Karen Harper | How I Grow a Suspense Novel

Since this 1990s, I’ve been writing suspense novels with an “average” heroine who is impacted by a terrible crime, but who rises above danger and fear to solve that crime. She is usually helped by a man she is falling in love with, but he does not rescue her like in the old “Perils of Pauline” days. She saves herself and sometimes others.

BROKEN BONDS, book #3 in The Cold Creek Trilogy (each book can stand alone) is a prime example of what I’ve learned works best for me and my readers. Charlene Lockwood sets out to do is visit one of her Appalachian contacts to be sure the family sends their child to school, but she ends up saving a life—the hero’s.

Rule #1: Make sure the readers will admire the heroine.

Rule #2: Get off to a grabber beginning. Before I write (I do somewhat follow a 10 – 15 page outline of how things “might” go) I plan who the possible perps will be. These questionable people motives worked into the plot but must not give themselves away too early to the reader. I was honored to meet P.D. James about ten years ago, and she advised me not to have more than three possible suspects or it gets too confusing and the author can’t give each one the attention needed.

Rule #3: Play fair with the reader but don’t give away the guilty party too early. As a matter of fact, waiting until a very late chapter or scene is my rule for uncloaking the criminal.

Rule #4: The setting matters. I have given a workshop to authors called “Setting As Character.” It’s that important. I choose a location for the story that has some scary aspects to it. In BROKEN BONDS, this is the edge of Appalachia where there are mountain cliffs, abandoned coal mines and areas where cell phones don’t work. Charlene wants to be independent of her sisters, so she opts to live alone. Her job takes her into some isolated ‘hills and hollers.’ The setting can begin as a friend and end up as an enemy or vice versa; like a good character, the setting can become helpful or hostile. A good example of this is the Titanic. The ship setting begins as a luxurious retreat, a protector, then becomes a trap and a killer—the villain, in a way.

Rule #5: Of course, since the spine of BROKEN BONDS reads “Romantic Suspense” the hero must be appealing, dynamic—and perfect for the heroine. That doesn’t mean they are instant soul mates and have a lot in common. Charlene and Matt Rowan appear to be miles apart in plans, finances, and backgrounds, so their road can be rocky. Getting them together in a realistic but unique way is part of the fun of writing romantic/suspense—and, hopefully, that all passes on to those reading it.