Building Suspense

On Wednesday, October 18, 2023, awe had our live Spilling Ink Event: “Building Suspense”. We discussed how suspense writing can help build and create those moments when readers or viewers are completely captivated by the anticipation or suspense of a story line.

Have you ever been reading a good book or watching a movie or TV show and found yourself on the edge of your seat, in complete anticipation and suspense, just wondering what’s going to happen next? I know I have. Those are the moments when we as viewers or readers have become completely captivated by the story line. It also means that we are in the throes of great suspense writing.

It doesn’t matter the genre, suspense is everywhere. It can happen, just as easily in fantasy, as it can in a mystery or thriller, or in historical fiction or romance, or even comedy. And if we discover that we are pining for the next details, and wanting to explore further to know more, then it is the hand of suspense that grabs us.