Suspense Sayings and Quotes

Below you will find our collection of inspirational, wise, and humorous old suspense quotes, suspense sayings, and suspense proverbs, collected over the years from a variety of sources.

Suspense is worse than disappointment. Robert Burns
There is no suspense in inevitability. Damon Lindelof
Suspense is irksome, disappointment bitter. Charlotte Bronte
Anguish of suspense made men even desire the arrival of enemies. Guy De Maupassant
Suspense: the only literary tool that has any effect upon tyrants and savages. E. M. Forster
We all live in suspense from day to day; in other words, you are the hero of your own story. Mary Mccarthy
Suspense arises naturally from good writing - it's not a spice to be added separately. Leigh Michaels
Suspense is like a woman. The more left to the imagination, the more the excitement. Alfred Hitchcock
I think one of the appeals of suspense is to safely explore our innermost fears. Lisa Gardner
...that horrible moment of suspense when the artist shows one of his creations to strange eyes for the first time. Irving Stone
Vaguely conscious of that great suspense in which we live, we find our escape from its sterile, annihilating reality in many dreams, in religion, passion, art. Arthur Symons
Surprise is when a prime minister is assassinated during his speech. Suspense is when an assassin lurks while the prime minister speaks. Balancing surprise and suspense is the job of the thriller writer. Ashwin Sanghi
Suspense left my life a long time ago, now it has returned. I do not care for it.  Ben Marcus
Suspense is torture ... but delightful--or there'd be no gambling in the world. Ada Leverson
There is nothing like suspense and anxiety for barricading a human's mind against the Enemy. He wants men to be concerned with what they do; our business is to keep them thinking about what will happen to them. C. S. Lewis
For me, suspense doesn't have any value if it's not balanced by humor. Alfred Hitchcock
Suspense combines curiosity with fear and pulls them up a rising slope. Mason Cooley
If you don't do the suspense correctly, then your jump scares are not going to work. James Wan
A lot of the best suspense operates on a careful withholding of information as opposed to the doling out of information. Karyn Kusama
Suspense films are often based on communication problems, and that affects all of the plot points. It almost gives it kind of a fable feeling. Ira Sachs
Suspense is a real tough beast in terms of the filmmaking. David Slade
Suspense is achieved by information control: What you know. What the reader knows. What the characters know. Tom Clancy
There's something nice and valuable and wonderful about the suspense and the classic horror that doesn't just crutch on blood and the almost pornographic view of fear. Amber Heard
There's always a bit of suspense about the particular way in which a given school year will get off to a bad start. Frank Portman
You have to go out of your way as a suspense novelist to find situations where the protagonists are somewhat helpless and in real danger.  Nelson DeMille
Suspense is very important. Even though this is humor and they're short stories, that theory of building suspense is still there.  Sergio Aragones
Real suspense comes with moral dilemma and the courage to make and act upon choices. False suspense comes from the accidental and meaningless occurrence of one damned thing after another. John Gardner
For me, suspense is always harder and better than going for the quick, outright scare. Gillian Flynn
What keeps readers turning pages is suspense, which you can create using a variety of techniques, including tension, pacing and foreshadowing. Leigh Michaels
I think good suspense and horror is really about creating situations that are relatable, and throwing a wrench in it and watching how people respond to it. Jason Blum