Many aspects of stories are eye-catching, jaw-dropping, and pull you into the words on the page. Suspense is a particular tool that creates a tense situation that leaves you on the edge of your seat, wanting more. Some types of suspense work extremely well, and sometimes even better than others. The short story “Night Drive” by Will F. Jenkins is one example, in which the main character, Madge, is thrown into quite the suspenseful situation, with a killer and a deserted road. “Night Drive” uses multiple kinds of suspense, and amazingly weaves them into the story, keeping any reader on edge. However, the most effective suspense techniques used in this story were isolation, setting and thoughts.
One particular suspense technique used in “Night Drive” was isolation. The author does a great job of singling out Madge, and
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This technique is extremely prominent throughout the story, constantly pointing out what Madge is thinking about, or how she’s reacting to a situation. To name a few examples, Madge notes some suspicious things about Eunice even before Eunice starts acting weird, but quickly dismisses the thoughts. After Madge begins to suspect Eunice is not what she says she is, Madge’s mind starts racing, trying to think of ways to escape the situation. Or, how Madge keeps having recurring thoughts about Mrs. Tabor’s murder. She even considers pretending to crash her car near a lone gas station just to get away from Eunice. In almost every part of “Night Drive,” Madge worries, and tries to think her way through the problems, which definitely makes the reader begin to think as much as Madge does. The use of thoughts in this story is the best way to create suspense, given Madge’s situation. It is a very helpful technique that is used well in “Night