You’re a fan of my Trench Coat series, right? And you’re wondering why I didn’t release Episode IV, The Desperate this week. I have a host of excuses: there was a snowball-of-work from the first three, my editor was on vacation, then I was on vacation, and you were probably on vacation too. Earthquake, flood, a friend came in from out of town, yada… The result is: I finished a draft that was not written in a contiguous session and it ended up needing work. I hate when that happens.
As a writer, my primary job is to create a story so compelling that people will tell their friends about it.* The outline of Episode IV promised that, but the first draft just doesn’t deliver.
So. Back to work.
One of the challenges I face as a thriller writer is creating character depth while keeping the action moving. They are not mutually exclusive, but when writing a rescue sequence like the one that starts Episode IV, delving into a character’s personal problems can be tricky.
James Patterson does it like a sketch artist, giving you an idea and letting you form your own ideas. While that works for some people, as a reader, I feel cheated. Janet Evanovich does it by using caricatures and stereotypes. That works, and I don’t feel cheated, but I’m not writing stereotypes (and I’m not that funny). I prefer the deep background of repressed problems–the kind most of us think we have. And that kind of deep introspection can really stall an action story.
I’ve not updated a couple giveaways, so I’ll fill this space with a catch-up: Joyce Vance won Eye of God and Susan Gainoutdinov (say that three times fast) won XO by Jeff Deaver.
Hey, what do you think of the new cover? Does it line up with the other three? Or should I keep working on it?
Peace, Seeley
* Don’t be shy, tell your friends!
