank you so much for uploading this Alyssa. It's given me A LOT of help!! Love and best wishes from Manchester, England (old England, not New England - thank you to the great movie Paul for that joke btw). I already have a good agent in Manchester. He found me a publisher for my first novel, Decades (however, only 66.5k words, so not really a novel). It's a publishing deal with zero money spent on promotion or advertising of my book, so I have to do it. However, I don't have much of a social media presence, so it's literally crawling off the shelves!! I wrote it FOR fans of the group: The Smiths. I've written 90k+ words that make up my second novel Death of a Raver. It's a MUCH stronger story about a female detective inspector from Greater Manchester police. I can't wait to get it to my agent, but I REFUSE to send it until I'm happy with it. I've just finished reading Paula Hawkins, The Girl on the Train which is a great story and helped a lot. Both my novels have female protagonists. I have three Final Draft screenplays on the go as well, including a 21st century ET (the extra terrestrial) story. Different alien, obviously. I feel destined to be a writer. A writer with brain damage. After a car accident in 2004 ended my retail management career and other life circumstances, a story fell out of the ether in 2014 and I started writing it, reading for a masters in creative writing in 2018, which I achieved with Merit. I consider myself a success story, the Manchester Evening News (our local paper) ran a story on me when my first novel was published, in November last year. Link at end of the article to purchase my first book, Decades (named after the Joy Division, read it and you will find out why). Thanks again for the upload Alyssa. www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/greater-manchester-news/life-going-perfectly-what-happened-28146309?Copy&
Thanks Alyssa, I was getting stuck in my draft novel. I was re-reading it and feeling it was lacking 'something'. Even I was bored. Something hard to put my finger on. Now I have a clear approach to creating suspense. I think this works as we are naturally problem-solving animals, our brains want some problem to solve. I have resisted having conflict in my novel but I now believe I need internal conflict - which is essentially growth - for the character - and suspense, as outlined so well in this video. BTW I am writing a women's fiction / rom com novel. So it is a good example - all novels need suspense - not just thrillers. Respect.
The moment you started talking about suspense, the first thing that came to my mind was Taylor Jenkins Reid. I've only read Malibu Rising and Seven Husbands. She does it so well
I love your channel. I am trying to get suspense on every page of my wip using Donald Maas' Breakout Novel Workbook as an editing prompt - along with your videos obviously. My wip is a UK Reacher meets Bond style series. I have draft A of book 1 complete and in self-edit, book 2 almost complete, and stories for book 3 and 4 in progress. I am going to try for an agent, with help from your videos, so please keep them coming.
As someone working on a long running series of comic books, there is arguably an even bigger pressure to include some kind of suspense in every PAGE, in order to keep the reader turning them, so that each page is never completely resolved, but the resolution is always on the next page, so it keeps them turning, or said resolution leads to a new, minor, question to be resolved on the following page :)
I’m a mental health therapist and I self published a therapy journal two years ago. I have been working on a biography. However I add elements of psychoanalysis if you will since I am a therapist. However, I want to bypass all the site work, etc. that goes into a psychology if you will book. Therefore, I’m thinking of turning the biography into a fictional story. Any suggestions? And if I confused you, please let me know.
I can't wait to write some fiction. I'm deep in a non-fiction "based on real events" from the 1870's with real characters and real events, unheard of characters and events, but I'm tasked with creating a story to tie it all together and giving characters depth. What you reveal and when you decide to reveal it plays a lot into suspense.
All of your videos are so enlightening. My question is the three examples are in first person. Are there any best sellers written in third person that ad suspense?
The passage from the second example (Where the Crawdads Sing) is in third person! But this is a great catch because I do naturally gravitate toward first-person novels. You can build suspense just as effectively in third-person.
Oh my God! I'm very late to watch this video, very interesting. I found it about 4 fours ago, with a great quality in audio. Besides, she has a wonderful voice, and she is beautiful. Nowadays I'm learning and practicing English on my own. Greetings from Sonora, México 🇲🇽.
Hello. I watched this video yesterday, and today I begin yet another rewrite of my first work of fiction. After some time to reflect on your message and discuss it with my partner, I had to come back and say "thank you" for the excellent advice. I just put a note at the beginning and end of 23 chapters ... "REMEMBER SUSPENSE!" LOL.
Thank you so much for your videos, Alyssa! I am so grateful for the advice you're willingly giving out; it's helping me to form a clear picture of the publishing industry, and to help me become the best writer I can be. Your personal experience in the industry really shows. Please, keep posting - you're fantastic! I have subscribed and liked 👍
Thanks. Your videos are great. I think the word suspense should be replaced with "wondering" ; wondering what is next. wondering that keeps us up at night.
Great video! Someone recently read my MS and said the whole time they were reading, they felt like a cat chasing a piece of string someone was holding. I thought it was a pretty good compliment!
Nice video. I tried to come up with another thing that makes all good books worth reading, and honestly couldn't. Even non-fiction that's worth reading uses it's prose to achieve this.
I know what makes a story stand out from the others, but this has nothing to do with "bestsellers," because that's not the goal here, especially if you're a beginner! A story that has a hook (aka a theme) makes it stand out! Rather if that's a question you've always wondered about, or the story that's about what happens when you repress too much, or the story that's about the prison of aesthetics ( something a lot of young people struggle with.) The examples I just mentioned is what will make your book stand out from the others! Or if you're writing a paranormal book, present the hook of "do we have two souls? One pure, one evil? Does this dictate our decisions on a day to day basis? And if so, is that what people mean when they say, "there's a spiritual war? Is there good and evil fighting within ourselves everyday?" Something like that! Give your story some purpose! :D
I know this video is 3 years old now so probably won’t matter to you and likely something you’ve already changed about your videos not sure this is my first viewing of your channel or content, but I wanted to share that it was very distracting to me how you kept looking down to follow your notes/laptop i assumed…. 🤷♀️ I would definitely recommend putting your notes either directly above or behind the camera so that you can still keep eye contact without having to look so far down for the info so much. This may be just me idk but just thought I’d share. However got to give props where it is due and I have to say I enjoyed your knowledge of books very much. Thanks for sharing!❤
Such a wonderful video, thanks Alyssa for being direct and substantiating your opinions with superb examples. I have a question for you, as I am currently drafting a novel. In each chapter, there is an element of suspense. Sometimes, there are many elements which amp up the scene and raise the stakes. Is there such a thing as too much suspense? And a follow up question, when should this suspense be resolved, if at all? Should resolution be left until the very last few pages as a general rule of thumb? Thanks so much and keep up your genuine and spectacular work
If I am not intrigued or amused by the first few pages (which I read in the shop or library) it goes back on the shelf and I will neither buy nor borrow it. A full, hard back novel is so expensive nowadays and I can't take the risk unless it is by one of the 'great novelists who never disappoint. my advice as an avid reader, to anyone who is writing their first novel....make your first pages count !
My true story I have to write is naturally the most suspenseful story. I've had an event happen that's never happened in the world to anyone before. Readers have no choice but to keep turning the pages and find out what happened. Most of my story sounds untrue, but is all true. Interesting new concept for a book I have. Should be a Bestseller when written. Deserves to be.
Madam would starting off a novel with a great inciting incident then flashing back to the past and building up to that event (and beyond) work? I have had mixed responses. A book editor I know told me it works fine but my mentor thinks it is too jarring to throw the reader in to that situation. The inciting incident ends on a cliffhanger so it naturally induces the reader to want to carry on reading but I don’t know if it’s too much to start off with. (I’m writing a science fiction fantasy)
Thanks so much for this video, Alyssa! It's a great topic, and, again, I thoroughly enjoyed your use of examples to illustrate your points, and it was instructive how the excerpts were so different from each other. In the last example, it is, as you say, a case of wondering, 'So, what DID happen?' but there is also a tickle in the back of the mind that says, 'Maybe this IS what happened, and if so, why has she repressed it?' Either way, you want to find out more. One tiny niggle- the editing is a bit jumpy in this. Didn't detract from my learning, but was noticeable enough to draw the attention. But please, keep the content coming.
Hi, I am glad I found you on RUclips. I am currently working on my memoir. This is my very first book and I have very high hopes for this one. Would you mind reading the first 4 chapters for insight? I need your expert advice.😊
Thanks Sooo Very Very Much For Not Taking 500 Hours To Inform Us!!!!! Most people on youtube take forever & ever to reveal any or The Answer!!!!! I Do NOT have lots of patience.😊😊😊
Oof, I'm not a writer nor planning to write however that part of how writing "she didn't know what was coming next" being overused is so true and it really bothers me because I see it being used so often and makes my eyes roll out a lot, however I've seen these award winning books have them and it makes me be put off by the authors creativity because I'd expect someone who won an award for their book/s to know better than just write down that suspense is coming. I'll continue reading the book but with a lower rating
This question is not related to this video but I wanted to ask it on your latest video. You mentioned in a previous video the various rights that you give a publisher for your book - "Right to distribute worldwide, turn into an audiobook, etc ". I wanted to ask that if the book is to be turned into a film the are those rights also with the publisher or are they with the author?
@@AlyssaMatesicmake sure you ask for a few million dollars 💰😉👍😎 with lifetime royalties in the contract and make sure you have a good lawyer read those contracts so to protect your intellectual property rights
You are addictive, lady. I should be working on my novel, but I am absorbing much information from your vids. I am trying to infuse my murder mystery with word-clues and also an historical theme imbedded in the background. I don't believe it will distract or take anything away from the story, however, I have a long way to go. Do you have any examples that include something like these?
As a writer it is my job to write better letters that will help readers read letters. This is about the comment I will leave that tells what I am thinking but first I will go over what makes a good comment in my opinion. After that I will explain my comments meaning & how you can better understand what's being said
I have often thought of this as mystery. Mystery is not necessarily a story about a fictional murder or death. We hear of mysteries of science, history, and more. In 1939, Winston Churchill applied it to international politics. "I cannot forecast to you the action of Russia. It is a riddle, wrapped in a mystery, inside an enigma; but perhaps there is a key. That key is Russian national interest." A mystery is also not a simple unknown. I have no idea what I ate for dinner this day last month. That is not a mystery because I do not care, nor does anyone else. A mystery is an unknown, which someone cares about, even needs to know. It is a compelling unknown. Thus, the suspense of a good book, it seems, must put together, one or more characters the reader cares about, and an unknown the reader cares enough to spend the time turning pages to find out. The third thing, I suspect, that drives the reader to more than finish is this. In order to read most novels, the reader must exit their daily life and enter the world (not necessarily some Sci-Fi or fantasy world) then return to daily life. The question then is this. Is my world or life changed by having spent time inside this book? Do I see my world differently or better? Do I see anything differently or better? Do I see my people differently or better? Do I see myself differently or better? Am I different or better? At least that is my non-commercial and personal opinion.
![Noob To Max With DRAGON REWORK In Blox Fruits [FULL MOVIE]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/LnBMOinoOvA/mqdefault.jpg)
I've once heard this idea summarized as: make sure that the reader always has questions that they MUST have answered so they will be compelled to keep reading.
My creative writing professors called these “narrative questions,” and while they did not say they are synonymous with “suspense,” the concept has helped my literacy students better understand the books they’re reading. Drawing awareness to narrative questions can help guide their comprehension. 😊 Oh and they’re fun lol love a good narrative question in tv series, too.
It's nice to see a booktuber with actual experience in the publishing industry, great content :)
Thanks so much!
I hope to be a best selling author. Thank you for such great content. Love this. I'm currently working on my first YA novel. 😬
I 100% agree! 🤗
And some decent advice plus the honesty that it's her opinion, bit different from the other author tubers. That said, the reputation of the author tubers is a bit tarnished. Certainly while they published books wherein they don't practice what they preach and basically putting all the tropes in it that they tell you not to use. It is indicative of a profound lack of self-reflection, which is ironical as the educational system keeps drilling everybody, especially millennials and Gen Z with self-reflection models.... doesn't seem to stick very well.... the quality of the educational system or more specifically total lack there off is a debate for another time.
@@christinabriggs1782 how's the book coming along christina?
I just began the journey of authoring my first novel. I appreciate the advice and time you took to make this video.
I'm writing a middle-grade novel about two children who go into the woods and find themselves in the ice age. Its called "Ice" it needs to have plenty of suspense to create the sense of adventure needed in every middle-grade adventure story.
This sounds SO GOOD. Oh my gosh…I love it and I felt I had to comment to tell you I would have 100% read that as a kid!!
You are 100% right. I've been writing books forever and I've looked at many "guides, but this one is probably the best. People say: believable protagonist, interesting plot, good conflict, but a lot of books have that and they don't sell well. When I look back, it's the suspense that I remember most in books. I remember when I read "The Count of Monte Christo" and had to go to school. I couldn't concentrate all the time wondering how the duel between the Count and Albert would go, because, after all, Albert couldn't be killed by Edmund. Now an example from the Chinese series "Sparrow." - I knew that the main character was not going to die (at least not until the last episode) but in each episode I felt anxiety, insecurity, what would happen next, how they would get out of the situation. I couldn't tear myself away from this drama.
Thank you for this video, because it really helped me. While watching it I had some scenes from my books in front of my eyes and wondered if they were ok. They are. Unfortunately, there are a little too few of them. I need to work on multiplying them without losing quality :)
The Count of Monte Cristo is an excellent example of tension/suspense in a novel! Thanks for sharing your perspective, Shin!
I once hear, can't remember who said it, that writers should create questions in their writing that readers can only get answered by continuing to read. I've tried to take that to heart.
Great advice!
Alyssa, I have been fumbling in the dark and spent a goodly sum on educating myself in the art of novel writing for three years. Finally, I have 95k of work I am reasonably pleased with and then ... I discover you. How I wish I had the benefit of your insights before now. However, you now give direction to my editing, publishing and some re-writing phase. You offer exactly what I have been finding the need of and have made an old writer very happy.
This makes me so happy! Thanks so much for sharing and I'll be rooting for you!
Must say -- I was blown away by your advice and have been binge-watching today, trying to catch up with all that you've offered on this channel. In the midst of writing what's turned into an epic novel, I've been trying to decide if it all belongs in one book and if the core will bear stretching into a trilogy. I went after an agent too soon [as I now see] and the idea wasn't fully formed; hadn't really taken shape. I've found so much here and thank you for adding your voice to the milling information on youtube about writing and getting published. What you're saying and the way you present it works for me and nothing else has.
I see you added suspense to your message with the drumroll. 😄 I'm really enjoying your videos. Thank you.
You are a real hero for the writers............ Love you Alyssa !!! (Sachin Jadhav - India)
I appreciate your information and your attitude. Many editors who make videos promulgate lists of “never” and “don’t” rules that choke the mind with restrictions that needn’t be brought into play during the first draft. 👏
Getting pulled in can be subjective. For me, it's the character and his or her reasons. Their motive. Even the world they live in.
Love these too!
I've saved this video for my revision & rewrite process. Wow! Alyssa, you have a good heart-a sharing one. And I appreciate your experience and wisdom. :) Thanks
Glad it was helpful!
So I have finished my book back in 2020 December. I started it in August 2020 and its a romance-drama-mystery genre. During the whole story I myself didn't know what I was writing. I had a small vision of the book about a girl who meets a guy and a past they shared together comes up. I wanted it to be just a short love story. And more than the romance genre I was focused on adding mystery to their personalities and friction when the two got together. Slowly as I was writing I realised there were more questions that needed to be answered. My original goal was to make it around 50-60k. But then when I tried to re-read it again, the questions just kept coming up and I myself was intrigued to see what would happen next. I kept going with the flow and the story ended up as a 110,000k book but this time with the focus on the later chapters on the guy's personality. It turned out to be extremely romantic yet really empowering. I learned that write what you want to write. As though you are living that experience. Put your own personality into your protagonist and make it realistic, give them a goal and then turn the whole universe against them. Write as though you are writing a diary. Forget important stuff for a while but mention it here and there. Honestly it comes from that inner flow. Feel how important this story is to you and keep writing. Eventually you'll see questions coming up and you'll be compelled to answer them. Now I'm editing it and trying to cut short a bit, focus on spell check, grammar etc.
Did you ever finish your novel? I'd love to read it
I can totally agree to this, i am almost finished my first two books of the series and it is like i am just watching a movie what I just write down...and to be honest this video about suspense is exactly what happened without me knowing this specific theory (maybe in feeling but not in my mind) i heard also from test readers the same...they want to know more, they got questions, curiousity even though the first chapters could be less drama or adventure it gets them totally so good video!
Thanks!
I'm so thankful for your content.
I’m writing a mind blowing best seller. I have had an extremely traumatic life. With all types of twists, turns and aha moments. Things you would never even guess. This was very good advice! Liquid gold ! Thank you ❤
have you published yet?
I started world building for my first novel. I have the overall story arc down. I decided to first write a separate short story. Hopefully to garner interest for my novel but also for more experience writing. Thank you for your videos!
I've just started writing again and I'm trying my hand at starting a romance series. These videos have been really useful so far! Thanks.
Thank You. Thank YOU!! I truly appreciate your expertise because your explanation and the examples will help me to revise my little short story that I'm writing for my class. I can feel that it'll be like night and day difference!
Awesome! I’m writing my story. A life so full of miracles and loves ever changing experiences that need to be told, to make a difference!
But the unfolding of the truths I’ve found most difficult I think you can help me.
❤
Amazing video. Been writing writing long time and now just trying to get published. Your videos are always great !
Thanks for the tip, I wrote a film proposal and do really want to see it on the screens ibn order to spread awareness.
Educated by Tara Westover was SUCH a fascinating, intense read. A difficult read at times, for sure, but I found it very compelling. Psychologically, emotionally, and in terms of the subject matter of fundamentalism, and, of course, on education. As soon as you shared this opening I recognized it! I'm not usually much of a memoir fan but this was a powerful one. Great video, thank you.
Thank you Alyssa. This really helped me get ideas to write my story better
So glad it was helpful!
My guess is that the real secret is finding an editor as insightful as Alyssa
Yeah, seems like.
Just discovered your channel... Subscribed! Great content; I'm already thinking of ways to apply this to my trilogy-in-progress. I look forward to more awesome input!
This was really great advice. I've recently discovered your channel and am really enjoying your videos. Thank you.
I love all of you videos. Video teaching me a whole lot that I need to watch out for in my writing. As well as what I need to write better for.
I'm glad it resonates!
I am halfway through my novel and wathcing all of your videos, really got me wishing you was my editor. It'd be a dream come true:(
suspense is the promise of possibility balanced with a degree of doubt. I was lucky to learn this long before I wrote my debut romantic memoir and was able to incorporate it. It went on to win fifteen awards and two publication offers.
Thank you very much for this! It’s helping me with shaping my piece very well. It fantasy but I’ve always had that problem with making suspense especially through the eyes of the narrator
Thank you so much for defining suspense using published examples. This really helps to clarify why readers keep reading.
Two of my favourite books. Thank you for the illustration
It’s great to see your channel growing. As always, the way in which you present is refreshing, adding worked examples shows you know what you are talking about and challenges us to look at our own book bucket list.
I loved the prose of When the Crawdads Sing, this is what drew me into this story. And, although, I am no expert, if a book can pose a question the reader wants an answer too, then that will draw them in and make the book successful. The question which will make the reader want to continue is, of course, variable on the genre and hence the reader. A great book can bring, say, an avid horror reader into a romance book.
Keep going with the channel!
Thanks so much for the kind words! Agree the prose is so lyrical and alluring in WTCS.
Thank you so much for uploading this Alyssa. It's given me A LOT of help!!
Love and best wishes from Manchester, England (old England, not New England - thank you to the great movie Paul for that joke btw).
I already have a good agent in Manchester. He found me a publisher for my first novel, Decades (however, only 66.5k words, so not really a novel).
It's a publishing deal with zero money spent on promotion or advertising of my book, so I have to do it.
However, I don't have much of a social media presence, so it's literally crawling off the shelves!! I wrote it FOR fans of the group: The Smiths.
I've written 90k+ words that make up my second novel Death of a Raver. It's a MUCH stronger story about a female detective inspector from Greater Manchester police. I can't wait to get it to my agent, but I REFUSE to send it until I'm happy with it.
I've just finished reading Paula Hawkins, The Girl on the Train which is a great story and helped a lot. Both my novels have female protagonists.
I have three Final Draft screenplays on the go as well, including a 21st century ET (the extra terrestrial) story. Different alien, obviously.
I feel destined to be a writer. A writer with brain damage.
After a car accident in 2004 ended my retail management career and other life circumstances, a story fell out of the ether in 2014 and I started writing it, reading for a masters in creative writing in 2018, which I achieved with Merit.
I consider myself a success story, the Manchester Evening News (our local paper) ran a story on me when my first novel was published, in November last year. Link at end of the article to purchase my first book, Decades (named after the Joy Division, read it and you will find out why).
Thanks again for the upload Alyssa.
www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/greater-manchester-news/life-going-perfectly-what-happened-28146309?Copy&
Oh! I...write suspense in my stories. Nice! Finally I'm doing one thing right. :)
Thanks Alyssa, I was getting stuck in my draft novel. I was re-reading it and feeling it was lacking 'something'. Even I was bored. Something hard to put my finger on. Now I have a clear approach to creating suspense. I think this works as we are naturally problem-solving animals, our brains want some problem to solve. I have resisted having conflict in my novel but I now believe I need internal conflict - which is essentially growth - for the character - and suspense, as outlined so well in this video. BTW I am writing a women's fiction / rom com novel. So it is a good example - all novels need suspense - not just thrillers. Respect.
So glad you found this helpful! Good luck with your novel!
The moment you started talking about suspense, the first thing that came to my mind was Taylor Jenkins Reid. I've only read Malibu Rising and Seven Husbands. She does it so well
I use rising action in every chapter also known as suspense.
in such Vivid detail, -- good editing Alyssa
The best video on writing I have ever seen.
Thanks.
An insightful explanation. Well done!
I like your channel and you good advice. May I suggest that the background music is a tiny bit distracting from your presentation:)
I have been written since childhood but there are thousands of good stories lines and all of 'em are better than mine and it usually holds me back
I love your channel. I am trying to get suspense on every page of my wip using Donald Maas' Breakout Novel Workbook as an editing prompt - along with your videos obviously. My wip is a UK Reacher meets Bond style series. I have draft A of book 1 complete and in self-edit, book 2 almost complete, and stories for book 3 and 4 in progress. I am going to try for an agent, with help from your videos, so please keep them coming.
You can do it!
Great contents, improving your audio quality highly suggested.
1:43 is when she finally says it.
Were you waiting in suspense until she said it?
@@aprilf7606 Oh WAIT
LMAO
As someone working on a long running series of comic books, there is arguably an even bigger pressure to include some kind of suspense in every PAGE, in order to keep the reader turning them, so that each page is never completely resolved, but the resolution is always on the next page, so it keeps them turning, or said resolution leads to a new, minor, question to be resolved on the following page :)
I’m a mental health therapist and I self published a therapy journal two years ago. I have been working on a biography. However I add elements of psychoanalysis if you will since I am a therapist. However, I want to bypass all the site work, etc. that goes into a psychology if you will book. Therefore, I’m thinking of turning the biography into a fictional story. Any suggestions? And if I confused you, please let me know.
Thanks!! Useful info
Glad it was helpful!
I can't wait to write some fiction. I'm deep in a non-fiction "based on real events" from the 1870's with real characters and real events, unheard of characters and events, but I'm tasked with creating a story to tie it all together and giving characters depth. What you reveal and when you decide to reveal it plays a lot into suspense.
She literally said "the secret is suspense" and then I was like "oh my gosh she's so right I have to change this and this and this right away"
tysm!!!
So glad it was helpful!
All of your videos are so enlightening. My question is the three examples are in first person. Are there any best sellers written in third person that ad suspense?
The passage from the second example (Where the Crawdads Sing) is in third person! But this is a great catch because I do naturally gravitate toward first-person novels. You can build suspense just as effectively in third-person.
@@AlyssaMatesic Thank you and I missed that about Where the Crawdads Sing.
Oh my God! I'm very late to watch this video, very interesting. I found it about 4 fours ago, with a great quality in audio. Besides, she has a wonderful voice, and she is beautiful. Nowadays I'm learning and practicing English on my own. Greetings from Sonora, México 🇲🇽.
"Tension" conveys the same idea without all the "it's not just for Thrillers!" caveats.
Yes, a great synonym!
Donald Maass' books agree with this. Pretty much exactly
Hello. I watched this video yesterday, and today I begin yet another rewrite of my first work of fiction. After some time to reflect on your message and discuss it with my partner, I had to come back and say "thank you" for the excellent advice. I just put a note at the beginning and end of 23 chapters ... "REMEMBER SUSPENSE!" LOL.
This is very good.
Thank you so much for your videos, Alyssa! I am so grateful for the advice you're willingly giving out; it's helping me to form a clear picture of the publishing industry, and to help me become the best writer I can be. Your personal experience in the industry really shows. Please, keep posting - you're fantastic! I have subscribed and liked 👍
Fantastic advice. Thank you.
Glad it was helpful!
Thanks. Your videos are great. I think the word suspense should be replaced with "wondering" ; wondering what is next. wondering that keeps us up at night.
Thanks a lot miss. Its so easy to learn. Me from Indonesia!!
Great video! Someone recently read my MS and said the whole time they were reading, they felt like a cat chasing a piece of string someone was holding. I thought it was a pretty good compliment!
I agree -- that's a wonderful compliment! Congratulations!
Wow. So much beauty in only one person alone.
Nice video. I tried to come up with another thing that makes all good books worth reading, and honestly couldn't. Even non-fiction that's worth reading uses it's prose to achieve this.
Thank you, Ben!
I know what makes a story stand out from the others, but this has nothing to do with "bestsellers," because that's not the goal here, especially if you're a beginner! A story that has a hook (aka a theme) makes it stand out! Rather if that's a question you've always wondered about, or the story that's about what happens when you repress too much, or the story that's about the prison of aesthetics ( something a lot of young people struggle with.) The examples I just mentioned is what will make your book stand out from the others! Or if you're writing a paranormal book, present the hook of "do we have two souls? One pure, one evil? Does this dictate our decisions on a day to day basis? And if so, is that what people mean when they say, "there's a spiritual war? Is there good and evil fighting within ourselves everyday?" Something like that! Give your story some purpose! :D
I know this video is 3 years old now so probably won’t matter to you and likely something you’ve already changed about your videos not sure this is my first viewing of your channel or content, but I wanted to share that it was very distracting to me how you kept looking down to follow your notes/laptop i assumed…. 🤷♀️ I would definitely recommend putting your notes either directly above or behind the camera so that you can still keep eye contact without having to look so far down for the info so much. This may be just me idk but just thought I’d share. However got to give props where it is due and I have to say I enjoyed your knowledge of books very much. Thanks for sharing!❤
Such a wonderful video, thanks Alyssa for being direct and substantiating your opinions with superb examples.
I have a question for you, as I am currently drafting a novel. In each chapter, there is an element of suspense. Sometimes, there are many elements which amp up the scene and raise the stakes. Is there such a thing as too much suspense?
And a follow up question, when should this suspense be resolved, if at all? Should resolution be left until the very last few pages as a general rule of thumb?
Thanks so much and keep up your genuine and spectacular work
6:48 That's the third time you've said that.
Great piece
If I am not intrigued or amused by the first few pages (which I read in the shop or library) it goes back on the shelf and I will neither buy nor borrow it.
A full, hard back novel is so expensive nowadays and I can't take the risk unless it is by one of the 'great novelists who never disappoint.
my advice as an avid reader, to anyone who is writing their first novel....make your first pages count !
Such a great point - those opening pages are crucial if you want to hook readers (and/or agents)!
My true story I have to write is naturally the most suspenseful story. I've had an event happen that's never happened in the world to anyone before. Readers have no choice but to keep turning the pages and find out what happened. Most of my story sounds untrue, but is all true. Interesting new concept for a book I have. Should be a Bestseller when written. Deserves to be.
This is why 'Of Cages & Crowns' by Brianna Joy Crump is going to be a best seller immediately this month!
This was helpful.
It’s nice to get some help on making a book (p.s, I’m 11.)
Subscribed!
Thanks!
Lovely❤❤❤❤ thanks for sharing
Now that you say it’s so obvious, but I didn’t really notice until you said it.
tHANK U-QUITE INFORMATIVE!! Could this be applied to a children's Book as well!
I once read this same advice long ago, but this writer put it: Make the reader want to know "What happens next?"
Madam would starting off a novel with a great inciting incident then flashing back to the past and building up to that event (and beyond) work? I have had mixed responses. A book editor I know told me it works fine but my mentor thinks it is too jarring to throw the reader in to that situation. The inciting incident ends on a cliffhanger so it naturally induces the reader to want to carry on reading but I don’t know if it’s too much to start off with. (I’m writing a science fiction fantasy)
Thanks so much for this video, Alyssa! It's a great topic, and, again, I thoroughly enjoyed your use of examples to illustrate your points, and it was instructive how the excerpts were so different from each other. In the last example, it is, as you say, a case of wondering, 'So, what DID happen?' but there is also a tickle in the back of the mind that says, 'Maybe this IS what happened, and if so, why has she repressed it?' Either way, you want to find out more.
One tiny niggle- the editing is a bit jumpy in this. Didn't detract from my learning, but was noticeable enough to draw the attention. But please, keep the content coming.
Thank you for the kind words!
Can you have an intense few chapters followed vy a calm period before the ultimate climax ? Or are you supposed to keep the pressure on throughout ??
Hi,
I am glad I found you on RUclips. I am currently working on my memoir. This is my very first book and I have very high hopes for this one. Would you mind reading the first 4 chapters for insight? I need your expert advice.😊
Very helpful video ❤❤❤❤
Thanks Sooo Very Very Much For Not Taking 500 Hours To Inform Us!!!!! Most people on youtube take forever & ever to reveal any or The Answer!!!!! I Do NOT have lots of patience.😊😊😊
Oof, I'm not a writer nor planning to write however that part of how writing "she didn't know what was coming next" being overused is so true and it really bothers me because I see it being used so often and makes my eyes roll out a lot, however I've seen these award winning books have them and it makes me be put off by the authors creativity because I'd expect someone who won an award for their book/s to know better than just write down that suspense is coming. I'll continue reading the book but with a lower rating
A cliche is a cliche, no matter who writes it! Thanks for commenting :)
6:25 Thought my record player was skipping.
This question is not related to this video but I wanted to ask it on your latest video. You mentioned in a previous video the various rights that you give a publisher for your book - "Right to distribute worldwide, turn into an audiobook, etc ". I wanted to ask that if the book is to be turned into a film the are those rights also with the publisher or are they with the author?
The author/agent will sell the film rights separately!
@@AlyssaMatesic Thank You!
@@AlyssaMatesic Not always. It depends upon your contract.
@@AlyssaMatesicmake sure you ask for a few million dollars 💰😉👍😎 with lifetime royalties in the contract and make sure you have a good lawyer read those contracts so to protect your intellectual property rights
Do you edit and look at movie scripts or plys?
This just makes me want to use some “cheesy tactics” 🥺
There's a fourth way to build and maintain suspense. I'll tell you all about it tomorrow.
goal->conflict-> disaster followed by reaction-dilemma->decision
Poetry in story writing is a nice bonus, but a interesting story needs no poetry.
You are addictive, lady. I should be working on my novel, but I am absorbing much information from your vids. I am trying to infuse my murder mystery with word-clues and also an historical theme imbedded in the background. I don't believe it will distract or take anything away from the story, however, I have a long way to go. Do you have any examples that include something like these?
this is why one piece is one of the greatest piece of work ever written ~
As a writer it is my job to write better letters that will help readers read letters. This is about the comment I will leave that tells what I am thinking but first I will go over what makes a good comment in my opinion. After that I will explain my comments meaning & how you can better understand what's being said
I have often thought of this as mystery. Mystery is not necessarily a story about a fictional murder or death. We hear of mysteries of science, history, and more. In 1939, Winston Churchill applied it to international politics. "I cannot forecast to you the action of Russia. It is a riddle, wrapped in a mystery, inside an enigma; but perhaps there is a key. That key is Russian national interest." A mystery is also not a simple unknown. I have no idea what I ate for dinner this day last month. That is not a mystery because I do not care, nor does anyone else. A mystery is an unknown, which someone cares about, even needs to know. It is a compelling unknown. Thus, the suspense of a good book, it seems, must put together, one or more characters the reader cares about, and an unknown the reader cares enough to spend the time turning pages to find out. The third thing, I suspect, that drives the reader to more than finish is this. In order to read most novels, the reader must exit their daily life and enter the world (not necessarily some Sci-Fi or fantasy world) then return to daily life. The question then is this. Is my world or life changed by having spent time inside this book? Do I see my world differently or better? Do I see anything differently or better? Do I see my people differently or better? Do I see myself differently or better? Am I different or better? At least that is my non-commercial and personal opinion.
I guessed it was The Notebook but have never read it!