Elements of Fiction Writing - Conflict, Action & Suspense [Paperback]

Conflict, Action & Suspense is a treasure trove of tools and techniques to help control the pace and effect of fictional scenes. The only thing it really lacks is a governor. Noble does inject a cautionary note about not overusing some of the more esoteric techniques but, for the most part, his advice seems to be 'more is always better'. If you take him literally you could wind up with some REALLY horrendous writing.

As an example, take the technique of rapid-fire viewpoint switching. It could be effective in very limited fashion but, used in the way he seems to be suggesting, it would not only be confusing and irritating but, more importantly, it would almost certainly nullify any character identification. The equivalent of having a madman in charge of the video editing in an arty film production obsessed with making you dizzy.

There is a fundamental principle in danger of being violated here. If your technique becomes intrusive- if the reader notices WHAT you are doing rather than being carried with the flow- then you are doing something wrong. Period. Bottom line: Check your favorite authors to see how they handle a particular technique before overusing it yourself.

He also managed to punch my buttons with another pet peeve: Referring to 'classical' literature as though that is still how people should be writing. He's quite correct in saying that drab cliche' descriptions should be avoided... but so should the flowery frippery and exaggerated imagery of bygone eras of literature. You'll lose your modern audience (except for a few literary eggheads) in a bout of disgusted snickers.

The above reasons are why I give the book only four stars. BUT in every other respect I'd rate it as a five star plus. Noble does a masterful job of presenting a vast array of techniques (several of which I have not seen elaborated elsewhere) to keep your audience breathless in anticipation of your next devious twist of fate. This is a reference I plan to keep close at hand. The major challenge will be learning to use it responsibly.

He touches on suspense's relationship with all sorts of basic writing issues such as dialogue, openings, cliffhangers, mood and atmosphere, character development, point of view, pacing, endings, and so on. Noble does a good job of focusing on specific techniques relevant to suspense for the most part.

It isn't a perfect book. It isn't as dry as most textbooks, but it could certainly be better than it is. Some of the examples that Mr. Noble makes up to use in the book are a bit on the overblown side, which kind of undercuts some of his points. He might have been better off using more examples from published fiction. Also, some of Mr. Noble's assertions regarding his topics have since been proven to be wrong. For example, when talking about the logic of settings: "...And a horror-suspense story would have problems if it was set in the unfolding of a miracle." I've seen this done quite well, actually.

This book was originally copyrighted in 1994, and this may be part of the problem. Since then some of the techniques that he lauds as strong and effective have become over-used and trite. (Overused techniques became that way precisely because they're so effective.) Some of the things he says can't be done have been done. As it is, this book serves as a very good example of why you need to do a lot of reading in the fiction field you want to write in. Otherwise, how will you know which of his techniques have been over-used, which can be seen as trite if you aren't careful how you use them, and which are still seen as solid, useful methods?

"Scene & Structure" "Characters & Viewpoint" "Beginnings, Middles & Ends"

The above three books are invaluable -- must reads. They are the best of the series, in my opinion, and are packed with good information on every page. Well-done.

"Conflict, Action & Suspense" "Description" "Plot" "Manuscript Submission" "Setting"

The above five books are good, solid reads. Again, they contain good information and cover the subject decently.

"Voice & Style" "Dialogue"

To me, the last two books need to be rewritten. They are by far the weakest of the series. Both suffer from an annoying style, particularly Dialogue, and both are very skimpy on real information. Neither one is very helpful.

This is the order in which I'd recommend reading them.