Writing a Psychological Thriller
A course by Emily Barr, Novelist
Learn creative writing techniques to bring mysterious stories to life that grab the reader’s attention from the first page
Humans have a need for stories, even scary ones, to make sense of the world around them. Novelist Emily Barr specializes in writing thrillers for both adults and young adults. She has published numerous novels, and won various awards for her work, including WHSmith’s New Talent Award.
In this course, Emily teaches you the fundamental elements of writing a psychological thriller. Write the opening of your own book, a 25-word synopsis, and plan for the rest of your project with an experienced novelist as your guide. Are you ready to take your readers on a thrilling journey?
What will you learn in this online course?
15 lessons & 19 downloads
What's included in this course?
Begin the course by getting to know novelist Emily Barr. She talks about how she went from a career in journalism to writing and publishing a number of books with international publishing companies. Discover the influences that inspire the work she creates, along with her advice for people starting out with writing.
Dive into what a psychological thriller is and how to go about writing one. Hear Emily’s advice for overcoming creative blocks when writing a book, from setting yourself a writing schedule to avoiding distractions. Then explore how to make sure your story is properly researched, whilst still making progress with your first draft.
Discover the different elements that make up a psychological thriller, starting with the plot. Emily guides you through how to write a dynamic, personal narrative with clarity, tension, and pace, before moving on to your creating a main character that hooks your reader. Learn how to create a setting for your novel based on personal experiences. Then decide on the main theme for your story, and see how to write engaging dialogue. Hear Emily’s advice for writing a compelling first and final page to capture your audience's attention.
Write a 25-word synopsis of your book that can be shared with agents and editors. To finish the course, Emily shows you how to edit your fast draft, and start working on secondary characters and subplots to develop your finished novel.
- 98% positive reviews (281)
- 10,074 students
- 15 lessons (2h 17m)
- 19 additional resources (9 files)
- Online and at your own pace
- Available on the app
- Audio: English, German, Spanish, Spanish (Latam), French, Indonesian, Italian, Dutch, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Turkish
- English · Spanish · Portuguese · German · French · Italian · Polish · Dutch · Turkish · Romanian · Indonesian
- Level: Beginner
- Unlimited access forever
What is this course's project?
You will write the opening of your own thriller novel, and a clear plan for the rest of the story.
Projects by course students
Who is this online course for?
This course is for anyone interested in writing a thriller novel.
Requirements and materials
No prior knowledge or experience is needed to take this course.
You will just need a computer or a pen and paper, depending on how you prefer to work, along with a notebook for writing exercises.
Reviews
Emily Barr
A course by Emily Barr
Emily Barr is an award-winning novelist based in Cornwall, England, with over 20 years of writing experience. She grew up surrounded by books and was an avid reader and writer, even as a child. While studying art history at the University of London, she worked for her university newspaper, during which time she won a student journalism award for her work experience at The Guardian. She went on to work full-time for the newspaper and, during her time traveling for her column, dedicated herself to writing what she was truly passionate about–fiction. Emily later found an agent and secured her first publishing deal for her thriller novel, Backpack, which saw her win WHSmith’s New Talent Award.
Since then, Emily’s work has been published by Headline and Penguin, as well as many others worldwide. She also writes horror and sci-fi in the US under the name Evie Green, and is currently working on her 6th young adult book with Penguin.
Content
-
U1
Introduction
-
About Me
-
Influences
-
-
U2
Get Ready to Write
-
What Is a Psychological Thriller?
-
Overcoming the Creative Block
-
Research and Workspace
-
-
U3
The Elements of Your Psychological Thriller
-
The Plot
-
How to Write
-
The Character
-
The Setting
-
The Theme
-
The Dialogue
-
The Opening Pages and the Ending
-
-
U4
Now Keep Writing
-
‘25 Word’ Synopsis
-
Editing
-
Introducing Secondary Characters and Subplots
-
-
FP
Final project
-
Writing a Psychological Thriller
-
What to expect from a Domestika course
-
Learn at your own pace
Enjoy learning from home without a set schedule and with an easy-to-follow method. You set your own pace.
-
Learn from the best professionals
Learn valuable methods and techniques explained by top experts in the creative sector.
-
Meet expert teachers
Each expert teaches what they do best, with clear guidelines, true passion, and professional insight in every lesson.
-
Certificates
PlusIf you're a Plus member, get a custom certificate signed by your teacher for every course. Share it on your portfolio, social media, or wherever you like.
-
Get front-row seats
Videos of the highest quality, so you don't miss a single detail. With unlimited access, you can watch them as many times as you need to perfect your technique.
-
Share knowledge and ideas
Ask questions, request feedback, or offer solutions. Share your learning experience with other students in the community who are as passionate about creativity as you are.
-
Connect with a global creative community
The community is home to millions of people from around the world who are curious and passionate about exploring and expressing their creativity.
-
Watch professionally produced courses
Domestika curates its teacher roster and produces every course in-house to ensure a high-quality online learning experience.
FAQs
Yes, this course is designed for intermediate writers who want to focus on writing and editing psychological thrillers, covering advanced techniques for plot, suspense, and character development.
You'll need a basic understanding of creative writing, an interest in psychological thrillers, and access to a computer or notebook for exercises. No prior publication experience is required.
You will learn how to structure and draft a psychological thriller, develop flawed characters and unreliable narrators, build suspense, craft plot twists, and edit your manuscript for clarity and impact.
Yes, the course covers practical strategies to overcome writer's block, including morning pages, freewriting, and building a productive writing routine.
You’ll learn to use story structures like Freytag’s pyramid, plan inciting incidents, build rising action, and outline subplots to ensure a coherent, suspenseful story.
Yes, the course teaches self-editing techniques, how to revise for clarity and pacing, and strategies for refining your manuscript after the first draft.
Yes, the course includes productivity methods such as Pomodoro, creating distraction-free environments, using writing playlists, and digital tools like Freedom software.
The course is amazing! I learn a lot! Thanks Emily for this great course!
A professora Emily é sensacional. Sua abordagem é clara. Sua forma de descrever os pontos e transferir o conhecimento é palpável e perfeitamente compreensível. Estou amando o curso e super recomendo.
Emily ha sido minuciosa, concisa y muy acertada en este curso. Desarmar un thriller psicológico en partes (personajes, trama, diálogos, temas...) ha sido tan gratificante como enriquecedor, y me ha ayudado muchísimo.
He alucinado con algunas partes como, por ejemplo, la sinopsis de Thirteen de Steve Cavanagh en tan pocas palabras. Madre mía, qué puntería para enganchar a los lectores.
La explicación de la trama de la Cenicienta me ha gustado mucho también.
En general, un curso maravilloso.
very informative veryintriguing very engaging
I haven't finished the course yet but I'm getting a lot of wonderful insight. I wish all the lessons had English audio, but I make do with subtitles, which is a great addition, by the way. The multi-language audio and subtitles serve a wider audience