#How To Write A Novel

[rrcraft-and-lore]

Yeah, alright, no. No don't this. I'll do you a few fucking better and teach you right here and now how to do this: You game? Blurb and lesson time. Got you. First up, a SPOOC. This is one technique that can be expanded (gonna give you examples too). WRITING LESSONS AHOY:

SPOOC = Situation, protagonist, objective, obstacles/opponents, climax/cost. So, when Frodo Baggins (protagonist) inherits the Ring of Power (Situation), he must set out on a quest to destroy it (objective). But, will he succeed when the forces of sauron and saruman unite and try to reclaim the one ring and use its power to destroy Middle Earth (climax - cost if failure). This specific example is taught by Jim Butcher so if you want some weight behind it.

There you go. It works.

Want to know how to do a blurb? Practice, but check it:

Who is it?

What's going on?

Why should we care?

What happens if the hero fails?

If you can, end on a snappy one liner or question. You can open on one too or a question like it.

What do shadows darting across the walls, cryptic writing, black fog, and a little girl who can see ghosts have in common? Paranormal investigator and soul without a body, Vincent Graves, has forty-four hours to find out. To make matters worse, his years of body-hopping and monster-hunting are catching up with him. He's losing his mind. An old contact has shut him out. To top it all off, something's skulking through an asylum, killing patients. Three guesses who might be next, and the first two don't count. The writing on the wall is not so clear. But one thing is: if he doesn't figure this out he's a dead man--well, deader--and a strange young girl might follow. Vincent's got his back against a wall, and that wall's crumbling. Some days it's not worth it to wake up in someone else's body.

That's Grave Measures - book two in my urban fantasy detective series.

Who is it - covered. What's going on? Why should we care (the stakes to the protagonist and more). The costs. And the above. It's not rocket science, and doesn't have to be. Here's one from book three: Don't make deals with the paranormal. They're better at it than you, and they never play fair.

Paranormal investigator and soul without a body, Vincent Graves, did just that—a deal made in desperation. Now it's coming back to bite him in the middle of a case. He has 57 hours to investigate a string of deaths involving people who've made some devilish bargains. Too bad devils don't deal in good faith. It'd be easy enough, if he didn't have to deal with things such as:

-Being hunted through the streets of Queens by a dark elf with a motorcycle fetish.

-Ending up the target of a supernatural hit.

-An old acquaintance dragging him to a paranormal ball where he could end up on the menu.

-And having one of his closest guarded secrets brought to light...

Not great for a tight clock, because if he doesn't get to the bottom of this case in time, Vincent and company might just lose their souls. Dirty deals are never done dirt cheap. And the supernatural always collect—big! Same formula. A lot of fiction uses it. You just might not realize it. You don't need a fucking AI. You need a few minutes every day of practice. You got that. You got this.

With SPOOC, you can outline a whole damn novel. You get a snappy two-liner pitch to sell with. YOu can expand it into summaries for each book to make up LOTR in this case or your series. Then you can reverse engineer and keep expanding each summary. It does it for you.

[i-rove-rock-n-roll]

How to write a book

Writing a good story is like building a house from scratch

So structure is the core of the house, the way your story is organized, it’s rise and fall in plot beats and stuff. To build a sturdy house you need good bones, something strong to stick in the foundation (initial idea). It’s not enough to have a good idea, but you need to chart a way to implement it. Even if it’s just in your own head, you need to know the rough arc of your story (if you’re an architect writer that is, gardener writers work differently) to be able to lift the frame into something resembling a house that can stand on its own. Up next is insulation. That would be word usage, description, the fluffy stuff that you should never actually touch inside your wall that does not taste like cotton candy, don’t let it lie to you. This is where you go from the bare essentials, like bullet points, to slightly more descriptive scenes linking the scenario together. The story isn’t complete by any means, don’t let it fool you. Hell, the first draft isn’t even done, this is just the beginning.

The next thing to install is the drywall. That would be the filler scenes you hate writing that make the book more palatable. Without it, it’s just a few random scenes stapled together with nothing connecting them. Random time jumps? Where did that sword come from? Wait, I thought Eric was dating Audrey not Antony—stuff like that.

Next up is the fun stuff. Plumbing.

Now, plumbing isn’t as messy as it appears. This is where you go from your first draft that’s maybe a little too long to too short, and either adding or subtracting as much bullshit as possible. (Said lovingly, of course)

Plumbing you need to get your hands dirty, if only for a brief time, by killing your darlings. It’s not enough to simply erase, but to rewrite so that their corpse is invisible to the naked eye. That or you’re stuff as many darlings into the house as you can. They’re spilling out of the closets, the oven, the shoe rack. Send help—

After plumbing, your first draft is done and your house is complete. Sure, you don’t have electricity or a nice paint job or even a place to sleep, but you’re kept nice and dry when it rains.

Part two of building a house/story involves decorating! The fun shit!

And by that I mean editing.

(Brb while I scream into the void)

Part two coming up

[the960writers]

Kristin Owens: Five Things I (Painfully) Learned While Writing Elizabeth Sails

I apologize now. I don’t write horror, but the journey of a debut novelist is a terrifying experience. I write women’s fiction which can be defined seventy-two different ways (none of which I’m a fan). But before you delete and scroll on, hear me out: writers are all the same under our sweatpants and craft beer t-shirts, no matter your genre of choice. Here are some tasty tidbits for either new or seasoned scribblers.

ONE: no experience required

[...]

The shrugged industry advice ‘just write what you know’ feels like a cop-out because no one is honest enough to share the dirty secret: it’s pounding the keyboard until something comprehensible squirts out. You pull creativity from your nether regions until salve is required.

[...]

TWO: goals are relative to your age

Elizabeth Sails is my debut novel. I’m 55 and exhausted.

I blame my writing group. Eight years ago, they said, “Write a sassy book,” and I listened. I’d been writing articles for local lifestyle magazines, which provided a glimpse into publishing. Making word counts, finding brevity, and hitting deadlines – I learned a lot. But a novel? Instead of churning out happy pieces on food trucks, local beer, and yoga for 20 cents a word, a book necessitated a boatload of creativity and budget for more printer ink.

[...]

[writers4life]

Advice For New Writers

Writing is the long game. I've been passionate about writing for around ten years and I'm still a beginner, but I have some useful tips I've picked up that ACTUALLY help you write. So in no particular order...

1. Stop thinking your writing is fragile.

You might have the best idea of your life and jump in full steam ahead, when suddenly you see someone online criticising a genre, or your friend says "sci fi isn't my thing" or you decide that no one will like your book, that it's too tropey, or something like that, so you completely ditch the idea and move on to something new. This isn't going to help you write! You can never write something that everyone likes, so focus on writing something that you want to write for whatever your reasons are. There are some people who like romance, some people like historical fiction, etc. You can't listen to everyone. If you decide you don't like something about your story, CHANGE IT. You're the author, you get to make decision, and change and edit things, and that's fine. Just keep working on it.

2. Write from life doesn't mean write your autobiography.

Most writers will have had people tell them "write what you know," or "draw from your own experiences," and this can be really annoying. When you want to write an epic high fantasy and your relative tells you to "write what you know" it's not very encouraging. But I have a different take on the advice. Rather than writing a play-by-play of your real life, or writing about something mundane that happened to you, take the metaphorical and abstract instead of the literal. If writing about your real life isn't working, instead write a fictional version of something. Example: instead of writing about the event you went to where you hung out with one person because neither of you liked it, write about a character finding friendship when another character is also struggling during a fantasy apocalypse. Change the setting to fit your novel, then take the bones of the thought, the feelings or the interactions, and put it in your story. This will help you make it more real and human, or elf if that's your jam.

3. Keep a journal.

Planning your novel with a word doc dedicated to it and specific plot points can often be stressful because of the pressure to get it right. So instead, keep a journal in which you can write about anything, including your novel or story. This way you can explore ideas and write anything related to them, and get in a creative state where you're more free to brainstorm. You can also write about your life here and use this to feed your writing, by taking bits of your life that you wrote down and translating them to your novel.

4. Break it down to small tasks.

It can be hard to beat procrastination, and sometimes the best way is to break it down into simple tasks. People tell you this all the time, like "break it down to small tasks, just write a chapter and then you'll have one more chapter," but that's not helpful when you're a grade A procrastinator like myself. I mean REALLY SMALL tasks. Just think of a sentence in your head for the next part of your novel, and write it down. Just write at least one word.

That's all folks. Happy writing!!

[morrigna-writing]

Elements of Culture: What makes up culture and how can you apply that to your story?

Worldbuilding can be overwhelming for a fantasy writer. For others, it's a matter of not knowing where to start or what to look for. Here is a comprehensive list of different elements that make up culture. You can use this list to create your own cultures, nations, and ethnic groups.

[thedollardm]

So although this blog started out as my repository for all things D&D, I've actually moved away from creating playable content and am focusing entirely of turning my 250k+ words of worldbuilding into an actual novel.

This blog will now be dedicated (primarily) to things about and for my novel series, Fractured Songs.

Not to say D&D content won't creep in here from time to time, simply because that was where the book started, but it's going to be mostly about writing the book.

My other story writing will be on @weareallfallengods , and my main @whatevercomestomymind will still be full of the weird randomness it usually is.

I will re-post some of the actual story bits I've already posted on other blogs here soon.

[juliangreystoke]

Have you ever set down to write that book you've had in your head forever? But then you couldn't seem to get any words on the page. Maybe some of these tips can help!

[not-poignant]

random genuine question. how do you write a book? I've written multiple fanfics successfully and want to be a full time author nothing too crazy but just enough to make a good living. But I'm finding myself stuck when it comes to executing my original ideas. I plan them out well but when it comes to the acts/chapters and actually writing I can't seem to pull the trigger. I understand it takes time and I may just be overthinking but still I'm worried I won't be able to execute.

Hi anon,

You are probably better off asking someone who writes books for a living, because I definitely don't, and when I did publish two novels, they have never done as well as my serials (and writing a serial is very different - for me at least - to writing a book). Like, they did moderately well, but I consider myself a professional serial writer and not a novelist, and those two things are 100% not the same thing. (Which is also maybe where you're struggling.

Writing fanfics successfully can often have zero bearing on whether you can (or want to) write a novel. Writing one is not writing the other! The processes are totally different, unless you were just writing novels and splitting them up into serial chapters and then, well, you wouldn't be here asking this question sdalkfjad)

There are some great novel-writing books out there, and many can be requested through libraries, and many of their authors have blogs or similar where they teach many of their techniques online. There are so many different ways of structuring a novel (and it can change depending on your genre, and I don't know what your genre is either!) I can't recommend any personally, because I don't read them, because I don't really write novels.

When it comes to actually sitting down and actually writing anything of length though, it's sometimes down to asking yourself a few things:

What feelings are happening in you that hold you back? Are you afraid it won't be good? (In which case there's no way but through, anon, you have to write some bad writing in order to get to the good writing, it's a mandatory part of the practice - a garden needs shit/manure in order to grow, lol).

Are you bored because you planned it all out? (In which case you may need to look into writing novels without plotting them first).

Are you more excited for future chapters instead of present chapters? (Write out of order! And make the present chapters shorter).

Are you more interested in fanfiction's regular feedback from readers? (In which case consider creating a reader group for your original writing, or finding a really good beta who can give you that feedback). (I can't get dopamine from writing novels, so I don't write them, I just find the process boring in a way that's pretty intolerable to me).

Is the novel too huge of a road into meeting your characters and setting/s in prose? (Consider writing small oneshots for your characters and world first. Consider writing side characters in the world in a 2-3k fic. Treat it like responding to a fanfiction challenge. It can often make access to the world a little easier).

Is something about the story actually broken? Do you need to go back to the drawing board re: the strengths of the characters?

Learn how to fall in love with your characters the way you've fallen in love with fanfic characters. If they're not strong enough to earn that 'love'/'obsession' - make them stronger. (Although, frankly, sometimes you can only learn that love by writing them. Think of it this way: When you start writing fanfiction, you've already invested hours of time into learning the characters and their depth. You need to invest at least the same amount into your own characters and their stories before you might stumble across that same love).

Outside of that you can apply any number of techniques to novel writing, but ultimately, a lot of it is sitting down and just writing (sometimes pretty terribly) and learning how to overcome writer's block and understanding why it's happening for you.

For me, I learned that the cons of writing novels just didn't outweigh the pros. The lack of dopamine feedback re: readers doesn't play well with my unmedicated ADHD brain, which means writing to no feedback at all tends to leave me extremely unmotivated. And fitting the novel formula re: story lengths ultimately just didn't work with me either, most of my long stories naturally hit or exceed the 250k mark, which is fine for serials, but not fine for most novels outside of epic fantasy or hard science fiction.

So I would also recommend sitting down and asking yourself what did fanfiction give you that made you able to write it? And what do you need novel writing to give you, to make you able to write it? Likewise, ask yourself - do you want to write original novels? Or original serials? There's a good market for both now, and novels =/= serials. Like, they are naturally written in different ways!

Do you think you would struggle to write an original serial the same way that you're struggling with novels? All of these things are important to ask yourself.

But ultimately, just... I hate to say it, but sometimes you have to force yourself through the struggle, and write stuff while groaning because you know it's bad, to get to the other side. It's like learning any new skill - and fanfiction writing does not naturally lend itself to writing novels with everyone! You are learning a brand new skill!! Just because I know how to draw with pencils doesn't mean I know how to paint with watercolours, and I may be even more intimidated to learn watercolours because I know now how long it took to get the hang of fanfiction. Sometimes you just have to actually sit yourself down and be like 'okay I have to get real good at being real bad at something for a little while, even if I hate it.'

Chances are it won't be as bad as you think anyway, and then even if it is, well that's a normal part of writing a novel. That's why the first draft is the first draft, and not the final product. :)

[unrelatedbut]

Settle in for a longer than normal episode as Christopher and Lore discuss how to create conflicts that work for your characters and theme.  Watch them (very, very bravely) read their character studies out loud for the first time.

As always if you enjoyed our podcast let us known on Instagram @unrelatedbutpodcast or tumblr @unrelatedbut where we are almost always hoping to meet other writers who enjoy talking too much.

[maxkirin]

📝 LIVE NOW 📝

I'm wrapping up this week with a BIG ONE!

Today I'm showing you--live on stream--how I outline a novel! If you've ever been curious as to what I actually do on this critical first step, tune in! 📺✨

See you there 👉 youtube.com/mistrekirin

[deafeningtreeturtlebasketball]

How do you write a story? Like how do you start?

[rozmorris]

Transitioning from non-fiction to fiction? Enjoy uncertainty and trouble

In many kinds of non-fiction, we tend to seek certainty. Answers. Solutions. But those qualities are not so desirable in stories. Most stories are about trouble in some way. But this is often uncomfortable for authors who are used to writing factual books. They don’t like trouble, ambiguities, uncertainties and muddy waters.     Here are a few examples I’ve recently seen from my work with…

[strawberryfairi]

One thing about writing stories that I hate is how I'll have ten trillion amazing ideas and/or story concepts but zero clue how to freakin' execute😭 So then it takes forever just to write a single chapter let alone a whole FINISHED story.

If I knew how to execute writing out all my ideas in a way that actually satisfied me (not rushing just to put something out), I'd have racks of fics both long and short out.

But I still love it though, and keep going anyways🤗

[digitalsolution123]

Exploring Novel AI: A New Frontier in Artificial Intelligence

Artificial Intelligence (AI) has rapidly advanced over the past few years, transforming various industries from healthcare to entertainment. One of the most fascinating developments in this field is the rise of Novel AI, a term that signifies the application of AI in creative, innovative ways. While AI has been traditionally associated with data analysis and automation, Novel AI breaks away from these conventional uses, venturing into more imaginative territories, particularly in storytelling, content generation, and even art.

What is Novel AI?

Novel AI refers to artificial intelligence systems designed to generate unique and creative outputs, especially in areas such as literature, gaming, and interactive entertainment. Unlike traditional AI models, which focus on replicating human intelligence to solve complex problems or automate tasks, Novel AI aims to enhance human creativity by offering assistance or, in some cases, autonomously producing content. This technology is grounded in machine learning and natural language processing (NLP), enabling AI to understand and generate human-like text with remarkable fluency.

In its most exciting form, Novel AI can write stories, suggest plot twists, create fictional worlds, and even mimic the writing style of famous authors. These systems are designed to aid writers, game developers, and creators in their storytelling endeavors, reducing the friction in the creative process while maintaining an element of originality.

How Does Novel AI Work?

At the heart of Novel AI is the use of advanced NLP models such as GPT (Generative Pre-trained Transformer), which can process large amounts of text data to understand language patterns. These models are trained on extensive datasets containing books, articles, scripts, and other forms of written content. Once trained, Novel AI can generate text that aligns with prompts or specific instructions provided by users.

For example, a writer facing a creative block might provide a simple prompt, such as "A detective in a futuristic city stumbles upon a conspiracy," and Novel AI can craft a fully fleshed-out narrative, complete with dialogue, plot development, and even descriptive details of the environment. In doing so, it offers an invaluable tool to authors who want to explore new ideas or expand their work without starting from scratch.

The Benefits of Novel AI

The potential of Novel AI extends far beyond generating random stories or narratives. Here are some of the key benefits it brings to the creative world:

Inspiration for Writers: One of the main appeals of Novel AI is its ability to spark inspiration. Writers who struggle with developing new ideas can use this technology to generate unique storylines or character ideas, effectively overcoming creative blocks.

Efficiency in Content Creation: Content creators, especially those working on tight deadlines, can benefit from the speed and efficiency of Novel AI. It can quickly generate large volumes of text, which can then be refined and polished by the creator. This boosts productivity without compromising the quality of the final product.

Customization and Flexibility: Novel AI systems allow users to tailor content according to specific needs. Whether it's writing in a particular tone or matching a certain style, the AI can adapt to the user's preferences, making it a flexible tool for a wide range of creative projects.

Creative Collaboration: Novel AI can act as a collaborator in the creative process. While it may not replace human ingenuity, it can complement it by offering new perspectives and ideas that the writer might not have considered otherwise.

Expanding the Boundaries of Storytelling: Novel AI has the potential to revolutionize interactive storytelling. In the gaming industry, for example, AI-generated narratives can create personalized experiences for players, offering endless variations in plot and character development based on user choices.

Challenges and Ethical Considerations

Despite its many advantages, the rise of Novel AI also raises some important questions, particularly around originality and authorship. If AI is generating a large portion of a narrative, who can claim ownership of the final product? This blurs the lines between human creativity and machine output, making it essential to establish clear guidelines on intellectual property and attribution.

Another concern is the potential over-reliance on AI for creativity. While Novel AI can enhance storytelling, there is a fear that it could lead to a homogenization of content if creators rely too heavily on algorithms to craft their stories. Balancing AI-generated content with human oversight will be crucial in maintaining the uniqueness and diversity of creative works.

Additionally, there are ethical issues surrounding bias in AI-generated content. Since AI models are trained on existing datasets, they may inadvertently reflect societal biases present in those texts. Ensuring that Novel AI produces fair, inclusive, and responsible content is an ongoing challenge that developers must address.

The Future of Novel AI

As AI technology continues to evolve, the possibilities for Novel AI are boundless. We may soon see AI-driven authors, interactive AI companions that guide users through immersive storylines, or even AI tools capable of generating entire films or video games. The fusion of human creativity with machine intelligence could result in groundbreaking new forms of entertainment that we can only imagine today.

In the near future, Novel AI might become an essential tool for professionals in creative fields, helping to democratize storytelling by making high-quality content creation accessible to a broader audience. At the same time, it will challenge our understanding of what it means to be creative, encouraging us to redefine the boundaries between human and machine collaboration.

Conclusion

Novel AI represents a thrilling advancement in the world of artificial intelligence, offering unprecedented opportunities for creative innovation. From generating stories to collaborating with creators, it is reshaping how we approach content creation. However, as with any technological advancement, it brings with it a set of challenges and ethical considerations that will need to be carefully navigated.

The future of Novel AI is undoubtedly exciting, but its success will depend on our ability to harness its potential while maintaining the essence of human creativity that lies at the heart of storytelling. In this evolving landscape, the collaboration between humans and machines promises to lead to new, imaginative possibilities that will continue to inspire and captivate audiences.

[morrigna-writing]

Ever heard of the 3 Act Structure? Well, it is a narrative device used by authors to plot their story. Here is a breakdown of this model that you can use for your own story.

[kdflowerswriter]

Writers Talking About Writing and Not Writing

Elizabeth Gilbert — How to Set Strong Boundaries, Overcome Purpose Anxiety, & Find Your Inner VoiceI’ve been a long time fan of Tim Ferriss. You might recall he even cameo’d on my 40 Before 40 Bucket List (and then… COVID) His podcasts are always entertaining and have lots of little useful nuggets. Enjoy 🙂