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Home > Fiction > WIG&TSSIP: Techniques of Suspense

WIG&TSSIP: Techniques of Suspense

May 13, 2011 By Mark Leave a Comment

The Ditchwalk Book Club is reading and discussing Rust Hills’ seminal work, Writing in General and the Short Story in Particular. Announcement here. Overview here. Tag here.

This entire section is one paragraph. In the paragraph Hills describes three different types of suspense that he intends to discuss in the next three sections.

While Hills has a preference as to which type of suspense is best, it should be noted that they’re not mutually exclusive. In novel-length works it’s possible to use all three types over and over again, in layers, in parallel and in combination, to drive reader interest and promote a full and satisfying experience.

So again we return to a central point: it doesn’t matter whether you’re writing literary works or mainstream fiction. Learning how to control the storytelling process empowers you as a writer.

Did you know that suspense comes in different flavors? Me either.

Next up: Mystery and Curiosity.

— Mark Barrett

Filed Under: Fiction Tagged With: Rust Hills, suspense, technique, WIG&TSSIP

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