How to Write a Damn Good Thriller

February 9, 2004
The same publisher also offers How to Write a Damn Good Mystery, by Edgar-nominee James N. Frey, who confidently guides the novice through the crime-writing basics.

March 15, 2010
The authors fifth guide to writing damn good fiction offers a useful and entertaining look at the process of writing a thriller. Some readers may be confused, at first, by his seemingly overbroad definition of a thriller (the Iliad? Miss Congeniality?), but thrillers, Frey argues, should be defined by their key elements: heroes with impossible missions, theatrically extreme villains, a series of obstacles, a rousing climax. The author leads us through the process of putting together a thriller by creating several stories and then showing us how to elaborate their plots and how to design their characters. Its an interesting approach, sort of a hands-on seminar. He also refers frequently to various well-known thrillers (The Boys from Brazil, Jaws, The Day of the Jackal, etc.) and explains why they work the way they do. By adopting a practical approachshowing us in specific terms how to build a character, for example, rather than simply giving us general pointersFrey makes the prospect of writing a novel feel considerably less daunting.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2010, American Library Association.)