The Elements of a Page-Turner - podcast

The late Stan Lee didn't have any rules about what makes a story a page turner, he just made sure to interest himself along the way. Lee, comic creator of Spider-man, Fantastic Four and X-Man and former president and CEO of Marvel Comics, says an author has to have a basic idea of plot. From there, he must make the audience care about the hero so that when he gets in trouble, they suffer too. Tension develops when the hero keeps trying to do right, only to land in deeper trouble. How will he get out of it this time? Lee often wondered this too! But by introducing complex situations and surprises, readers are taken on quite a journey that offers big relief and enjoyment when the payoff occurs.
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    Thanks for your comments. I have written a book and I was clear on what I would be writing but I found - it was just 112 pages - I got my tenses mixed up and was redundant and didn't know how to handle that. I went to 'find' but that didn't always work. I like what you said about suffering with the hero (I think I did that, my story was true about mental illness) - I love creating things and then telling them. I do what you said, 'just do it'. Thanks for the good help. Ruth Lampe, SURVIVING Mental Illness
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    Excelent suggestions, Thank you, Migdalia Arnan
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    This was inspirational. I have only one rule, write every day. Some of it I hope will never be seen by another human being but it keeps me going on writing. I move from one story to the next depending on the mood I am in and which character is "speaking" to me at the moment. But there is nothing like hearing confirmation from Stan Lee! Thank you.
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    He is right, I the idea for my novel in my head but was shocked at the twists in the plots that turned up. When I have multiple ides floating around I put them down on paper (or disc) then when I get back to them the stories almost write themselves.
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    This was a great summary and starting point. Thank you! K.J. Beller

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