Love reading thrillers? Centre County authors to discuss crime fiction at Schlow library
Who doesn’t enjoy a good thrill — those books that make you want to keep the light on, have you quickly turning the pages to find out what happens next, and send chills down your spine?
Thrillers, with their usually super smart and deceptive villains, are one of the most popular genres not only in books but also movies, television, and even podcasts.
On Tuesday, Schlow Centre Region Library is hosting “The Heart and Mind of a Thriller.” The free event, presented in partnership with the Nittany Valley Writers’ Network, begins at 6:30 p.m. in the library’s Downsbrough Community Room.
Local thriller writers Jen Delozier and Sarah Stephens will lead a discussion on why readers and writers are so often drawn to the darker side of human behavior and relationships. Both authors will discuss their own pull toward the genre, their insights in writing crime fiction, and their thoughts on what makes the perfect villain. Each will be selling and signing books following the talk.
“The popularity of thrillers just keeps growing, and readers seem to have an insatiable appetite for fiction that offers complex characters, propulsive plots, and killer twists,” said Stephens, whose third novel, “The Anniversary,” comes out Wednesday. “In our talk, Jen and I want to examine with the audience where this fascination comes from — with Jen giving insight through her work as a physician and myself offering the viewpoint of a psychologist — while also discussing tools for harnessing the darker sides of human nature to create a really captivating story.”
Stephens is a developmental psychologist at Penn State. Her first book, “A Flash of Red,” came out in 2016, and her second novel, “It Was Always You,” was published last year. “The Anniversary” features a young couple, Mary and Jackson, honeymooning in an isolated cabin in the Poconos after a whirlwind romance. As the days tick by, Jackson’s devotion transforms before Mary’s eyes into something more sinister. She realizes she is totally isolated with a man she barely knows.
About her psychological thrillers, Stephens says as a writer, “I prefer to delve into the pain and difficulties of human connection. … Writing about dark and troubling pieces of human connection gives me an outlet for my own fears. Just like there’s a catharsis in reading about others behaving badly, I find there’s an element of healing that comes from writing these types of stories, too.”
Delozier continues to practice medicine while also writing thrillers. Her debut novel, “Type & Cross,” came out in 2016 and was nominated for a Best First Novel award by the International Thriller Writers Association. The book also was the first of a trilogy featuring the main character Dr. Persephone Smith, who is “gifted with enhanced empathy — the ability to get inside the heads of those criminals too twisted for other psychologists to unravel.” In her latest book, “Con Me Once,” which was published earlier this year, Delozier took a departure from thrillers as she “indulged my inner geek by writing a heist novel set in the world of cosplay and comic conventions. … Think ‘Ocean’s 11,’ the book, meets ‘Kick-Ass,’ the movie.”
She says when it comes to thrillers, people have different experiences when they read one compared to when they watch one on TV or in a movie theater.
“While watching, you’re experiencing something second hand — passively,” she says. “When reading, you’re part of the action. By relating to the characters and being forced to translate the words into visual images, you insert yourself more easily into that world. I think a well-written book is a more immersive experience.”
Stephens and Delozier have their own ideas about who is the “best” thriller villain.
“I love Amy Dunne from Gillian Flynn’s ‘Gone Girl,’ ” Stephens said. “She’s the perfect combination of malice, intelligence, and — although it’s only shown in a few key moments — human vulnerability.”
Delozier says there are so many to choose from, but she leans toward Hannibal Lector.
“There’s a reason he’s made it into spin-off TV shows and pop culture,” she said. “He’s just so delicious — pun intended! Everyone knows Hannibal, even if they’ve never read one of Thomas Harris’s books or seen the character on film or television. He’s the villain everyone loves to hate and secretly wishes they could be — minus the cannibalism, I hope! He’s urbane, rich, educated, and oh-so clever.”
For more information on “The Heart and Mind of a Thriller” and other events at Schlow Library, visit schlowlibrary.org and follow Schlow Library on social media on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and LinkedIn.