Finder finds another way with SUSPICION

HALLIE EPHRON: Joseph Finder’s new suspense novel SUSPICION has literally exploded in the press here in Boston -- stellar book review, feature articles -- and along with it a great back story about how Joe took hold of his own career to set a new direction.

There he was, a brand-name New York Times best selling author with ten thrillers under his belt, one of which was made into a Hollywood movie. Seven-figure multi-book deal and fans galore.  When his last book came out not as strong as the one before, he made a brave decision. He decided to make a change. New publisher, new agent... So he bought out his contract (!), cut his ties with his agent, and took his time writing a new novel.

Sure he was grateful to his publisher. As he told the Boston Globe, “If not for [St. Martin’s] I would not be a New York Times best-selling author, period. We just disagreed. They wanted me to be the CEO of Suspense. And I felt that was too constricting.”

His new publisher, Dutton, has just brought out his new novel SUSPICION to much fanfare. It's a taut thriller with a great main character Danny Goodman (single dad, widower…) who is a historian working on a book about Jay Gould, a 19th century robber baron. In dire financial straits, Danny accepts a loan that he shouldn’t and from that one bad decision it's downhill:  he’s between a rock (DEA investigators) and a hard place (Mexican cartel.)

BREAKING NEWS: 

SUSPICION just debuted #12 on the NY Times Bestseller List! WHOOT WHOOT!

 

I resonated to Joe's story - I didn't do quite the same thing, but when my last multiple-book contract with St. Martin's was fulfilled, I embarked on something new, writing on spec. The standalone suspense novel (NEVER TELL A LIE) took two years (not like one year for a series novel) to write.

I am so in awe of him - what courage it took to buy out his contract and rethink his image.

Here are some questions I'd love Joe to answer:

- How is this book different from what you’ve done before. Because one of the things I’ve always loved about your book is that you write about having kids and you’re doing that again here. It really humanizes the protagonist.

- Do you think the extra time makes a better book?

- Were you tempted to go the self-publishing route, which some authors are taking these days, or did you want to set your sites on the "right" traditional publisher?

- Where can we find you talking about your new book and signing copies?

Red readers, pile on with questions for Joe. He'll be visiting Jungle Red today. I have a copy of his new book ready to go to one lucky commenter.

Hallie's Hitchcock Moments...

HALLIE EPHRON: I never would have guessed that I'd end up writing suspense novels, but a lifetime fascination with movies of Alfred Hitchcock could have tipped me off. One of my favorite of his techniques -- one which I've borrowed over and over again -- is what I call the "light bulb in the milk" moment. 

I found it near the end of Suspicion. Cary Grant plays the husband Johnny, a handsome ne'er-do-well married to wealthy Lena (Joan Fontaine). She's an invalid, and every night he brings her a glass of warm milk before bedtime. She's convinced he's trying to poison her.

Hitchcock photographs climbing the stairs carrying a silver tray, and on the tray is a glass of milk. And we're riveted as the camera goes back and forth from Lena to Johnny as he gets closer to her bedroom. Meanwhile, the milk seems to glow.

That's because Hitchcock put a light bulb in the milk to make what would be an ordinary, comforting glass of warm milk seem sinister. And Hitchcock slows things down, brings the camera in closer and closer, unpacking the moment and building the tension.

I think of that light bulb in the milk when I write. I try to mix the everyday with the sinister -- noticing that something ordinary is just slightly off, and then slowing things down to take it in. Like... 

• Suppose you get into your car and realize the seat's been pushed back. 
• Or you come home and the phone is off the hook or the bathtub overflowing. 
• Or the light is on in the attic and no one ever goes up to your attic. 

One little off-detail sets alarm bells in the reader's head ringing.

Hitchcock movies are full of them -- here are a few of my favorites:
- One crow perches on a children's jungle gym. Then several. Soon its rungs are crowded with crows.  (The Birds)
- A windmill is turning the wrong way (Foreign correspondent)- A nun steps out of the shadows in a church bell tower (Vertigo)
- A crop duster flying low over a field where "there ain't no crops" (North by Northwest)
- A boy on a bus is carrying a birdcage which contains a bomb. (Saboteur)
- A husband who may have murdered his wife plants flowers in his front yard (Rear Window)

I like these subtle moments far more than Hitchcock's flamboyant ones (the mummified mother in the rocking chair in Psycho or the brutal rape/ strangulation in Frenzy).

Do you find inspiration in the movies, too?