'I want readers to feel like detectives'

What makes a thriller truly captivating? At the 44th Sharjah International Book Fair 2025, three acclaimed authors - Daniel G. Miller, Abdul Wahab Al Rifai, and Ibrahim Al Marzooqi-explored how pace, psychology, and character depth work together to create compelling stories that grip readers from the first page to the last.

- Gulf Today, Staff Reporter

Speaking at a session titled “Making a Killer: Marketing Your Thriller” and moderated by Dr. Lamya Tawfik, the panel discussed how today’s writers can balance creativity and commercial success in an increasingly competitive literary landscape.

“If it doesn’t have the right hook, it will pass people by,” said Daniel G. Miller, the USA Today bestselling author of The Orphanage by the Lake and The Tree of Knowledge thriller series.

“You have to capture people's imagination. That was my biggest learning, knowing exactly who I was writing for.”

Miller, known for his fast-paced, emotionally charged narratives, described his process as character-driven rather than plot-first. I go back to their childhood, their hopes, and their dreams and that's where the story begins,” he said.