Tension in a novel is the ultimate 'page-turning' secret ingredient. We have all read those novels that we literally read in one sitting because we cannot wait to find out what happens next. There are several ways you can achieve the right balance of tension. Here are the four main ways you can gain your reader's attention and keep it until the final page is turned.

1. Create conflict that matters a great deal to your characters

When you are in the planning stage of your novel, the areas of conflict must be considered early on. They will form the skeleton of your plot, but you must choose the type of conflict very carefully. Think about what goal your character is trying to achieve. What matters most to them? What obstacle could you put in their way to make achieving that goal seem impossible? Conflict does not have to be a huge event, it could be as insignificant as missing that important phone call or a relationship ending. You could also consider any flaws your character has. Could your conflict be the internal struggle they are having? Or you could choose an area of conflict that is explosive and a life or death situation. What matters is that the character cares about the outcome, it will affect them and, in turn, affect the reader. 

2. Create a rhythmical pattern for your areas of tension 

The biggest mistake new novelists make is to write one scene after another of continuous conflict, tension, and suspense. Remember your goal is to keep your reader engaged, not make them exhausted and feel they need to take a break from the mental chaos. That is why you need those calm periods in your storyline to build character relationships, to move the plot forward and to build the layers of your characters so that the reader begins to fall in love with them. So, again, in the planning stage of your novel make sure you pace the tension. Include smaller moments of tension intermittently where you prepare the reader for that final explosive climax to the story.

3. Raise the stakes 

To really maintain suspense you need to make your protagonist face bigger and bigger setbacks. The goal here is to strengthen the character's resolve so they learn something about themselves by the end of the novel. They need to try to reach their desired outcome and fail several times for the plot to maintain that suspense and tension. Another way to achieve this is to allow the protagonist to reach their goal at the first attempt, but they are unaware of the dire consequences they must pay later on. 

To ensure the ebb and flow of conflict, try the Three Rule; the protagonist must fail two times before they succeed on the third attempt. On each failed attempt they move further away from the goal. Remember you are trying to mirror real life and in the real world, you rarely succeed at your first attempt. 

4. Keep your reader curious
The key here is to create characters that are interesting and intriguing. This is especially important during those quieter times in the story. You want your readers to ask themselves questions about the characters. Subtly weave questions into the plot, questions that you want the readers to ask themselves. These questions are particularly powerful if used at the end of each chapter. This is the secret ingredient to the 'just one more page' novel recipe. 

These are just a few of the ways you can create suspense in your novel. If you want even more ideas or inspiration, take a classic thriller novel and see how they achieve tension. What did they do to keep you turning those pages?