Several Ways John Irving Creates Suspense in A Prayer for Owen Meany In John Irving's novel titled A Prayer for Owen Meany, suspenseful events are abundant and there are many ways the author creates this suspense. Among these methods of creating suspense, four that stand out are the use of setting, the pacing of the story, the involvement of mysteries to be solved, and the ability of the reader to easily identify with and sympathize with the protagonist. By placing a character in a dark or lonely place, feelings of unease are created which add to the suspense. The pace and structure of the story also contributes to the basis of suspense, as shorter sentences and stronger, sharper verbs and adjectives are often used to keep the reader highly interested and read at a fast speed. Of course, suspense couldn't be considered what it is if there wasn't mystery involved. The element of not knowing what the future holds and needing to find out is the essence of suspense. Furthermore, if the reader cannot easily identify and sympathize with the character in the suspenseful situation, a loss of interest may occur and thus ruin the spirit of the tension. Uncomfortable settings, rhythm and structure, use of mysteries and ability to relate to the main character are four techniques that John Irving uses to create suspense. First, a key method used to create suspense is the use of setting. When a character finds himself in an unwelcoming or uninviting place, feelings of discomfort or tension may arise. When you feel like you don't know what's around the corner or what's hiding in the shadows, it creates suspense. Additionally, threatening weather conditions, such as threatening thunderstorms, can cause the reader to anticipate the occurrence of an unfortunate event. An example of an uncomfortable environment is the secret passage, which is dark, dirty and very often occupied by only a single individual. Under these conditions many people become anxious, and due to these uncomfortable feelings that one may encounter, when a character is subjected to these conditions, the reader may become apprehensive, which leads to the formation of suspense. When Dan Needham locks John Wheelwright in the secret passage while both are drunk, a high level of suspense is created. The description of the secret passage adds suspense to the scene: "The passage was dark; yet I could discern the scurrying of spiders.