Kill Zone
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The Kill Zone is the home of 11 top suspense writers and publishing professionals. We cover the publishing biz, marketing how-to's, and the craft of writing. Each day, we'll open the doorway into the world of the working writer.
Kill Zone
17h ago
If you could magically transform yourself into any character you’ve read, written, or watched, who would you become? Oh, me first? Galadriel, of course! Your turn . . . ..read more
Kill Zone
2d ago
by Debbie Burke @burke_writer Kim Lien Vu, 46, owned two nail salons in Liberty Township, OH. She reportedly “developed animosity” with a competing business, Bora Bora Nails and Spa in nearby Monroe. In December 2022, Vu and employee Cierra ..read more
Kill Zone
3d ago
By John Gilstrap For fiction to work–for it to feel right–countless tiny elements have to come together in a manner so seamless that readers are unaware that they are being manipulated. Clues have to be planted and red herrings launched so ..read more
Kill Zone
4d ago
By PJ Parrish This is a story about treasure hunting. I am a sucker for estate sales. We have a lot of them in summer up here in northern Michigan. My town, Traverse City, is awash in splendid old Victorians ..read more
Kill Zone
5d ago
You may have noticed my absence on the weekends lately. This summer, I vowed to take some “me time” and have fun away from the keyboard. So, I’ve been spending my weekends on the seacoast of Massachusetts. I grew up ..read more
Kill Zone
6d ago
by James Scott Bell @jamesscottbell We’ve had some discussions about time recently. Brother Gilstrap opined about making time for the things that count. Garry laid out a grid of 100 10-minute blocks. Heck, Kay has a whole cozy series centered ..read more
Kill Zone
6d ago
So, Hopeful Author, you came up with a great plot and over the course of several months, or years, you’ve hammer out 30,000 words in fine order. With the first act written, polished over and over, and massaged into a ..read more
Kill Zone
1w ago
Editing Tricks of the Trade Terry Odell Hitting “The End” on the manuscript doesn’t mean you’re finished. Once I have the full manuscript done, and have let it marinate for a while, it’s time to read it from the beginning ..read more
Kill Zone
1w ago
Clue – noun — anything that serves to guide or direct in the solution of a problem, mystery, etc. * * * According to the online Merriam-Webster dictionary ‘The word clue was originally a variant spelling of clew, meaning “ball of thread or ..read more
Kill Zone
2w ago
Today’s Words of Wisdom returns to an evergreen topic: villains. We love to hate them. Our fiction needs them. They help drive the plot. Understanding the importance of villains can be the key to writing more engaging and gripping mysteries ..read more