About the Book:

The Terror Within....

A good thriller will rupture the reality of your everyday world. It will put you on guard. Make you aware. That is the disquieting objective — successfully achieved — of this book as well.

Writing the Thriller Film concentrates on the Cosmos of Credibility, those not-so-obvious elements of screenwriting that contribute the essential meaning to a script. To do so, this book traces the thematic commonalities that actually define the genre and offers corroboration from a number of screenplays, including such classics as North by Northwest, Marathon Man and 3 Days of the Condor.

You will discover: the effect of the practical rules and physical expectations of the real world on the story; the timescape of the genre; how both the protagonist and the antagonist must react to make a thriller effective; and the need for your characters to make difficult choices with unexpected results

What people say:

"Writing the Thriller Film by professional screenwriter Neill D. Hicks ('Rumble in the Bronx', 'First Strike') is a practical guide to creating a professional quality, tension-inducing, commercially viable movie script. Intended for authors who are already familiar with the basics of screenwriting, Writing the Thriller Film concentrates on what the movie genre of the 'thriller' expects from a good script, how to make the narrative credible and engrossing, the qualities and actions needed for an engaging conflict between protagonist and antagonist, dramatic action as hard choices forced upon the characters, and more. Writing the Thriller Film explores the much-beloved genre in-depth and is an excellent and recommended primer for aspiring thriller and action movie screenwriters." — Mid-West Book Review

"While other books give you the nuts and bolts on how to write, Hicks' lessons give you the engine, the driving force behind what makes the genre go. An excellent follow up in the series, Writing the Thriller Film is not only worth the cover price, but for the newbies to the series, is so good that it makes you want to run out and get the other two." — Screenwriter Magazine

"This is NOT a book just for writers. …Thriller is a book for people who have an interest in, and want to know more about, the thriller genre. And by 'more' I don’t mean plot points, formulas and examples calculated to stress those points. This book takes an almost physical grasp of the thread between the audience and the story and gives it a good, hard yank." — Scr(I)pt Magazine

About the Author:

Neill Hicks is a successful screenwriter whose credits include Rumble in the Bronx and First Strike. He brings the clarity and practical instruction familiar to his UCLA students to screenwriters everywhere.