Keep the pace fairly quick, followed by slower ones. If you add an action scene followed by a slow scene, the action scenes will be more suspenseful, than if you just add action after action.

Don’t give the reader all of the action at once, keep it flowing with the story, make unsuspected turns, make the reader think something is going to happen, only to find it was a false lead. (Like in a horror film, when you think something is going to happen, but something else happens)

The aim of suspense is to get the reader wanting to know more; what’s going to happen, or who done it? If it’s a who done it story, don’t reveal until the end and try getting the reader to believe somebody else did it. Do this by misleading, characters lying ect…

Another good way is adding small cliffhangers after each chapter, mostly done in novels to add the suspense feel, but still a good way.

And probably the most important is show, don’t tell. Doing this will add more depth, if we can see what’s happening to the character, then that’ll create a picture and create suspense on its own. For example don’t just say he was scared, show us how he was scared, shivering with wide eyes, heart beating faster with sweats, eyes fixed on the spot, he froze.

2) As a matter of good internal control, ALL accounts should be reconciled monthly, although some immaterial accounts may only be reconciled quarterly. Suspense accounts can create several problems if not balanced correctly. Carrying a balance in the suspense account each month can cause financial information to become overlooked and unallocated to the proper account. If the suspense account has a high volume of transactions, reconciling the account to find out where the remaining balance goes can be time-consuming.

Additionally, having a suspense account presented on the financial statements with a balance can weaken the statements to outside investors. Suspense accounts are viewed negatively, since the information contained in the suspense account is an unallocated amount.

3) There is no statutory penalty I know of for not clearing the suspense account on any time frame. However, the external auditors will take notice if the amounts are material and require a proper accounting of the balance contained within the suspense account(s).

There is no overriding reference for this subject.

Note: My main character and her friends are kids.

Subtlety is always preferable in a suspense, verses spelling it out for the audience… however, it is a fine, fine line. One can say too little and ‘lose’ the reader. You inclination to make it "less obvious" is probably correct. Have other folks read the scene in question and see if they get it..

but how about a little gore lol MIRROR 1 and 2 they have it in american version too

http://horror.fictionfactor.com/articles/readerswant.html

Not sure how many kids were polled though.-oh, it was taken at Moravian College during a course in horror fiction. Not sure if that’s what you were looking for, but hope it helps!

F. Paul Wilson–The Keep, The Tomb, The Select

Bentley Little–The Policy, The Summoning

Dean Koontz–Intensity, Whispers, Velocity

Richard Matheson–Hell House

Robert McGammon–Usher’s Passing

Stephen King–The Stand, It, The Shining, Salem’s Lot, Needful Things

Good suspense storiesinvolve actual life and death conflicts and take the tension to extreme levels.

Short stories must revolve around specific major conflicts only. There’s no room for minor conflicts. And the tension must all resolve around the resolution of that conflict only.

In 5 pages, you have to be extremely efficient about that.

So first think up a life and death situation for a character, and start with them immersed right in the middle of it. No time for backstory, no time for build-up, it’s happening.

Then think of how the problem could be easily resolved. If you can think of something, the original conflict is no good, and you’ll have to make it more difficult.

Once you get to the point where you have a good conflict and it’s going to be tough to resolve, have your character start to pursue a resolution… but instead that just makes it worse.

You’ll find yourself desperate to figure out how the character is going to get out of that situation, which is EXACTLY what you want your READERS to experience.

And, in a short story, you don’t actually HAVE to figure out a solution. Sometimes, the resolution in a short story is surrender, or an open-ended semi-resolution that opens up a new can of worms (e.g., the end of "Planet of the Apes").