An Unexpected Journey in Novel Writing

Together, we'll take it week-by-week and finally finish that novel.

[positivedoodles]

[Drawing of a blue fox saying “Writing makes my life better and that’s a good and important thing. It’s okay for me to value and prioritize it.” in a yellow speech bubble.]

[marockwell-blog]

Creating a new Character: Step 1- The Character “Police Sketch”

Creating in-depth and realistic characters for any piece of writing is important because this is your story’s meat. Writing is always all about the characters. It’s about what happens to them, who they are and who they become, how readers can relate to them and how they change your readers lives. As writers, we need characters who are up to the task.

So where exactly do we start creating them? Well, I personally like starting with the character police sketch. It’s simple, quick, and gets the job done.

This technique where you only choose the very basics of your character - the name, appearance, age, etc. It’s basically typing up the same things you’d find in a police sketch or driver’s license. 

I first learned of this technique in this article, which you may find helpful as well. It talks about what exactly writers need to get their character’s appearance down, which caught my attention. After reading it, I began creating a new character.

In the next few posts, I’ll be discussing how I used this technique to build my own characters and how you can apply it to your own writing. 

[i-breathe-therefore-i-read]

Recs Mas 2017 Dec 11th: A Diverse Book

This book made my heart happy.

[marockwell-blog]

I feel like my writing has way too many female characters and not enough males or characters of any other identity. I mainly write young adult fantasy and fantastical horror (is that what it’s called?) so it might just come with the genre.

Maybe message me or post some advice that might help with finding a good balance.

[marockwell-blog]

Writing Prompt #3:

Write about a witch, a goddess, sisterhood, and a necessary evil.

[sleepyamie]

On Writing A Novel

So I recently had to give a presentation about some strategies for starting/writing/finishing a first draft of a novel. And since I post about writing on here sometimes, I figured this might might be something you guys would want to see. (And, as always, I’m not an expert. There are just things that have helped me.)

How to start your novel:

Sort out the basic plot.

Before you begin to write, you should have a clear idea of your most important plot points, including your ending. You can always change how it ends later, but it will be easier to get to the end if you have an idea of what that is. Otherwise, once you write the beginning, you will find yourself at a loss of what to do with the middle porton. If you have a start, an end, and a few big things that happen in between, the rest will probably fill itself in as you write your first draft.

Choose your perspective.

Consider your options for the main character, and whether you want it in first person, third person limited, or third person omniscient (in which case, you don’t have to have a main character!) You can also consider switching narrators throughout the book.

My best advice is to choose the perspective that feels most natural. If you start writing and it doesn’t feel right, switch it around until it does.

Flush out the setting.

If it takes place on Earth, decide where. Are you going to be explicit or implicit? Decide before you write or while you are in the early stages, as your setting will help shape description of environments.

If you are writing in a fantasy universe, spend some time deciding lore and history for the world itself, regardless of whether it will be included in the book. Consider drawing a map or charting out the political system of your fantasy country. If there is magic, decide how it works now; make clear rules and follow them. Consider designing mythical creatures or deities if your fantasy universe has these, or plants, foods, ect. Basically, you want a treasure trove of information about your fake universe so that it feels like a real one.

Flush out your characters.

Oftentimes the basis for a story is the characters, so if you’ve already come up with them and feel like you know them pretty well, go ahead and start. If not, spend some time with them. Consider what their role in the story will be, what they look like, how the will act, and how they will change.

I have a more detailed post about this here.

Write the first scene.

Prologues are a beautiful thing, in my opinion; a short excerpt to set the stage for the rest of your story that doesn’t necessarily have to start where your story does. If you want to use one just describe one scene - quick and simple - and move on to your first chapter.

If you do not use a prologue, then it is the first scene in your first chapter that is pivotal for catching the reader’s attention. Starting with action or dialogue is optimal. Do not describe your characters in lengthy detail right away, do not relay history and exposition right away. Some of this can certainly be included in the first chapter, and your character’s, setting, and exposition should be made clear eventually, but hold back! Delivering this slowly will hold the reader’s interest and build mystery. The reader will feel rewarded each time you give them background information if you space it out correctly.

How to finish a novel you’re in the middle of:

Make a chapter list.

Summarize in one or two sentences what has happened in each chapter so far, then begin to plan what you want to happen in each chapter that follows. You can always diverge from this list, but having a plan of what needs to happen in a chapter before you starting writing said chapter will help you get through the middle portion of your book, straight through to the end.

If this is difficult (because you’re not entirely sure what was supposed to happen in the middle at all) consider these other tactics:

Write character studies. Just write out a detailed paragraph about each of your major characters to streamline their personalities and what growth you want for them throughout the book. Then, consider what events could lead to this growth by the end of the book. (Character studies are also great for keeping characters consistent and not “out of character”.)

Consume related media for inspiration. Take scenes from other stories, considering how your characters would adapt in such situations and if something similar could move the plot forward in your own book. Don’t steal plots (obviously) but don’t be afraid to take inspiration.

Special Advice on twists and mysteries:

If you your book includes a twist, make sure it’s logical. Do not completely contradict yourself, and if you put any red herrings in place be sure to explain what actually happened / what the misconception was. A twist that is surprising because it is illogical is just bad writing. A twist that is surprising because the reader missed your subtle hints is good writing. You want your reader to shout “OMG that makes so much sense!” when the reveal hits, not “OMG that makes no sense!”

If you are writing a mystery novel (or your plot includes complicated, mystery-like elements) you might want to consider writing a separate, fact-based description of what actually happened. This way, as your characters discover bits and pieces of your mystery, you don’t lose the facts among their speculations.

This side piece should not go in your book. It shouldn’t really be prose, either. Just make a note to yourself of the when, what, who, where, why of what happened “off screen”.

Basically, you want to give yourself as many resources as possible - but also resources that will help you stay organized. Keep things clearly labeled for future reference and keep them available while you write. “Extra stuff” like maps, designs, chapter lists, character studies, etc. will help you keep consistent. 

And consistency and planning will not only help you write a novel, but it will help you write a good novel.

So go write your novel! 

But don’t forget that finishing a first draft is only step one. Editing and revising (and often re-writing) is a whole other process. But, if you create resources for yourself now, this process will be easier too.

[theliteraryarchitect]

Quick Editing Tip: “That”

Rule of thumb about the word “that”: If the sentence still makes sense without it, delete it. This is subjective, of course. But you might be surprised how often you’re using “that” unnecessarily, cluttering up your writing.

Example: After Clayton left the kitchen, Iris told me that he hated onions. I wondered if that meant that he never wanted to eat pizza with us again. Later, I told him that his distaste for onions was understandable, but that he should’ve just kept his mouth shut about it.

[marockwell-blog]

Writing Prompt #2:

Write something meant to completely relax your reader.

[marockwell-blog]

Is there such a thing as a writing genre meant to relax their reader? Like some writing AMSR or meditation but you read it instead of listen to it? We should make this a thing.

[her-bookshelf-tells-her-story]

I don’t know why it didn’t occur to me as like, ya know, a teen that YA books are written by adults,

but somehow this realization has made me feel less dumb about reading YA as an adult even though that’s a dumb thought process to have view YA novels in a new way.

Although the target audience is different, YA novels often - but not always - are also written by adults, as are (generally) those written for an adult target audience.

So. Why the side-eyes towards non-teenagers reading YA books again?

[youthbookreview]

This is how I feel about things targeted at children, like, when people are like, “How can you watch that cartoon? It’s made for kids,” I’m like, “You know who actually makes these shows, right?” If adults make it, why can’t adults consume it, wtf

[marockwell-blog]

I thought I was the only one

[marockwell-blog]

Writing Prompt #1:

What if Cinderella was set in a science fiction world?

I want to see what everyone comes up with.

[marockwell-blog]

Novel Writing Checklist

This checklist is going to mainly be for my personal use, but I thought I’d post it for others. You don’t have to use it for a novel necessarily, so feel free to apply it to a short story, flash fiction, or even an epic poem. I personally will apply this list to writing my novel, but I’ll be also be using it as a rough schedule of blog post ideas. If anyone has anything to add or suggest for this list, please feel free to message me! Also, if anyone ever wants me to beta read anything, message me the link!

Novel Writing Checklist:

Characters (because let’s be honest, they’re the best part to write and it’s always been all about them).

Character “police sketch“ - appearance, age, a few important details.

Your Character’s Tragic Backstory - short character bio, what memories shaped them to be who they are, their family/friends

Getting in your Character’s Head - character questionnaires, finding their voice, flaws and strengths

How the world sees your Character - describing them from an outside POV.

World Building (the 2nd best part)

The basics - when and where

Map-making (if necessary) - important landmarks/places, climate/weather, how to draw a map for personal reference

Detailed work - governments/social classes, religion, plant life/food, architecture, clothing/appearances, traditions, holidays (am I missing anything?)

Novel Outline (this is about where I start pulling hair out)

Idea summary - one to two sentences describing plot

Writing the ending first - know what your end goal will be

The snowflake outline, or other outlining techniques

(Finally) Writing Your Novel

Draft 1 - just getting it down on paper

Beta-reading/readers - giving and getting advice

Revision - may involve a draft 2, 3, even a draft 4 and repeating step 2 as necessary. Focuses on making large changes to content

Editing - grammar, word economy, language.

It doesn’t look so bad when it’d broken down this way, does it? Hopefully this will be helpful to the writers out there. I know it will certainly be helpful to me.

[marockwell-blog]

In a hole in the ground there lived a Hobbit.

Not a nasty, dirty, wet hole, filled with the ends of worms and an oozy smell, nor yet a dry, bare, sandy hole with nothing in it to sit on or to eat: it was a hobbit-hole, and that means comfort. - Tolkien, The Hobbit: There and Back Again.

In another life, I'm probably a Hobbit. I’m entirely dedicated to collecting family heirlooms, books, and strange jewelry. Other people, specifically short, loud, hairy ones who eat all my food, are the biggest pests in all of Middle Earth. I like riddles. Well, I like challenges in general. I like cozy alcoves that I can see my garden from and I only wear the most comfortable, most reasonable clothing. More than anything though, I like writing about lives I've lived and lives I want to live, then sharing those stories with everyone who'll listen.

My name is McKayla, I'm a English major in my last couple years of school, and I started this blog for three reasons: (1) to show my love of reading and writing, (2) to collect and share all my writer's tools in one area, and (3) to motivate myself (and maybe a few others) to actually sit down and get some writing done.

My ultimate goal in life is to write a novel. I don't care if I publish or not, and I don't care if other people think it's genius or complete trash. I'm writing for the enjoyment of it, for myself. I'm writing to bring fairies back to life and to reunite the world with a long lost magic; the sake of creation.

Besides working on a novel, I also have a number of short stories, flash fictions, and poems I want to finish. These I write for practice, to allow others to live life through another's eyes, and to spark a love for creativity in everyone I come across. After all, that's what being a writer is about.

Every week, my goal is to post something to help push my own writing forward, which may or may not be helpful to others. In these posts, I plan to break down the steps I take when I write short stories, which I'll apply to writing a full length novel. I hope to provide resources, book recommendations, and examples of my own work. I also hope to provide examples of what others are working on, and feedback on their pieces. With that being said, please don't hesitate to contact me with something you want read and critiqued!

Writing a novel (well, writing anything) is like raising a child - it takes a village. I am in this with the rest of the writers out there, and together we'll finally get something done.

Here's to An Unexpected Journey in Novel Writing!

[marockwell-blog]

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Writing - poetry, stories, books, literature, original work, tips, prompts, etc.

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