Hank surprises us (again)! THE HOUSE GUEST

HALLIE EPHRON: I confess, when I saw the name of HANK'S new book, THE HOUSE GUEST, it gave me the shivers. I immediately thought, what if someone you trust enough to invite them to stay in your home turns out to be not who they claim to be? It’s so scary. I’m wondering if that’s where you started. 

HANK PHILLIPPI RYAN: Oh gosh, that’s a great idea for an inspiration! But… Not exactly. 

The idea came from the experience of an acquaintance of mine who said goodbye to her husband every morning as she went off to her office and he went off to his office, he was something like an accountant or an insurance salesman. Something like that.

His next big deal was always around the corner, and the next big sale was always about to happen, and she was incredibly supportive. I’m talking about – – a really smart savvy woman who thought she was happily married.

And then the police arrived at the door.

And turned out--wait for it--he had never been to work at all! The job was imaginary. And he had been home doing illegal things on his computer that I don’t even want to describe.

Now, that’s not what happens in THE HOUSE GUEST at all. Not at all. But it made me wonder: how well do we know the people who are sleeping next to us? The very ones we trust the most? Could they be doing something we have no idea about? And I found out a lot of fascinating info about that too — like the family of the BTK killer, and the wife of a hideous serial killer in Indiana. They had no idea what their spouses were doing!

But there are no serial killers in this book either. Either. It’s just about how even a smart person can be completely fooled.

HALLIE: Your book has been called a "thrilling cat-and-mouse game". Did you know all along who was the cat?

HANK: Did I know all along? Who was the cat? Absolutely not. No. I didn’t know anything all along!

A story just unfolds every day at the computer, so when the surprises happen – –I’m just as surprised as the reader. Sue Grafton used to call that the magic, and that is exactly how I think of it ,too. I rely on it, and embrace it, and worry every day that it will vanish. But no, I don’t know anything! Can you believe who the cat turns out to be? Or are there several?

HALLIE: Alyssa is super privileged, gorgeous, and wealthy, and she’s been dumped by her wealthy husband. In the opening scene she’s having a pity party alone in a suburban bar. By the end of the scene you have us rooting for her. It’s what’s so compelling about the book, and I wonder how you get inside your characters to bring them to the page.

HANK: Alyssa was intriguing to me, and that’s a great question. My first thought was: how many of us have been utterly, and totally heartbroken?

There’s a moment at the beginning of that, especially if you are surprised and baffled and have had the rug yanked out from under you, when you are incredibly vulnerable. You go through the stages of well, not grief, but shock. Disbelief. Your life has totally changed, and it was a surprise, and out of the clear blue surprise.

So I tried to channel Alyssa, how she might feel at that moment, being shocked and baffled about being dumped by her husband. And suddenly – – there she is, with Bill threatening to take the money and the house, and who has all already taken all of her friends.

She’s fearful and alone with a terribly uncertain future. (This is all on page 1.)

But then, at the end of Chapter 1, and this is not a spoiler, she meet someone who is in worse shape than she is. Alyssa recognizes that even though she’s unhappy, she’s privileged, and her life will be fine.

So she decides to stop the pity party, take the focus off of herself, and focus on helping someone else.

We like her for that, right? As I’m writing a character, I try to channel how they feel. And if I’m lucky, that comes out on the page. I really become Alyssa. And see through her eyes and feel through her heart.

HALLIE: Then you create Bree, who has so much in common with Alyssa and yet is her polar opposite. Did you set that up deliberately?

HANK: Bree. No idea about Bree. Of course I had some ideas about who she was from the beginning, and--being careful here--that changed quite a bit as the book evolved. Because if you don’t know who’s good and who’s bad from the start, you have to go back and adjust, right? Once you have gotten to the end and have decided.

But absolutely, I set up deliberately that Alyssa is from hardscrabble origins, but now has wealth and comfort, but that Bree is still battling her way through ugly corporate pressures and harassment, and seems to have lost everything. They are both alone, they are both struggling, they both have demons and they both have necessities. Can they help each other?

So--is she her polar opposite? Maybe not.

That’s why some have called this Thelma And Louise… meets Gaslight.

HALLIE: The house in the book is as much a character as the women. Did you base the house on any particular house?

HANK: Oh, thank you! I know you are fond of houses :-) . I am, too. but no, it’s not based on any particular house.

That is such an interesting process, though isn’t it? I can absolutely see every room, every book, every piece of crystal and chandelier and marble and mahogany, the glorious kitchen, and the expensive chintz upholstery on the comfy chairs on the screened-in porch, and the rolled up Egyptian cotton bath towels, and the… compartment in the closet. All made up. 

But wow, I could see the entire thing in my head. Love that.

HALLIE: Your Publisher’s Weekly rave review calls you a “master of suspense.” Do you have an insider tips on writing suspense as well as you do?

HANK: Wasn’t that a terrific review? I almost fainted.

Insider tips on writing suspense. Hmm. I just burst out laughing! But honestly, a tip? This always always works, I have to say. And I wrote a whole article about it here.

But basically, suspense is a progression, a repeated progression, of: 1.What does someone want. 2. Why do they want it? 3. How would they think about getting it, and what do they decide to do. 4. Then they do it! 5. Then something happens to make that be unsuccessful and they have to start over.

Then 1. What do they want now? And you see how that repeats? It’s ever-changing, always different, and never a formula. I repeat that mantra to myself every day.

And thank you for the compliment!

HALLIE: You’re now up to (how many?!?) books with a ton of awards along the way. What do you know now about writing a suspense/thriller that you didn’t know early on?

HANK: Yes, THE HOUSE GUEST is my 14th book! Amazing. Who’d a thought. Especially when you and I met, that very first moment, before PRIME TIME even came out. Remember? And you took me aside, and told me Hey… This is a really good book. I have never forgotten that moment, and it still makes me cry.

What do I know now? Gosh.

I understand patience.

I allow myself to have terrible writing days, and I actually laugh and embrace them. There are no wasted drafts. There are no wasted attempts, even the pages I write that I think wow, this is absolutely 100% the worst thing anybody has ever written in the entire universe --I laugh and think, okay then! Really bad. Fix it later. But now, advance the story. Keep writing keep going do not falter. Just keep writing.

It seems silly, but because I am in search of the story, as I write, who knows what will happen. Then, after I’m finished with that first draft, which is 50% ridiculously terrible, and 50% full of potential, I cut all the parts that are clearly me trying to figure out what to do. You know? All those thoughts the character has that are really me having them. All those go.

What I have learned is killing your darlings is an oxymoron… I hate those. They are not my darlings if they clog up my pacing and suspense. I love to kill them. Their demise means the birth of my book. 

 And so excited to meet you all on book tour!

HALLIE: Hank has a jam packed book tour. Her Events are here. 

Today's question: Think about that description that a reviewer gave THE HOUSEGUEST:

THELMA AND LOUISE MEETS GASLIGHT

What does it suggest to you?? No fair if you've read the book... no spoilers, please!