Suspense Magazine's Blog Site

Anxiety at the highest level!

What could I possibly mean by that??  I was walking around Barnes and Noble and noticed that there are several authors that have written over 10 books about the same character.  I won’t name names, cause I think we all know who this could be.  I would just like to know when is enough, enough.  Can you really read book 15 about a character and know something new about them?  Can this villain or crime be the worst they have ever faced?  Do you really think they won’t make it out alive?  These are the things that they keep writing on the cover, etc.  Does the public really believe that?  I think that if you have a series, you should tell the readers right off the bat how many books you will have and stick with it.  Some examples:  Stephen King had 7 books in the Dark Tower series, long enough.  JK Rowling had 7 books for Harry Potter, perfect length.  I’ve interviewed and talked with many authors and most say they will keep writing their character as long as they stay fresh.  Do you think that the author is the best judge for that?  Less is more.  That is a very powerful statement and not used enough in writing.  If you are an author that has written several books about your character, start thinking of a way to end the series.  Expand you writing by starting a new challenge and new adventures for people to read.  I think that is why there are only a handful of authors that really stand out to me as “The Best of the Best”, because they have that ability to write different things.  This is what is lacking in popular fiction today and especially in Suspense / Thriller / Mystery and Horror.

Not sure where everyone stands on this topic, but I would love to hear some of your thoughts.

Suspense Magazine

I’ve talked about this on my radio show and even wrote an article in the magazine once.  I’m jut not feeling like going to see a movie lately.  I’m not interested in any of them out there and from the looks of the box office receipts, people feel the same as I do.  I was looking forward to see “Red Riding Hood”, even though I’m not a fan of Amanda Seyfried, but I’m a fan of Leonardo DiCaprio, so I thought it would be good.  However after seeing the reviews, yes I’m one of the people that reads them, I’m saving my money and I’ll wait until Netflix gets it in.  Just to be clear, I look at the all the critics reviews as a whole and decide if it is worth it.  If they all hate it, it must not be that good.  But look at the Top 10 box office leaders right now, and tell me if any of the movies excite you.  Then looking at what is coming up, I’m very disappointed.  I always look forward to the spring and summer line up of movies, but besides “Harry Potter” and “Thor”, it seems very lackluster.

Please someone help me out and tell me some good movies to look out for.  I will say I’m very happy that Michael Connelly is getting love with “The Lincoln Lawyer” and will see that one, but why does Hollywood keep forgetting the great authors out there right now and think they can create better stories than the authors that do this for a living.  I could name 10 authors right now that have not had a movie deal and should.  In fact I’ll name them:

1.  Dean Koontz – are you freaking kidding me!!

2.  Lee Child – see number 1

3.  Lisa Gardner – a shame

4.  Heather Graham – out of all her books, they can’t find one!

5.  Tess Gerritsen – they tried with T.V., but her story is perfect for a movie

6.  John Connolly – really, do I have to explain

7.  Chelsea Cain – her series is one of a kind and her humor is second to none

8.  John Sandford – Like Lee Child, his character is far overdue

9.  Steve Berry – better than Dan Brown

10.  Michael Palmer – read one of his books and you are hooked for life.

Well there is my list, but instead Hollywood will give us overused comedies, terrible remakes, and The Smurfs (I was a huge fan, but think with the trailer they screwed this one up).

Talk to you all later!!

Suspense Magazine

Just got done eating at the Cheesecake Factory and was at KFC this week also.  However I really, really hate the fact now that they have the calorie count on the menu.  When you go into McDonalds, Burger King, KFC, etc, you already know that you are not eating something that is “good” for you, do they really need to rub it in our nose also?  Why don’t they just say when you go to the drive thru “May I take your order and yes this food will make you fat!”  We have a surgeon generals warning cigarettes and in Santa Clara, CA, you can’t put a toy in the happy meal, cause that makes kids want to eat fast food.  I say, NO I like fast food, cause it is GOOD!  I eat food cause I LIKE it!

Just think about this, when you pick up a thriller / suspense book there will be a warning inside saying “Beware this book might give you nightmares.”  Isn’t that the point?  Everything now has a sign and a warning.  When did people all of a sudden turn stupid?  Coffee is hot, but it says it on the cup.  Fast food is bad, now you know just HOW bad.  It could just be me, but wasn’t life just much simpler in the 70′s and 80′s?  Music was better, TV was better, you could eat food without guilt, and cell phones didn’t rule everyone’s lives.

Anyway, just thought I would mention this and by the way “Beware this blog might not be that good”.  Now you have been warned!

Suspense Magazine

For the past couple of months, I’ve been getting back into audio books.  I can’t believe that I even stopped listening to them.  Audio Go sent me 3 great ones.  Sherlock Holmes stories, Agatha Christie and “Death of a Chimney Sweep” by M.C. Beaton.  Yes they are a BBC company, so everything is British, but I gotta tell you, Audio Books are wonderful.  I really don’t know why more books are not available, at least on .mp3.  I was told that you had to sell so many books for the publisher to even consider your book to be an audio book.  I think that is crap!  Audio Books enhance my experience of listening to a book, and it is great to sit back and just listen.  You get so involved with the story that you lose track of time.  I’m sure that many people feel that way when you read, but I generally can’t get through 50 pages before I get tired.  But when I listen to a story, I’m mad that I have to get up and change CD’s, I just want the story to continue.  Anyway, if you are like me and haven’t picked up an Audio book in sometime, go out and get one.  They are free at the library, and how long has it been since you went over there anyway.  Talk to you all soon!

Suspense Magazine

Now that I have your attention!  This past weekend and yesterday was great for us on Suspense Radio.  We had authors Douglas Preston, Lincoln Child (a little late because of me), Lisa Gardner, Heather Gudenkauf and Beth Groundwater on the show.  All of them were great guests and discussed many things beyond their books.  There was a lot of talk about what is going on today in publishing and some great marketing tips for any author.   I’ve not counted but I think we have done over 40 shows and counting.  The sheer number of authors and many great ones at that blow my mind away.  What I think is great is when you start something because you are a fan and end up being a bigger fan after you have it going.  That is what is happening to us at Suspense Magazine.  Every author we have met, well almost all of them, have been great!

Much more to come, have a great night and visit us at www.suspensemagazine.com, where you can get your fiction on!