Brad Thor
Shadow of Doubt
Brad Thor is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of 24 thrillers and has been called “The Master of Thrillers.”
Read one and find out why. Read his Dossier to see how he works.
The Writer’s Dossier 8/6/2024 – The big Brad Thor interview
DOSSIER: Setting and location play a huge role in your bestselling international thrillers, and your research is always thorough, extensive, and captivating. What’s the most intriguing location you’ve written about that you haven’t been to but is still a place you’d actually like to visit?
THOR: Hands down, it would be high above the Arctic Circle in Svalbard. I had planned to visit as part of the research for my novel BLACK ICE, but was stymied when Covid hit.
How Thor makes it happen
DOSSIER: You’ve always said that respecting the reader’s time and money is something you never forget about when you write. How did you approach SHADOW OF DOUBT so that readers who only have time to read one book will walk away fulfilled and recommend it to friends? (The Dossier is so glad you’ve avoided being formulaic. SO glad!)
THOR: I approach each of my novels as if they are my very first. If no one knew who I was, is this idea big enough, is it well-written enough to get a contract with a major publisher and land atop the bestseller lists? Is it an exciting, gripping, unpredictable story?
With SHADOW OF DOUBT, I asked myself all the above questions, as well as how I could take people on an adventure, the likes of which they hadn’t seen before.
I always want to set the bar higher with each book. It makes it MUCH harder for me as a writer, but all the more enjoyable for the reader. And the reader, after all, is who I ultimately work for.
Working with a blank wall
DOSSIER: Regarding a proper writing environment, your home office is killer, but you don’t put the crease in all those decorative pillows yourself, right? Do you need absolute silence, is there dramatic theme music playing, or can you write in an airport lounge on a busy Monday?
THOR: People have very romantic ideas about authors. (I know I certainly did before I became one.) I have a killer office and I absolutely love it. But what you don’t see in all the Facebook Lives and Instagram posts, is the blank wall I face when I write. I can’t have any interruptions. The book unfolds across the movie screen of my mind, so I want as little outside distractions as possible.
He’s a total pantser
DOSSIER: You use a lot of different elements to build a good thriller. Scot Harvath is known for dangerous action in settings that range from austere to posh, and you’re known for wild twists, shocking plots, and deceptive red herrings. Out of those elements, is there a specific combination that you try to focus on most when crafting your story? (Without being formulaic!)
THOR: There are two types of writers – plotters (outliners) and pantsers (writers who follow the story as it reveals itself). I am in the latter category. It’s a very intuitive process. This is where the “art” comes in. My job is to think about the most obvious five things that could happen at any given point I may be at, and then to throw them all out and surprise both myself and the reader. I have several big plot twists in SHADOW OF DOUBT, and they all completely snuck up on me.
Seducing Brad Thor
DOSSIER: Since location is a good way to get readers wrapped up in a book, you’ve been clever with your choices, going all the way back to THE LIONS OF LUCERNE. Regarding your books, particularly RISING TIGER and how India served as a colorful focus for the novel, was that a situation where you chose India, or did India choose you?
THOR: Great question. I like to set my thrillers against big international set pieces that are suffused with high stakes and tons of intrigue. The opening scene of RISING TIGER came from a mind-blowing, real-life story I had read in The Washington Post. The fact that there is a corner of the world where rifles are not allowed but barbaric, homemade weapons are, was stunning to me. That two armies clashed a couple of summers ago on cliffs in the Himalayas in medieval-style combat was too fascinating not to pursue. Throw in how exotic (and relatively unexplored in the thriller genre) India is, and I guess you could say it chose me.
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