Think you might wright a book?
Are you kidding?
I hear it all the time. “Eldon, I’ve been thinking about writing a book.”
How should I respond to that? Most people think they can just sit down at a computer and type out 80,000 words that readers will wait in line to buy. They are sure they will become instantly famous. They start searching for that big house of their dreams, thinking about that new sports car they’ve always wanted.
Hold on, Mr. Writer-wanna-be. If you really have a desire to write, start with a little poem to your sweetheart. Oh, and make sure you have a dictionary handy. This one would not impress:
You’re soft marshmellow face is o so buteful
But your inteligence defiantly is what I lick about you.
You fullfill me in every way.
I’ll always be commited to you untill the end of time.
Make sure your spelling is flawless! But there’s more to writing than correct spelling. Grammar (or bad grammar) can be just as telling. http://grammargirl.com/ is an excellent reference for new writers. Grammatically Correct by Anne Stilman is an excellent reference book for your desk.
If you hope to write a novel, before you start, buy all the books you can on the craft of writing fiction. I have dozens and still refer to many of them often. Here are a few of my suggestions: Writing for the Soul by Jerry B. Jenkins, The Plot Whisperer by Martha Alderson, and Dialogue, Techniques, and exercises for crafting effective dialogue. By Gloria Kempton. Characters, Emotion & Viewpoint, by Nancy Kress, and The Fire in Fiction, by Donald Maass. Until you’ve studied the art and craft of fiction, you have no business plunking out a lot of words that aren’t well-planned and well-edited.
While I’m on the subject of editing, a once-through read of your manuscript will never do. Hire a professional editor! And before you even think of sending your story to that editor, you should have read through it (and corrected mistakes) a dozen times. No editor wants to see a manuscript that is so full of spelling and grammar mistakes that it is difficult to even follow the story line.
Now, about your storyline: a novel has a definite sequence of events that must happen on the way to the big climax. In your books on the craft of writing, you will learn about Act 1, 2, and 3. Don’t deviate much from the placement in your story of those acts.
So, you still think you might want to write a book? First, learn all you can about the craft of writing. Buy all the books you can on the subject. Buy paperbacks, not e-books. You’ll need to refer back to them often, and it is easier to find what you need in a soft or hardcover edition than an electronic book.
But maybe I’ve missed the most important step. Before you begin your writing journey, read dozens of novels in your preferred genre. You’ll begin to see a pattern in the storylines. You’ll learn how dialogue is written. You’ll see how important it is to hook your reader quickly.
Writing an 80,000-word novel takes years of educating yourself on the craft. But don’t even think about writing a book if you’ve not read dozens, if not hundreds, in your preferred genre.
If that story is still burning in your soul, do the prep work and then make it happen.
Enjoy the journey,
Eldon