Fright or Flight?

 

Halloween came and went quietly at the end of October. We didn’t have any costumed visitors this year. However, the day did make me think about fear. There were so many more hair-raising movies advertised on television than I normally see, although scary movies seem pretty popular in this day and age. Sometimes fear can actually be fun, if you’re reading a book or watching a movie. In real life? Not so much.

When I first started writing I created a book titled Secrets of Holt House, later rewritten and republished as Mysteries of Holt House. I tried to think of what readers might like and came up with a spooky old house (which was transformed into a boarding house), located in the middle of nowhere, and I added secret passages and unexplained events and circumstances. I thought it up, wrote it, and read it. It’s certainly not my best work, but it isn’t bad. Here’s the thing. I received comments from readers that really surprised me. The things that happened in that old house and in the secret passages actually scared people. Who knew? I had no idea that I could cause someone to lock their doors, check the windows and sit on the edge of their seat.

Anyone who was around when Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho was first released remembers the paralyzing fear that the shower scene caused. Believe it or not, there are still women who take a bath instead of a shower because of that movie.

In 1990, two Carol Davis Luce books were released, Skin Deep and Night Stalker. She kept me on the edge of my seat with those stories. Night Stalker took place near the area where I lived at the time. I think knowing the places she referenced made the story scarier, because I could relate to the locations. Sometimes familiarity is all it takes. I’ve never forgotten those books, so they definitely had an impact.

All kinds of things scare people. For some it’s snakes or other reptiles. Big dogs bother others. Things that go bump in the night will set some off because they represent the unknown. I know one woman who won’t read even lighter cozy mysteries because they make her so nervous. The subject doesn’t matter, but the unknown does.

I wrote a post about animals in stories a while back and mentioned dogs making great characters. Remember Stephen King’s Cujo? Dogs can make great villains, too. They aren’t all named Lassie and they aren’t all heroes. I’ve had more than one canine set my teeth on edge, and dogs are my pet of choice. Imagine witnessing a car accident where the vehicle ends up being upside down, and you get out to see if you can help – and a woman climbs out through a window followed by a vicious dog on a leash. That actually happened to me not long ago. It was touch and go for a few minutes.

Ugliness, monsters, clowns, the unknown, surprise, graphic violence; these are all things that can scare readers. However, the list is a lot longer than these few things. Some fear heights, and an author can set a scene where you feel like you’re right there on top of a thirty story building with someone. Mountain driving, bridges, freeways and deep water are frightening to some. What doesn’t give one reader the heebie jeebies will cause another one to lose sleep. How about flying? Plenty of people are terrified of airplanes and flying. My point is that like being on a roller coaster, fear can be both terrifying and fun at the same time.

Thankfully, some writers can spice the fear with a little humor. You’ll see that in some vintage movies. For instance, Abbott and Costello, Bob Hope and Red Skelton add a little humor to their own movie fears.

My mother and I once watched a scary movie on TV from our separate homes, but stayed on the phone while we watched because the movie was too scary to watch alone. Where there’s a will, there’s a way.

What scares you? For me, it’s spiders and flying. Oh, and twisted mountain roads. And… Never mind.

 Until next time, have a good week and I hope you conquer your fears.

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The Art of the Cliffhanger

The definition of a cliffhanger is a story or event with a strong element of suspense just at the right moment. It leaves you figuratively hanging on by your fingertips. I love a chapter that ends with a good cliffhanger.

 

 

I’m critiquing a new work in progress by Dorothy Bodoin, and the last chapter I read made me suck in my breath and look for more. I had to know what was going to happen next, but unfortunately for me, the next chapter hadn’t been written yet.

Good cliffhangers will keep the reader reading, wanting more. The only problem is that you may have to put down the book to take care of business, and you don’t want to.

I once had a wonderful phone call, at 6:00 in the morning, from a book store manager. She said she was so mad at me that she could scream. Of course, I couldn’t figure out what I might have done. It turns out she picked up Old Murders Never Die just to read the first chapter and see what it was about. She said she couldn’t put it down and that she read the entire book that night, never getting any sleep. Unfortunately, she had to be at work by 5:00 that morning. I laughed and filed that away as one of the nicest compliments I’d ever received. She forgave me and I thanked her.

If your book has suspenseful moments, hang-by-your-fingernails moments, work them into the end of a chapter. Let the readers’ internal music work its way to a crescendo and then satisfy them with the next chapter. Even if the cliffhanger questions aren’t answered (it may not be the right time), let there be some type of closure for the reader. Don’t frustrate your fans, but keep them reading. Not every person has internal music, but think of some of the movies you’ve seen. Alfred Hitchcock had some great suspenseful music in Psycho. I think some people relate that to books they’re reading.

There’s one author whose stories I find haunting, and I don’t mean ghosts. I mean the kind of story that grabs you and draws you in. I can almost hear the haunting music while I read her work. M.M. Gornell’s books have that effect on me.

Patricia Gligor draws me in, too. It seems like there’s always something just around the corner and waiting to grab me in the next chapter.

The authors are too many to name them all, but they keep me reading with their cliffhangers and just enough detail to make it seem real. Even the humorous mysteries have plenty of room for cliffhangers.

“The squeak of the door told me someone was sneaking up behind me. The creak of the floorboard made me cringe and quickly turn, but…” Uh oh. End of chapter. What happened next?

Well, it’s just my opinion, but I love great cliffhangers – just not at the end of the book. I don’t like being left hanging and having to look for a Part II book. As a reader, I want a good conclusion that makes sense and ties up all hanging threads.

How do you feel about cliffhangers? Do they keep you reading or do they frustrate you?

Until next time, have a good week and I hope nothing happens to leave you hanging on for dear life.

P.S. My prayers go out to both Texas and Florida and all the states with fire issues, and the heroes who live and work there. And thanks to the firefighters in California, Oregon, Washington and Montana. The rest of us are all doing what we can to help.

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Nervous Laughter and Alfred Hitchcock

The other day I watched a rerun of an old Dick Cavett Show. His guest was Alfred Hitchcock, and it was a wonderful interview.

I’m probably one of only a few who’d never heard Mr. Hitchcock interviewed. He had an understated and droll wit, and I found myself laughing at his comments. I love a dry humor.

What amazed me is the insight he had into people and what makes them tick. For instance, he talked about fear and that people love to be frightened. He was right. He used a roller coaster ride as an example. People ride up and down at extreme angles and scream throughout the entire ride. When they get off? They’re laughing and giggling. 

Yes, people love to be frightened. Why else would they enjoy reading about haunted houses, ghosts and monsters, and secret rooms? Why else would they watch a horror movie and find themselves talking to the television, saying, “Don’t open that door!” “Don’t go outside alone!”

One time my mother was home alone and there was a scary movie on TV that she wanted to watch. So she called me on the phone and had me turn it on, and then she wouldn’t hang up until the movie was over. I had to laugh at that one, and so did she.

We write mysteries. We’re not directors or actors. However, we can write scenes that will keep the reading audience on the edge of their seats. Interestingly, we can write suspenseful and frightening scenes that will make the reader laugh, regardless of whether it’s nervous laughter or humorous giggling. Our characters can feel the fear that makes them giggle, just like real honest-to-goodness people, and we can include this trait in their reactions.

Like many people, I have a fear of spiders. I once lived in a very old house with a black widow issue. I was cleaning the entryway floor and wearing slippers, and all of a sudden a black widow dropped from the ceiling onto the toe of my slipper. I kicked, trying to throw it off, but as I backed up it followed me. I was being stalked by a black widow! And I started to laugh. I laughed so hard that I cried. Maybe it was really hysteria. Anyway, I finally realized that the spider had attached itself to my slipper with a web, and when I moved, it moved with me. That poor ol’ spider ended up as nothing but a grease spot on the floor. After all, I had two slippers. Maybe it’s not a good idea to mess with someone who’s scared.

Mr. Hitchcock also explained how certain scenes were filmed in his movies. I guess you’d have to call the procedure early special effects. We can include special effects in our books, too, through descriptions.

Remember the shower scene in Psycho? I know a couple of women who, to this day, won’t take a shower. Hitchcock knew how to terrify viewers.

Years ago I read a book written by an author who happened to use the area where I lived as her location. Because I recognized the places and streets she described in her book, it frightened me. It was familiar and scary, and it was about a serial killer who was stalking the small town where I lived. Maybe that’s one of the keys – using a location people can relate to.

Scenes that are too graphic generally don’t make me laugh. It’s the anticipation leading up to a frightening event that can make me chuckle nervously. I have to admit that I’ve read stories in the newspaper that were so bizarre and terrifying that they made me laugh.

How about you? Does fear make you laugh? Did Alfred Hitchcock know how to push your buttons?

Until next time, I hope you have a carefree week with no black widows or monsters to worry about.

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Black Butterfly - A Bogey Man Mystery