Ian Fleming, the creator of the ``007'' series, explains how to write popular thriller novels
Ian Fleming Explains How to Write a Thriller ‹ Literary Hub
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Born in 1908, Fleming graduated from the military academy, worked at banks and Reuters, and in 1939 began working for the British Naval Intelligence Service. During World War II, he commanded operations such as Goldeneye, and after retiring in 1945 after the end of the war, wrote the first 007 series, Casino Royale , in 1952. When it was published the following year, it became a popular work, and after that, many feature stories and short stories were published, and it was also successfully made into a movie .
Fleming died in August 1964 before the third movie ' 007 / Goldfinger ' was released, but in 1963, the year before, he published an essay 'How to write a thriller'. 'The art of writing sophisticated thrillers is almost dead. Writers seem embarrassed to invent white heroes, black villains and sexy pink heroines,' he said at the beginning of his essay. Fleming then explains his attitude as a novelist, how to make a good thriller, and how to complete a novel.
In his essay, Fleming argues that he is a novelist who creates entertainment, not trying to appeal to his readers with a message for humanity or a tragic experience of the past. He says that his novels are not intended to change people's lives, but rather to be read 'to pass the time on trains, planes and in bed.' 'I mean, if you decide to be a professional writer, roughly speaking, do you want to write for fame, or do you want to write for pleasure, or do you want to write for money? I write for pleasure and for money, and I'm not ashamed of it,' Fleming said.
Fleming shares the premise of writing for commercial gain, and argues that the only simple recipe for bestselling is to 'make the reader turn the page.' That's the essential dynamic of a thriller, and it follows that a prosaic style is preferred and long expository sentences should be avoided to keep the reader from stopping.
Also, character names, relationships, travel routes, and geographic settings need not be complex enough to confuse or irritate the reader. Readers should not ask themselves 'Where are the characters?', 'What are they doing?', 'Who is talking?' You shouldn't dwell on your unfortunate fate, keep a list of suspects in your head, or reminisce about your actions at length. Instead, Fleming says, you should list scene settings and heroine charms that grab the reader's attention and make them rush.
In addition, Fleming argues that an important component of a thriller is 'something that excites humans.' For that reason, it should be packed with many elements that will stimulate the reader, and it seems that the fact that James Bond's meal description is gorgeous and appetizing is not because Fleming is a gourmet, but as a service to the reader. is.
Fleming said, 'What I aim for is a kind of disciplined exoticism', 'The sun is always shining in my books, which frequently lifts the mood of British readers, and most of the settings themselves are interesting and enjoyable.' There is a strong hedonistic streak to offset the harshness of Bond's adventures by taking the reader to exciting places around the world, which is, so to speak, the reader's 'delight'. ” explains.
It may seem that Fleming, who explains these techniques, always writes novels with clever calculations, but he noticed these points because he analyzed his own book for an essay. About. 'I actually write what I find fun, what inspires me,' Fleming said.
Fleming says that while the 007 series is certainly fictional, it also uses methods to keep readers from getting angry if it's too absurd. First of all, the 007 series develops the story at a speed that does not give readers time to think about it, and further creates a sense of reality by studding place names, buildings, product names, etc. that exist in the real world. .
In addition, Fleming claims that the various events depicted in the first 007 series, ``Casino Royale,'' are based on facts he saw and heard during the British Navy Intelligence Department. For example, there is an episode in which Soviet intelligence gave a killer two camera cases, explaining that the 'red' was a bomb and the 'blue' a smoke bomb, but both were actually bombs. . Regarding this, it seems that the Soviet Union actually tried to assassinate in a similar manner when
In addition, the storyline that Bond challenges the enemy agent of the Soviet Union to bankruptcy by betting at a casino is actually based on Fleming's experience of betting against a German agent at a casino in Portugal. In addition, Fleming seems to have lost the gambling at this time, saying, ``This humiliating experience encouraged the war of the German Secret Intelligence Service and significantly lowered my boss's evaluation of me.''
Fleming could supplement his lack of experience in the Royal Navy Intelligence Service by training his imagination with stories he heard from friends and reading in newspapers, and by researching and documenting events that could be used in fiction. I claimed.
Fleming concludes by saying, 'Even if you absorb all this encouraging advice, your mind will still be exhausted by the physical exertion that comes with writing even a thriller. I feel depressed when I think that I have to fill in 200 to 300 manuscripts with more or less selected words in order to write a book of words, ”he also explained the techniques for actually writing a novel. I'm here.
Fleming wrote 'Casino Royale' in the villa he built in the north of Jamaica after his retirement. Fleming, who began to spend about two months a year in Jamaica, spent the first six years killing time on local trips and surveying coral reefs, but finally decided to get married because he had too much free time. He wrote a novel to deal with this anxiety about married life, and entered the writing life with its success.
After that, Fleming continued to write novels during his visits to Jamaica, inviting his readers to 'retire to a hotel room or other bedroom as far away from normal life as possible' and put themselves in a state of monotony and lack of distraction. Recommended. Also, when writing, it is good to strictly follow the routine, and Fleming writes for a total of 4 hours, 3 hours from 9:30 to 12:30 and 1 hour from 18:00 to 19:00. I explain that I am dedicated.
Furthermore, when writing, the trick is to write it all at once without reviewing the past sentences, except to check how far you have written last time. ``Once you look back, you will get lost.'' Fleming advises you to go. Of course, there is a strict check by the proofreader before it becomes a book, and although readers point out that 'here is wrong' after publication, most readers seem to skip the details .
“I think it’s a good life to be a relatively successful writer,” Fleming says. 'Even if you can only write thrillers with white heroes, black villains, and sexy heroines, this is a pretty valuable byproduct.'
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