Characters, narrative, dialogue, plot and setting – the key elements in a thriller. Let’s look at one of them.

The edge of the clearing was shrouded in mist, the moon hiding behind thick clouds. Her foot caught on a root and she tumbled into the wet grass. She rolled over onto her back and stared back at the trees, her heart thumping wildly and her breath coming in short gasps. A twig cracked and she sunk into the long grass. He was here.

The clearing was awash in sunshine and the sky a brilliant shade of blue. A handful of popcorn clouds floated overhead on a gentle breeze, bright white and playful. Her foot caught on a thick root as she stared up at them and she tumbled into the wet grass. A twig cracked behind her in the forest and she smiled. He was here.

Setting is the tone.

Change one thing and the scene goes from a potential murder scene to a woman waiting eagerly for her lover. I love playing with settings and a lot of readers have asked where these scenes come from. Actually, there is a genesis, a place I go back to when I need to get the adrenaline pumping.

When I was six, I walked two blocks to school every day. I had a choice – the sidewalk that bordered the road or the back alley. It was a no-brainer, the alley won every time.

It was downright scary, with dilapidated garages and thick weeds. The alley was dirt and rocks and deeply rutted, which made walking difficult. Mature trees blocked out the sunlight and shadows lurked everywhere. It was the exact sort of place where nightmares breed and come to life. That two block stretch got my adrenaline going and my imagination went crazy. Evil things happened in those tiny garages, bad guys lurked in the tall weeds watching for me, bodies were buried in the loose dirt of those overgrown back yards.

I loved it.

Some days I walked fast, sure that I had heard someone behind me. Other times I stopped and listened and let it all sink in. Then I ran like hell because I was sure someone was going to grab me.

Now, when I sit down to write and need an eerie setting, I think back to those days in the alley. To how vulnerable I felt and how quickly my breath came when something startled me.

There are all kinds of other moments that influence the settings I use in my books. There’s this chilling scene in One is Evil where Bobby Greco is in Siberia and it’s minus fifty. I’ve been to the Canadian Arctic and experienced minus fifty. Let me tell you, it’s brutal. I don’t think I could have written those scenes without having been there.

Settings need to feel real.

I’ve dived wrecks in the Caribbean, gone down Rat’s Nest cave, and spent time in African jungles and scorching deserts.

So when I write about it, chances are pretty good that I’ve done it.