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Create a plot that will naturally lend itself to conflict and tension.
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Make sure the first scene starts with a dead horse in the living room.
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But don’t lead off with too high a tension level. Build from one crisis to another. Give the reader breathing room.
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Make sure the action of the novel is tied to the emotions of the characters.
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Create tension between the h/h. Give them backgrounds that will make it hard for them to work together or perhaps to trust each other.
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Don’t use any scene simply for “character development.” The scene must serve the plot as well.
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Frame every scene in the context of the mystery.
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Knock off a secondary character, then bring the threat closer to the h/h.
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Use red herrings to create false leads.
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Misdirect the reader about the identity of the villain.
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Use foreshadowing to create tension.
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Use secondary viewpoint characters to create tension.
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Use the setting to your advantage.
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Give both main and secondary characters an urgent personal agenda. Make sure the villain has reasons for his actions.
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Support the main threat with a number of smaller threats that can be resolved.
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Try to end each chapter with a cliff hanger--either with danger, a plot crisis, or an emotional confrontation between the h/h.
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Keep the reader guessing about the outcome of each scene or episode. Make sure the book contains several surprises, although surprises must not come from “left field.”
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Include a ticking bomb or an urgent deadline.
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Make a secondary character’s motives unclear.
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Force the protagonist to attempt something that will be difficult or scary for him.
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Tie one hand behind the protagonist’s back.
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Cut off the h/h from all sources of help.
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Structure the plot so that there is more than one threat to the h/h. Bring these multiple threats together in the plot.
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Create a plot where there’s more at stake than simply the survival of the h/h.
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Raise the stakes to their highest level. Create a situation where any blunder means utter disaster.
