http://www.loc.gov/mods/v3 http://www.loc.gov/standards/mods/v3/mods-3-2.xsd
Patricia Highsmith, author of Strangers On a Train, The Talented Mr. Ripley, Found In The Street, and many other books, is known as one of the finest suspense novelists. In this book, she analyzes the key elements of suspense fiction, drawing upon her own experience in four decades as a working writer. She talks about, among other topics; how to develop a complete story from an idea; what makes a plot gripping; the use (and abuse) of coincidence; characterization and the "likeable criminal"; going from first draft to final draft; and writing the suspense short story. Throughout the book, Highsmith illustrates her points with plentiful examples from her own work, and by discussing her own inspirations, false starts, dead ends, successes, and failures, she presents a lively and highly readable picture of the novelist at work.
I The Germ Of An Idea 3 -- II Mainly On Using Experiences 14 -- III The Suspense Short Story 27 -- IV Development 37 -- V Plotting 53 -- VI The Frist Draft 61 -- VII The Snags 82 -- VIII The Second Draft 97 -- IX The Revisions 103 -- X The Case History Of A Novel: The Glass Cell 108 -- XI Some Notes On Suspense In General 133.
Updated to 1981, with new foreword, 1988.
Originally published: Boston : The Writer, 1981.
The Cushing Library/Science Fiction copy [A1485349048D] is part of the Ray Nayler Collection.