5 Timeless Truths of Popular Fiction

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by James Scott Bell
@jamesscottbell

It was in the 1920s that “commercial” or “popular” fiction really took off. Radio was in its infancy and TV was two decades away. The local movie house gave you a night’s entertainment for a dime or a quarter. But to fill the rest of the week, a voracious reading public wanted entertaining fiction delivered regularly…and fast.

Thus, the pulp market exploded, with magazines printed on cheap paper so they could be sold for ten or fifteen cents.

The usual pay for writers was a penny a word. Pulp writers used certain tricks to make an extra penny. For instance, Erle Stanley Gardner (creator of Perry Mason) liked to use both names when a character did or said something (with some unneeded adverbial attributions), a la:

Paul Drake entered Perry Mason’s office.

“Hiya, Beautiful,” Paul Drake said to Della Street, Perry Mason’s confidential secretary.

“Hello, Paul,” Della Street said with a shy smile.

“What brings you by, Paul?” Perry Mason remarked in a curious tone.

A pulp writer named Wyatt Blassingame gave his series character the name Joe Gee, because it was only six letters but counted as a two words. Smart!

But above all these writers had to master what I’m calling “The 5 Timeless Truths of Popular Fiction.” They were writing for the market and if they wanted to keep bread on the table and beer in the icebox, they had to please that market. These truths helped them do it.

  1. A Lead to Root For

Gardner said this was the key. He called it “the lowest common denominator of public interest.” It is the “firm foundation.” If an author doesn’t have that in a story “he doesn’t have anything.”

I don’t see any counter argument for that.

Which is not to say your Lead needs to be a classic “hero.” There are anti-heroes we root for, and also “negative Leads,” such as Scrooge and Scarlett. We root for the latter because we hope for their redemption.

  1. Colorful Characters

No stereotypes or “placeholder” minor characters. This is where am author can add “spice” to the plot. It’s what sets Dickens apart from other Victorian writers. It’s what makes The Maltese Falcon a pleasure to read and view (I mean, how can you beat Peter Lorre and Sydney Greenstreet added to Bogart and Mary Astor, not to mention Elisha Cook, Jr. and Ward Bond? Come on!)

Don’t throw away the opportunity to spice up your tale with colorful characters. 

  1. Major in Action

Leave us not go into the merits of literary fiction. But there is a reason we demarcate literary and commercial fiction. The latter sells more. And it does so in part because it majors in action.

That doesn’t always mean car chase or gunfight type action. It means the main thrust of the story is a character doing things to solve the story question.

And while I’m an advocate of “unobtrusively poetic” prose, solid action by colorful characters can override somewhat clunky writing. If you want an example, read any of the Conan stories by Robert E. Howard. His writing is rough but so full of “blood and thunder” that pulp readers couldn’t get enough of it.

  1. Cliffhangers

The term “cliffhanger” came from the early silent movie serials featuring Pearl White (“The Perils of Pauline”) where an episode would end with Pearl tied to the railroad tracks or literally hanging over a cliff, clutching a branch. You just had to come back next week to see how she got out of it.

But cliffhangers are not limited to these “big” moments. They can also be the subtle things that make a reader want to turn a page or read a next chapter.

One of the things I did when I was learning the craft was read a bunch of thrillers and ask myself why I wanted to read on. I made a list of techniques I call “Read On Prompts” (ROP). I’d jot ROP in the margin of the books each time I found myself eager to turn the page. It’s an invaluable practice I commend to you.

The prolific pulp writer Lester Dent made up a “formula” for a 6k word suspense story. He broke it into four parts of 1500 words, listing the fundamental elements of what needed to be in each quadrant. Here are his goals for the ROPs:

  1. Near the end of first 1500 words, there is a complete surprise twist in the plot development. SO FAR: Does it have SUSPENSE?
  2. A surprising plot twist to end the 1500 words. NOW: Does second part have SUSPENSE? Does the MENACE grow like a black cloud? Is the hero getting it in the neck? Is the second part logical?
  3. A surprising plot twist, in which the hero preferably gets it in the neck bad, to end the 1500 words. Does it still have SUSPENSE? The MENACE getting blacker? The hero finds himself in a hell of a fix? It all happens logically?
  4. Ending the final 1500 words. Final twist, a big surprise, (This can be the villain turning out to be the unexpected person, having the “Treasure” be a dud, etc.). The snapper, the punch line to end it. The suspense held to the last line. Everything been explained? It all happen logically? Is the Punch Line enough to leave the reader with that WARM FEELING?

That last bit brings us to Timeless Truth #5.

  1. Resonant Endings 

Dent’s “warm feeling” I call resonance. As stated in my book The Last Fifty Pages, “Resonance is that last, perfect note in a great piece of music, leaving the audience not just satisfied, but moved. Perhaps even changed.”

That’s why I spend more editing time on my endings, even the last page and paragraphs, than any other part of the book.

We all know that a lousy ending can sour the taste of an otherwise good book or movie.

A good ending is better of course, one that connects all the threads.

But a resonant ending is best of all, for it captures the hearts of the readers and sends them looking for more of your books, which makes you a popular author.

And that’s the truth.

Comments welcome.

35 thoughts on “5 Timeless Truths of Popular Fiction”

  1. Solid advice, James. I’ve critiqued many wips that begin with the protagonist reminiscing about their childhood. The usual objection to my comment is that the reader needs to know and life the character. Sometimes writers need to look at their wip with the eyes of a reader and not the eyes of a proud author.

    • And I just read a novel by a hugely popular author starting in another genre. It was full of narrative summary in the beginning, IOW no action, no conflict. Boring!

      By “read” I mean about 50 pages, then set it aside.

  4. Good points, JSB.
    My critique buddies and I share chapters, and we always comment on chapter endings (or “landings” as a former member called them) as to whether we’re eagerly waiting for the next chapter–or not.
    My editor wants the “awww” moment at the end of the book.

  5. Excellent post, JSB, and I’m with you on the ROPs. I like to call them Kickers. I think screenwriters call them Punches. Whatever they’re called, I like ’em!

  6. Read on prompts–great technique to analyze exactly why the reader should turn the page.

    Jim, you keep filling my toolbox with more tips. Thanks for the education!

  7. Thanks, Jim, for “The 5 Timeless Truths of Popular Fiction.” A great list to print and hang on the wall over my desk.

    I especially like the point about resonant endings. “leaving the audience not just satisfied, but moved.” Yes!

  8. I had forgotten about Lester Dent. His words of wisdom are as good today as they were when he wrote them. So are yours. Thanks, Jim

  9. Great post, as always, Jim!

    I like this, from M.C.’s comment above: Sometimes writers need to look at their wip with the eyes of a reader and not the eyes of a proud author.Good advice there.

    It’s kind of like, I make a cake I’m really proud of. It looks good, all the frosting and sprinkles are in the right place, and I spelled the birthday person’s name correctly. But, until the guests take a bite, then another and another, and maybe ask for the recipe, I can’t call my creation a success.

    I always come away from TKZ with new tools and ideas, eager to get going on my writing day.

    In the words of Chief Brody, “I’m gonna need a bigger toolbox…” 🙂

    • Oh, I love the food analogy, Deb. Whenever someone objects that all this is writing by a “formula” I ask, why does something become a formula? Because it works! It has been tested and retested over time.

      Making an omelet is a “formula.” You have to have eggs, a pan, heat, butter…but what makes it great are the way the cook mixes in the various ingredients and spices, and cooking them all in just the right time. It is also what makes the recipe unique to that cook. That’s what we’re talking about.

  10. Terrific advice, Jim. Your thoughts on what make popular fiction work have proven so helpful to me and many others, and this is an excellent rundown. I’ve aimed to do this in my own fiction. It doesn’t matter whether it’s urban fantasy thrillers or 1980s library cozies, this wisdom applies.

    Resonant endings are something I’ve been especially working on in my new series.

    Thank you once more for all you’ve taught us.

  11. Great article. I went to Amazon to purchase and discovered I had previously bought but never read!!!!

    Can’t wait to read. You have been a big influence on my craft.

    Thank you, sir.

  12. Nailed it. II’m working hard on endings. I find them more difficult than openers.
    Great article.

    • Yep, I’ve always said beginnings are easy. I can write grab em, cliffhanger beginnings all day. It’s the endings that are hard. Good luck. Carpe Typem.

  13. Thanks for mentioning The Last Fifty Pages; I’ve added it to the hoard.

    Never hurts to have a reminder of the basics and the details, and the WIP – magnum opus – MUST satisfy – I have a zillion threads to tie off.

    And then compare your Resonance with Stein’s with what I figured out for the previous two volumes – because it will literally be my last chance for this story.

    Even if I never write another thing.

  16. Hi James,
    First of all, this is an excellent advice on writing fiction, especially when you explain about endings, and the difference between a ‘good’ ending and a ‘resonant ending’.

    A ‘good’ ending is one that leaves the reader satisfied and with the urge to move on to move to another fiction work. A ‘resonant’ ending is one that the reader identifies with and/or can relate to, and gives the reader the strong desire to read more of the author’s work and even discover more about the author himself/herself.

    Hope I have come to an accurate conclusion or close to that. Let me know what you think about the way I’ve defined each ending after reading your article.

    • I think your definitions are very much the same. What I am calling a “good” ending is one that wraps up all the story questions, but does not necessarily move the reader.

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