Patricia Highsmith, author of Strangers on a Train, The Talented Mr. Ripley, Found in the Street, and many other books, is known as one of the finest suspense novelists. In this book, she analyzes the key elements of suspense fiction, drawing upon her own experience in four decades as a working writer. Among other topics, she talks about: how to develop a complete story from an idea; what makes a plot gripping; the use (and abuse) of coincidence; characterization and the “likeable criminal”; going from first draft to final draft; and writing the suspense story.

````````````````````````

Book in review: Plotting and Writing Suspense Fiction by Patricia Highsmith

Throughout the book, Highsmith illustrates her points with plentiful examples from her own work, and by discussing her own inspirations, false starts, dead ends, successes, and failures, she presents a likely and highly readable picture of the novelist at work.

Anyone who wishes to write crime and suspense fiction, or who enjoys reading it, will find this book an insightful guide to the craft and art of a modern master.

```````````````````````````````

What did I like about this read?

Patricia Highsmith has never found other writers to be stimulating, as it has nothing to do with jealousy or mistrust. In fact, she cannot think of anything worse or more dangerous than to discuss her work with another writer…; Highsmith goes on to explain that the first person you should think of pleasing when writing a book, is yourself, for the length of time it takes to write a book, the publishers and the readers can and will come later.

This reviewer must concur and is stunned, as this is contrary to what I knew of writing, which is to write for an audience. Aren’t writers told to know their audience, but then perhaps I am confusing: “to know your audience” with “genre”, because if you know your “genre” then your audience is already there, one would think so, wouldn't it? 

Highsmith goes on to explain how her stories are developed, how they take form with “the germ of an idea”.  What is the “germ of an idea”, you ask? 

It is a brief sequence of an action that pops into the head out of nowhere. —from nothing seen or heard. Most of her germinal ideas come from nowhere in particular.  The “germs” for stories can be little or big; simple or complex; fragmentary or rather complete; still or moving. The important thing is to recognize them when they come.

She suggests having a notebook to keep such nuances, occurrences to write them down; so that one day you can review these notes and see what catches or takes flight when you do sit down to write, because a “germ of an idea”, even if slight, often brings with it a most important factor for the final product, atmosphere.

Highsmith believed that with momentum there should be conviction—in other words, to write a book and to bring it off successfully means to acquire a certain momentum, drive, and conviction which will last until the book is completed.

There is a lot to be said about what Highsmith has tried to present; most importantly, what a writer wants to have happen in a story is concerned with the effect he wants to create—tragedy, comedy, melancholy, or whatever. You should be aware of what effect you want to create before starting the book. Or else why do it at all?

Let’s go back a bit…to being in tune with the book you want to write. The writer must think about his material long enough, until it becomes a part of his mind and his life; he goes to bed and wakes up thinking about it—then at last when he undertakes the writing journey; the penning of the story should flow out by itself without a struggle because the writer was geared for it; be it taken six weeks or six months or longer…the fueling, dueling deed will be rewarded with the finished product—the book.

```````````````````````

Well, I hope to return and add to this Art of Writing topic monthly. This month has not been good for this ‘pretender’ who is not a writer, but takes lots of pictures of things of interest to post on another blog. I hope to share something better next time, after all–this is what writing is all about…sharing/stimulating, and supporting one another.

--------------------------------

Thank you!