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Eight hundred thriller writers and fans converged on New York earlier this month for the fifth annual Thrillerfest. Convening at the Hyatt at Grand Central Station, the crime writers attended panels and classes, lectured, networked, and had at least one cocktail party every night.
The International Thriller Writers Association was founded in 2004, after a crime writing conference at a Scottsdale, Arizona bookstore attracted way more people than expected.
Spy novelist Gayle Lynds and Rambo creator David Morrell were the first co-presdients. “It became evident to us that readers wanted a conference that celebrated the thriller,” Lynds said at Thrillerfest. While thrillers have long been on the bestseller lists, the books are often dismissed as “beach reads,” and some of their writers have wee chips on their shoulders about being seen as sub-literary. Lynds said thriller writers wanted their own convention and awards. Thanks to the ITW, they’ve had both for five years running.
Many writers come to Thrillerfest year after year, though the price of the convention and New York lodgings can be prohibitive. Established writers come to see their colleagues and agents. Aspiring writers attend to meet famous writers and agents. Quite a few readers and fans come to drink cocktails while chatting with Ken Follett, Lee Child, Tess Gerritsen, and other thriller luminaries.
Cindy Barton Rabe, one of the four attendees from Oregon, came to make contacts and find an agent to represent her first science thriller. “Thrillerfest is incredibly supportive for aspiring thriller writers,” she said “It’s just like in any other business. A huge percentage of the likelihood of success comes from networking.”
What is it about thrillers that has put so many on the top seller list? This week, seven books on Publisher’s Marketplace’s top ten list are thrillers. Lisa Scottoline, who has published eighteen books, calls it, “a no bullshit genre. Get to the point. Tell the story.”
Over the course of the conference, many writers remarked on the public’s demand for stories to be quicker and snappier. Younger generations are more at home juggling three electronic devices than sedately turning pages in a book. According to Karen Harper, when she began publishing historical fiction in the 1980s, “you could take four paragraphs to describe a castle.” She said now people are used to USA Today, and reading data points prefaced by bullets.
In keeping with the electronic revolution, mass market paperbacks are down and Kindles are up. Writer Stephen Coonts emphasized the need to connect with readers both over the Internet and in person. “Fans are made one at a time,” he said. He emphasized that writers need to look their fans in the eye, personalize autographs and spell the reader’s name right. Publicity is up to the author; you can’t count on the publishers anymore. “Fifteen years ago they put me on the road for a month,” he said. “Now they don’t want to buy me lunch.”
Writers today are pressured to think of elevating their names into brands. After Jonathan Maberry published several martial arts textbooks, he decided to write some vampire folklore. People in publishing advised him to use a pseudonym. The vampire book far outsold the martial arts books, leaving him in the strange position of playing second fiddle to his pseudonym. He decided to use his real name for his next folklore book. But not only did he have to start over rebranding his name, he wound up in competition with his pseudonym, and occasionally even accused of imitation. Worse, his real identity was snubbed; his pseudonym got invited to speak at conferences which didn’t invite him.
Thrillerfest’s biggest draw for aspiring authors is an afternoon of speed dating with literary agents. This year, almost 50 agents participated. Each sat at his her or his own table. Writers formed lines, waiting for their chance to spend three minutes pitching their thrillers. Most writers pitched between twelve and twenty agents during the allotted time.
Scott Fleuter, former police chief of Ashland, attended Thrillerfest to pitch his tale of a vengeful psychiatrist who manipulates his patients to commit murder. According to Fleuter, meeting agents was well worth the entrance fee. “It’s so hard if you don’t know anybody, to make that human to human contact,” he said. Fifteen agents requested a look at his manuscript.
Publishing is a grim business. Literary agent Barbara Poelle said that out of 100 queries she receives by mail, she only asks to read one manuscript. And out of 100 requested manuscripts, she only offers to represent one author. Several agents said if your thriller is set in Iraq or Afghanistan, forget it. Those are glutting the market.
One thing that many of the thriller writers disagreed passionately over was whether or not to outline a book. Paranormal thriller writer Allison Brennan and Eric Van Lustbader, who has continued Robert Ludlum’s “Bourne” series, fell strongly on the no outline side. RL Stine, of Goosebumps fame and Gayle Lynds are pro-outline. “Push yourself to outline,” Lynds urged. “The hardest part of writing is thinking.”
Less contentious was the “write what you know” versus the “write what you want to know” debate. While many thriller writers have special expertise – careers as attorneys, cops or intelligence agents – many don’t. As writer Steve Alten, who was a PE major, put it, “If I wrote what I knew, it would be a really boring book about pushups.”
Harlan Coben doesn’t outline but knows his ending. He likened his method to driving from New Jersey to Los Angeles. While many routes are possible, he knows he’ll wind up in L.A. He emphasized that excessive outlining and researching are ways writers often avoid writing. “Outlining, creating characters, and researching, are not writing,” he said. “Even conferences are bad if they stop you from writing.”
Many writers expressed concern and confusion over electronic publishing formats. But keynote speaker Gina Centrello, publisher and president of Random House, emphasized that ultimately what writers need to produce is a good story.
For aspiring authors, attending Thrillerfest is a gamble. It can easily cost two thousand dollars to pay for the conference, lodging and airfare. A few will probably become well known writers. Many will not. It’s kind of like the old Calvinist religion. Many are going to hell no matter what they do, but they have to persist in being good if they want to find out if maybe they’re slotted for heaven. Writers, too, must persist if they are going to have any chance for success. Some of the writers will feel dejected and overwhelmed by the odds against them. But many others go home feeling inspired. After four days of Thrillerfest, Ray Plotecia of Baltimore, who is seeking a publisher for his maritime ecothriller, falls into this category. “I actually feel like I love writing more right now than I have for a while,” he said.
Image credits Thriller Writers.
