#WriteCBC tip and task from Steph Thwaites
BY Steph Thwaites
8th Jun 2023
Welcome to our June 2023 #WriteCBC prompt challenge. I hope you’re ready to be inspired by our latest writing tip and task! If you haven’t taken part in a #WriteCBC Twitter competition before, we’re excited to welcome you to our writing community. Get up to speed by reading this blog full of information about how to play and the prizes on offer. It’s a lot of fun, and you might just win a free place on one of our six-week online writing courses.
This month’s special guest is Steph Thwaites, Literary Agent and Head of the Book Department at Curtis Brown. Steph represents a wide variety of acclaimed authors, including Bella Mackie (Sunday Times bestselling author of How to Kill Your Family), Cynthia Murphy (former CBC student, YA author and TikTok sensation), Sunday Times bestselling author Harriet Evans and Emily Barr (CBC tutor and renowned psychological thriller and speculative fiction writer).
Steph’s tip:
- Suspense is key for all stories. The joy of reading a twisty story can come from thinking you might be able to guess what happens next but then feeling jolts of surprise as you encounter the unexpected. Try introducing a sense of doubt that things might not be what they seem – then raise the stakes.
Knowing how to build suspense and keep your readers turning pages is not just a skill reserved for crime and thriller writers, it’s at the heart of all gripping stories. And you don't need blood and gore to create a sense of unease. Leaving some things to the reader’s imagination and create suspense to keep your reader’s interest.
Steph’s task:
Dare I say it but it’s starting to feel like summer? Let’s think ideal beach/ poolside read…
- Continue writing from this prompt: 'It was unbearably hot…' Surprise me with the direction your mini-scene takes. Build the tension by subverting expectations. Make sure you raise the stakes or introduce an element of conflict.
We’d love you to write a tweet-length response prompted by Steph’s task. Here is some more advice to inspire you…
- Think about how the heat could cause unexpected consequences for your protagonist. Perhaps they are physically uncomfortable, unable to concentrate or maybe they are unphased by the temperature because something else has gripped their attention.
- Remember to tease the reader with snippets of information and partial disclosure rather than telling story flatly – it’s always more intriguing that way. Ask questions which you don’t immediately answer. Readers like to work so give them some work to do.
- Often an unexpected twist in the tale is precisely what keeps readers interested in your characters and turning the pages, desperate to find out what happens next. But readers might feel cheated if you play a cheap trick for thrills, so do focus on your characters – make them believable so we go along with the scene when something strange happens.
We can’t wait to read your tweet-length scenes! Tweet @cbcreative with your tweet-length scene and you might win a free six-week online writing course place. Competition closes Fri 9 June, 10am (winner announced at 11am). Find the rules here.
Congratulations to this month’s winner, Carey @caretowrite
- Fat spat at my face. Sweat dripped down my spine. Chef's footsteps stomped across the tiles, halting behind me. He peered over my shoulder. I braced myself. "It's overdone." His breath was on my neck, hand on my waist. "Can't you see?" All I saw was the knife block.
We loved how Carey used snappy, staccato sentences to build tension in this scene. Readers can almost feel the over-bearing heat in the kitchen and the approaching footsteps of the chef immediately put us on edge. His hand on her waist introduces a sinister element to the scene, hinting at some kind of abuse of power and leaving readers questioning their relationship. The final sentence raised the stakes and left us desperate to read on! Well done, Carey – you get a free place on a £220 online course.
And this month’s runners-up – each getting a £50 course discount – are Emma K @emmachanUK, Sam Payne @skpaynewriting and Juliet Trushell @juliet_tru. Congratulations, all!
To redeem your prizes please email help@curtisbrowncreative.co.uk
Brilliant fun – hope you all enjoyed it and see you next month. #WriteCBC will be back on Thursday 6 Jul.