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Before Robin Cook wrote his debut novel, Coma, he reportedly read a large number of thrillers and monitored his heart rate. He observed what incidents increased his heart rate the most, tried to isolate the elements that made them exciting, and tried to duplicate them in his own writing. This medical approach to literary analysis worked well for him. The result was far from perfect from a literary point of view, but Coma was a best-seller. Many other works have followed, and each has that "what happens next?" feeling that keeps readers reading.

One of the most useful preparatory exercises for writers is to observe their own reactions to what they read, and try to figure out what grabs their attention and holds it. Talking to other people who have read the same books is also useful, because not everyone has the same tastes.

Plot is the mainspring of the novel's appeal. The reader wants to know what happens next. That means that the writer must plant hooks - tantalizing clues, suggestions, and questions. If a character is doing something mundane, like dressing for dinner, the account becomes much more riveting if there are some hints of revelations to come. Her hand shakes slightly as she applies her eye shadow. Is she nervous? Does she have a neurological condition? She drops her earring, and scrambles desperately to find it, because it is a priceless heirloom borrowed from a friend. She asks herself questions. Will Maurice be drunk? Will her mother be in a good mood? Will Annie be weepy because her divorce just became final? And what about Henry, whom she really liked until he told her she was a spoiled brat? If the reader becomes intrigued with any of these issues, s/he will continue reading. During dinner, some of the questions will be answered, and new ones will be asked.

In order for the questions to be compelling in the long run, the reader must care about what happens to the characters. Three-dimensional characters act, talk, and feel like real people. They remind us of ourselves and of people we know. Whether we love them or hate them, we want them to get what they deserve. It is preferable to show rather than tell, keep exposition at a minimum, show the character in action, and allow the readers to draw their own conclusions. Characters must be consistent enough to be believable, but a certain amount of ambiguity and incongruity can be attractive. When the TV show Star Trek began, the logic-driven character Spock was unpopular with viewers. After an episode was aired that showed his emotionally vulnerable side, fan mail started flowing in.

Some novels, such as Sawyer's "Calculating God" and Crichton's "Next", are explorations of scientific or philosophical concepts. Bold, intriguing ideas or little-known information can add punch to the fascination factor. When a strong premise is added to believable characters negotiating a maze of possibilities, the result can be loss of sleep for large numbers of readers who have to continue for just one more chapter.

Premise, plotting, hooks, and characterization unfold in a context of voice and pacing. The writing must be interesting to read, and the action must move along not too quickly or too slowly, with unexpected but not completely unpredictable twist, turns, stops and starts. All these are learned with practice, experimentation, and attention to feedback. Even the best of writers have some works that are more successful than others. What all successful writers have in common is that they kept at it until they managed to grab that elusive brass ring.

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