If you’re like me, you’ve probably spent time trying to figure out the how to write a book. Not just the putting pen to paper bit, but the step-by-step process of planing, outlining and drafting. You’ve probably read books with titles like First Draft in 30 Days and No Plot? No Problem!. You might even have flirted with beat sheets, the Snowflake method, phase drafting and a hundred and one other techniques that promise to make your writing life easier.
A while ago, I found this writer’s notebook for Scrivener. I prefer to keep my story ideas in separate files, so I haven’t used it yet, but it looks pretty bloody awesome. I particularly like the Writing Helps & Tips section at the top, which includes such goodies as Dan Wells 7-point plot system, “11 … Read more
If you’ve just download a shiny new Scrivener template and are wondering how to add it to your list of project templates,
For the past month, between work, karate and finally reading Divergent (excellent book, by the way), I’ve been working on the second draft of Hero. And although I haven’t made as much progress as I would have liked, and I’m busting to get to the second part of the my revision process (editing the prose – why does ‘prose’ always sound so snobbish?), the novel is coming along nicely.
Over at Writer’s Alley, author SA Larsen has started the reBEL Writer’s Creed, as a reminder to be kind to ourselves, to work hard but not stupidly hard and to have faith that, eventually, we’ll get to where we want to be. And that’s totally sexier than Enzio.
Just after Christmas, I finished the first draft of Hero and since the New Year I’ve been hard at work on the second draft. Dan Wells’s 7-point plot system (aka the Pantser’s Beat Sheet) has been incredibly helpful during the revision process – particularly the layering process (explained in part 5 of Dan Wells’s lecture, available on YouTube) – and it too has undergone a revision.
I might have previously mentioned that I love templates, and you might ask why. I love them because they make world-building easier, not in a ‘this is how things must be done’ way, but in a ‘here’s some questions to get you started’ way.
Sometimes, when I’m in the thick of creating a story, or the world it’s going to be set in, I have an idea for a something (generally a plant, animal, person or thing). This something often plays an important role in my developing plot (or world), and while I may know a few details, such as its name and function, the nitty-gritty can elude me.
A few weeks ago, I was at the half-way point of my first draft and having trouble with my plot. After ten months of steadily pounding away at the keyboard and chipping at the word count, I was increasing asking myself “what the $#*! happens now?” Although I knew what was going to happen at the end of my story, I didn’t know:
And frankly, it was driving me batty.
This week, I decided to take a break from my frustrations (otherwise known as a first draft) and trial the Snowflake Method of writing a novel. I even found a great Scrivener template to start me off.
When I started writing for more than just the amusement it provides, I scoured the internet for tips and tricks from established writers, unconsciously searching for a magic bullet (pill, sock, cat or milkshake) to write my book for me. Unfortunately there isn’t one, and what’s more writing a novel (which is a gzillion times longer than a tweet) requires discipline, planning and months, if not years or decades, of your life. Plus you don’t get paid for it.
But while I didn’t find the magic bullet (pill, sock, cat or milkshake) I did find some good advice ((My favourite is in Jennifer Cruise’s post Hello, I’m Your New PRO Columnist: Reflections on the Columns I’m Not Going To Be Writing where she tells readers to forget what everyone else is doing and “go write your good book”. Sound advice. What are you waiting for?)), some of which has informed the way I write now.
After more than two years of trail, error and some fruitless Googling, here’s what works for me and a few tips that might work for you.