As much as I like it when a book I'm writing speeds along, the downside can be that an author becomes too eager to finish and rushes the end. The end is even more important than the first page, and rushing can damage it.

A thriller must be thrilling. A mystery may or may not be a thriller depending on how much breathless emotion it has, as opposed to cerebral calculation.

One generation's idea of fast pace might be different from a later generation's.

As long as thriller authors teach us about our world, they'll be relevant.

" ... What if?" Through the alchemy of those two words, something new comes into the world.

As much as I like it when a book I'm writing speeds along, the downside can be that an author becomes too eager to finish and rushes the end. The end is even more important than the first page, and rushing can damage it.

When I teach writing, I have a mantra: Be a first-rate version of yourself, and not a second-rate version of another writer.