Hi everybody. I'm about 40K words into my suspense novel and I realized yesterday that there's no mystery as to who the bad guy is. I'm building suspense around whether the bad guy will get to my MC (she stole his money), what he'll do in the process of trying to get to her, what she'll do trying to escape him, and whether or not there will be "justice" in the end. I'm really happy with the way it's shaping up, but will this lack of "mystery" in my suspense be a problem for readers? I'd love your input, and thanks in advance.
Suspense novel with known bad guy
- Thread starter hopeful09
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Why do you consider it might be a problem for readers?
Suspense is all about events and tension. There's no rule that says a bad guy's identity has to be kept from readers, and whether or not the good guy knows the identity is also your choice.
Mystery is more about seeking the truth of whatever happened.
Suspense is all about events and tension. There's no rule that says a bad guy's identity has to be kept from readers, and whether or not the good guy knows the identity is also your choice.
Mystery is more about seeking the truth of whatever happened.
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There are three basic story structures in MTS.
Mystery: The Heroine sets out to find the truth in which the How and the Why determine the Who. Examples: Chinatown, The Maltese Falcon, The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo.
Thriller: The Heroine is under a very personal threat (of death, of failure, of losing love, of losing reputation, etc). Examples: The Fugitive, Presumed Innocent.
Suspense: The Heroine and the Opponent are in a battle of wits and fists. Examples: The Dark Knight, Heat, Catch Me If You Can, The Prestige, Now You See Me.
Your story seems to fall under the Suspense structure. There is very little Mystery, although you can mix up structure elements as you see fit.
Another view on the Suspense structure: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Djd1CpDQ3Q0
-cb
Mystery: The Heroine sets out to find the truth in which the How and the Why determine the Who. Examples: Chinatown, The Maltese Falcon, The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo.
Thriller: The Heroine is under a very personal threat (of death, of failure, of losing love, of losing reputation, etc). Examples: The Fugitive, Presumed Innocent.
Suspense: The Heroine and the Opponent are in a battle of wits and fists. Examples: The Dark Knight, Heat, Catch Me If You Can, The Prestige, Now You See Me.
Your story seems to fall under the Suspense structure. There is very little Mystery, although you can mix up structure elements as you see fit.
Another view on the Suspense structure: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Djd1CpDQ3Q0
-cb
This is funny--kinda. I was listening to the Criminal podcast yesterday, an episode called "The Gatekeeper," about Marilyn Stasio who reviews crime novels for the NY Times and who reads hundreds of them each year. It was an interesting interview, and she kept coming back to the mystery of finding out "whodunit." It dawned on me that wasn't a mystery in mine, so I wanted to hear others' thoughts on whether that could be a problem.
This is exactly how I feel about it! And it's what I'm trying to do with my story--keep the tension tight and get to the truth of it, of why my characters are doing what they're doing.
Thanks!
Thank you for this. It reaffirms what I was thinking and trying to do. I appreciate it!
BTW, some very successful crime novelists use a suspense/thriller vs. whodunit mystery structure in ongoing series. John Sandford's Prey series and his Virgil Flowers series come to mind, as well as Nelson DeMille's John Corey series.
Good luck!
I read a lot of mysteries/suspense, and knowing who the killer is, is no deterrent. It's the search, the hunt, how the detective figures it out that's interesting. Sometimes it's interesting to watch the two sides trying to outwit each other, sometimes it's interest to just watch the detective works it out.
Yes! This was also part of what worried me. I am a HUGE fan of both Sandford and DeMille (finally got around to reading the Virgil Flowers series and don't know why I waited so long--I love the Prey series). But because they do both use that whodunit structure, I thought, crap. I'm not, and I LOVE these guys! I'm doing it wrong!
I so appreciate everybody's comments here. I'm going to keep going (in this first draft, at least) as I intended and see how it shakes out. Thanks!
Thank you! I feel the same way too, but I felt like I had to take a step back and pose the question. Just because I like it doesn't mean others will. I appreciate the support and the feedback.
I like this breakdown better than most I've seen. Is it yours, CB, or are you quoting from somewhere else? I want to be sure to give the proper attribution when I quote it in the future.