Mark Posey

Plotting, Suspense, Thrillers

Old School vs New School Spy Thrillers

There was a glorious time — not as far back as dinosaurs, but far enough that you had to physically turn a page — when spy thrillers were built on tension. Real tension. The slow-burn, creeping dread variety that made you lean forward until you realized your spine was doing yoga poses you didn’t sign up for.

These were the days of The Bourne Identity, the early Bond novels, and le Carré’s Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy — stories powered by paranoia, not pyrotechnics. Today, spy thrillers have traded that slow dread for weaponized anxiety and smartwatch hacking. But both eras have something to teach us about how to build suspense that sticks.

Character

The Power of Knowing Your Character’s Arc (Before You Start Writing)

Writing a story without understanding your main character’s arc is like driving cross-country blindfolded — you might arrive somewhere, but odds are it won’t be where you meant to go. Every protagonist travels an emotional and psychological path, changing (or refusing to change) because of the story’s events. When you understand that inner journey — and how it collides with the outer, plot-driven one — every scene gains purpose, every choice deepens meaning, and your rewrite count drops dramatically. Know your hero’s lie, the truth they need to learn, and what the story will throw at them to force that transformation. Everything else flows from there.Is this conversation helpful so far?

Character, Conflict

The Two Sides of Conflict: Why Your Story Needs Both

Conflict is the heartbeat of fiction—but not all conflict is created equal. External conflict drives your plot forward, while internal conflict drives your character’s growth. When you make those two forces feed each other, your story hits harder and lingers longer.

Blog, Dialogue

One Simple Trick to Make Your Dialogue Instantly Stronger

Struggling with clunky conversations or over-the-top dialogue tags? Clean, compelling dialogue doesn’t just sound real — it works hard to reveal character, build tension, and move your story forward. Here’s how to write dialogue that earns its place on the page.

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