Couldn't resist throwing in another pretty Catalina picture - this one's on the boat and that's the island way out there! Okay, done with my tangent now... on to the real point of this post!
When I was younger, some of my favorite books to read were those good ol' Nancy Drew mysteries, and there was one big reason why. Every book used the same technique to leave you dangling at the end of each chapter, on the edge of your seat in suspense, unable to put the book down because you have to find out if your heroes make it out alive. The chapters all end something like this:
* Nancy rounded the corner to find herself face to face with [insert name of bad guy], and he was pointing a gun straight at her head!
* They burst into the room and gasped in horror. Dr. Drew was gone!
* Nancy, Bess, and George bolted toward the exit, only to find that the door was locked. They were trapped!
Exclamation points and all, these last lines help the books accomplish what all good writing should: they make you want to keep reading. That's what I look for when I read: suspense. Not necessarily oh-my-gosh-the-bad-guy's-about-to-chop-my-head-off-what-will-I-do suspense, but the kind of suspense that comes from not knowing what's coming, and makes you desperate to get to the next page and see what happens. I don't so much enjoy books that are bogged down with back story or paragraphs-long chunks of a character's thought process. I like action and dialogue and adventure. I also like catchy beginnings - I've learned that every story should have a good 'hook' so you're drawn in immediately - and I don't have any good examples of this that come right to mind, but I love to open the book, read the first sentence, and go, "Whoa!" I also love books that can make me laugh, where the humor is woven into the narrative and the characters so it's not blatantly obvious that the writer's trying to make jokes.
How ironic is it that the things I like best in the books I read are the things I have the hardest time writing myself?
Other things I like in books: sensory detail, believable interactions between families and friends, characters who change for the better, beautiful settings, characters who help each other, clear, snappy language, well-crafted dialogue, descriptions of people, unique/quirky characters, rescues, reunions, epiphanies, dangerous missions, nail-biting climaxes, problem-solving, heroes and heroines, journeys, changes of heart, growing up, mending relationships, secrets, hidden pasts, quests, humor, joy, relief, writing that makes you feel as though you're right there in the story and you forget about everyone and everything around you, likable characters, animals, plot twists, happily ever afters.
okay did you leave anything out? but i agree, something to learn in the story pulls me along...is that suspense? i think so!
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