The Top Suspense Novel Pitfalls: How to Spot and Avoid Them

Editor Alyssa Matesic the top suspense novel pitfalls from the perspective of an agent or a book editor considering a manuscript.
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[@ThePami81]

"Remember that trauma is not a substitute for character development." Love it! I see this pitfall a lot, especially on TV.
Really helpful session, thank you!

[@naomishippen7179]

Some great traps to look out for as I head into editing the first draft of my suspense novel. Very interesting and informative presentation, thank you to Alyssa and Martin.

[@prakharmishra5187]

Really useful! Big thanks to both Alyssa and Reedsy!

[@nikkinewbie6014]

To the person with the question about the difference between mystery and thriller / the main thing is that with a thriller it’s very personal. The protagonist has been or will be victimized or targeted by the big bad in some way.
The protagonist can just be a regular guy or even a criminal. They don’t tend to be formal law enforcement.
The second big sign of a thriller is that the audience knows who the perpetrator / villain is by no later than Act 1. So the question is not who is the villain- it’s how is the protagonist going to find the person and get Justice or revenge or defend against attack?
The second Act of a thriller is all about that. Think the first John Wick movie. Or The Dark Knight where Batman is targeted by the Joker.
Mysteries are more about the protagonist discovering who is the villain / antagonist and figuring out how a puzzle or how the crime was committed or why.
The audience does not typically know the identity of the villain until towards the end of the second act or even the third act.
The protagonist tends to be law enforcement, or amateur sleuth or someone who is somewhat used to solving mysteries.
The protagonist is not usually personally targeted themselves, but they often have a personal stake in solving the mystery. It matters to them.
The Silence of The Lambs is a mystery. Clarice is FBI, she’s looking for an unsub and she’s not personally targeted except when she finds the villain and must take him down or be taken down.
Thrillers are more fast paced and visceral than most mysteries.

[@Fictionary]

Excellent presentation. Thank you.

[@kit888]

9:00 to skip the introduction

[@stephanerasmus8313]

Hi. From South-Africa.

[@cjanebell]

outside Paris

[@stanleyumezulike3170]

Hi from Nigeria

[@rahulpatnaik3196]

Namaste.from India

[@bills2660]

Bill from Lakewood Ohio

[@MidwesternArchetype]

Laundry in the background, phone ringer interrupting... It's hard to take this presenter seriously. SMH

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[@mmjustine9454]

Speaks too fast!