Friday, November 06, 2009

Can you write a book where you don’t kill anyone?

That was what my husband asked, when I told him the idea for my next book, the new shiny idea that will not leave my head and makes my old idea seem rusty and boring.

And the truth is, I could probably write a book where everyone survives, but I don’t want to. I love suspense, tension that comes from a hero or heroine fighting for their lives, love the idea of villain and discovering what drives them.

And killing characters in print is kind of fun. Seriously, everyone should try it, just once and see if it works for them.

I know this is what I want to write, because the first scene that comes to mind is usually my heroine in trouble, or my hero fighting for his life, not their first meeting, not how they interact, but how the suspense brings them together.

I’m not sure how this came about because the romance I’ve always read is the straight historicals by Judith McNaught and Laura Kinsale and to this day, if I had to pick a favourite genre it would still be historical, where typically, there is very little suspense.

I’m still not entirely sure there really is a market for historical suspense, but until I prove conclusively that there isn’t, that’s what I’ll write.

And now back to the final edit on the old rusty book, while I do my best to ignore the new shiny idea, at least for the time being.

7 comments:

Maureen McGowan said...

Can't wait to hear more about the shiny idea!

The body count in my books is never as high as it is in yours... but as you know, I do like larger than real life crazy plot points.

Eileen said...

I don't think I've ever written a book without having at least recently killed off a character. My chick lit novels always had a dead person (the husband in DO ME, the father in BALANCING IN HIGH HEELS, the grandmother in UN-BRIDALED -- I don't want to say who was dead in UN-VEILED because it kinda ruins the end). It's the ultimate drama. What's harder to come back from than death?

Anonymous said...

Maureen, you can do a pretty good body count, when you want.

And Eileen, good for you. It's a little addictive. Once you start you can't stop...

Amy Ruttan said...

I tend to kill people off in my fantasy genre books. My current WIP I'm having the highest body count ever. Kind of fun. Stress relieving as well. :)

Kimber Chin said...

LOL Amy.

My current WIP (my Russian mafia romance) also has my highest body count ever. That's the one where a pregnant woman dies in chapter one.

Yep, another story destined for mass market (grinning)

Anonymous said...

Amy and Kimber, they sound like two books I would love to read..

It is stress relieving..

Amy, I would like to know how, with a baby and two young children, how you get any writing done? You need to give seminars

Molly O'Keefe said...

Hey I can't wait to hear about your new idea. I wanted to kill a dog in a book and I was told it might not be the best idea - since then I think everyone lives to see the end.

Hope you guys are feeling better.

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...