Creating Tension Without Using Gratuitous Violence: A Hostage to Heritage, Book Tour Stop 4

[Suzanne]

How far do crime fiction authors need to take violence in their stories to generate sufficient tension? Over on Mysteristas today, I have some ideas about getting the point across in a wartime setting without going overboard. Stop by and see if you agree with me.

A Hostage to Heritage just received its fourth five-star review on Amazon. "Ms. Adair truly deserves to be called the 'Mistress of American Revolution historical fiction,'" says the reviewer. Oh, my. I’ll take that tiara. Thank you!

Don’t forget about the Goodreads giveaways for A Hostage To Heritage and Regulated for Murder. The drawing closes early Friday 26 April.

[J.D.]

Hi! I wrote about a soldier returning from WWII. He was a medic and has PTSD, of course before it was known by that name. He continues down a horrible path. He has horrible nightmares which I detail in explicit language. It is violence, but it brings his current life into the war memories and some creepy additions make them believable. The book also highlights abuse of his two daughters because of his self-medicating with alcohol. It is my hope that people will find hope and healing by reading it. I appreciate your post and look forward to reading as this thread continues. Thanks.--Janet Iniquitous Connections: The Dark

[Suzanne]

Janet, thanks for your comment. Until recently, people didn't really have a clue about how to help soldiers who had PTSD, so soldiers returning from wars had to work it out the best they could with their families and friends. I think a lot more research needs to be done on this condition. We don't have a good handle on it yet.