David Wong
This first part will be old news to hard-core John Dies at the End fans, who call themselves John Dies at the End-heads, but the first book was written as a serial online, on my old blog, over the course of about five years. So it served as my novel writing school, really. BUT the version you can purchase has been rewritten and edited so much that every sentence has probably been reworked five times. The second book was the first time I sat down and said, "Okay, I have to write an entire book, all at once" but the transition wasn't as hard as I thought it would be. The difference was the first time I got reader feedback one chapter at a time, where with Spiders I spent two years writing it alone before anyone ever saw it, so I guess there was the possibility the editor could have just rejected it entirely but that didn't happen. And honesty by that point, I'd been doing it long enough that I felt pretty confident that I knew how to execute a horror novel. But that's only because I had so many years in getting JDATE into shape. It was like seven years from conception to final hardcover edition you can buy now, and many iterations. I don't know if that answer was helpful at all but it is true.
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Dani
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David Wong:
This isn't really a question, I just feel this overwhelming urge to tell you how much I appreciate the fact that you answer questions on here. I just find it so inspiring that someone as successful and relatable as you would take the time for just an everyday fan. At the wee age of 20 I started to understand that most people don't get enough appreciation, so thank you, from the bottom of my heart ?
Anna
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David Wong:
Hi David! While I was discussing JDATE and TBIFOS with a friend (we're both writers so we were analyzing the books in that mindset) and he said "I dream that one day I will be able to control the delicate yo yo of audience tension as effectively as david wong." So I would like to ask: how DO you build tension and suspense so well? And do you have any advice on that for aspiring writers?
David Wong
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