ON CREATING TENSION IN YOUR WRITING

Tension. Without it, your writing is boring. With it, your writing is awesome. Tension forces the reader to love your words, but also to fear them. Many writers are afraid to use too much tension in their plots. They think kids can't handle it. Think again. Tension is what hooks readers of any age and keeps them turning the pages. Authors employ many methods to increase the pressure on their characters. Here are a few you can try:

1. Cliffhangers. End every chapter on a cliffhanger, like this: “‘We’d better go,’ said Lucy, ‘the pirates will be back soon.’ Now read the next chapter, or I’ll kill Mummy.”

2. Illustrations: Make a crude drawing of a scary clown cutting someone’s head off and write ‘You’ underneath it. Slip the picture inside the pages.

3. Have a friend dress up as a scary pirate. Then have him sneak into the child’s room and stand in the corner. Make sure he is holding the book. Then, when the child comes in, have your friend turn a flashlight on under his face and say, “Would ye be looking for this?”

This creates tension.

Now here’s some writing advice that doesn’t suck. In fact, it could be all you ever need.