How to write that Novel

Hi there!

A lot of people are talking about “finally writing that novel” due to social isolation, and the unexpected free time that has come with it; but how are you actually supposed to do that?

Well, I may not have been published yet, but I have plenty of experience with beginners woes and writing; so I thought I would share a few tips on “how to write” and tricks to help the process to go easier.

How to write a novel in three easy steps;

1. Grap a pencil/pen/crayon/marker/computer/wordprosessor/tablet/typewriter.
2.  If necessary, grab some paper.
3.  Start writing.

That’s it! I truly believe that anything else that you read that you “need” to do is just gatekeeping, which I am firmly opposed to. But that’s not to say that there is nothing that you can do to improve your writing, or help the process go smoother, so here are 5 tricks that I wish someone would have shared with me when I started. 

1. Learn to touch-type- unless you are one of those people who would rather write out your manuscript by hand, then spending a bit of time working on your typing skills will be well spent.

2. Set a schedule and stick to it- A lot of people say that you should write every day, and they have a very good point, every day you write, you will improve, and it’ll also get easier, but it’s important to take time off too so that you don’t burn yourself out. You can have a very vague schedule if that suits your personality, such as “I’ll write every other day” or “I’ll write 2000 words a week”, or it can be very structured if that suits you; “I’ll write 500 words every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.” Just do your best to stick to it.  

3. Write regularly, not just when you feel like it- I feel like this is pretty self-explanatory, especially with the last point, but really, just keep writing, even when it doesn’t flow. 

4. Finish dreams- You know how you wake up in the middle of a dream, and it sucks ‘cause you want to know how it ended? Well, finish it! This is a great exercise for flexing your creative muscles and forcing yourself to follow a pre-set mold. 

5. Find a way to break through writer’s block- This can be absolutely anything, two of my favorite tricks are turning on mood music, (I’ll release a post on this later.) or talking through a scene, literally putting myself in the place of my characters and speaking as them (complete with absolutely terrible accents)- talking about what’s going on, what’ll happen next, or just letting them have a conversation. I know this sounds crazy, but I sware it helps break the “blocked” mindset and helps my creative juices start flowing forward. 

So there you go, one last note, and a word of caution for you, your first draft will never look as good as you think when you are reading it through for the first time, this is okay, I sware. And please don’t forget to take breaks when your brain is absolutely splitting.

Thanks for the read!