Part I
Getting Ready to Write Fiction
In this part . . .
We know youâre excited to start writing, but before you begin, you need to do some strategic thinking. In this part, we consider exactly what makes a great story and how to find the fiction category that works best for you and your reading audience. Next, we take a look at four common methods writers use to write a novel. Finally, we delve deeply into the important subject of managing your time â and yourself.
Chapter 1
Fiction Writing Basics
In This Chapter
Setting your sights on publication
Getting your head ready to write
Writing great fiction and editing your story
So you want to write a novel? Great! But is that all you want to do? After all, anybody can type a bunch of words and call it a novel. The trick is writing one thatâs good enough to get published. This book is for fiction writers who want to write an excellent novel and get it published. Thatâs a tough, demanding goal, but itâs entirely doable if you tackle it intelligently.
If youâre going to write a novel, you need to get your head fully into the game. That means making a game plan thatâs a proven winner and then executing your game plan. After you have a plan, you need writing (and rewriting) skills â lots of them. Writing fiction means developing a raft of technical skills, both strategic and tactical. None of these steps are hard, but theyâre a lot easier to pick up when you have some guidance.
After youâve written a great novel, whether you choose to get an agent or make the deal yourself, selling a strong story is about making the right connections with the right people at the right time.
Our goal in this book is to take you from being a writer to being an author. We have every confidence that you can do it, and this chapter explains how. It can happen â and it will happen â if you have the talent and persistence to do what you need to do.
Setting Your Ultimate Goal As a Writer
If youâre writing a novel, donât be modest about your goals. First of all, you want to write a really good novel, right? You arenât in this game to write a piece of schlock. You have some talent, and you have a story, and you want to write it well.
Second, you want to get the darned thing published. Donât hang your head and say, âIâll be happy just to get it written.â Write to get published. Humility is a fine thing, but false humility can keep you from doing the one thing you really want to do.
1. Take a piece of paper and write down these words:
âIâm going to write a novel and get it published. Iâm going to do it because writing a novel is worthwhile and because I have the talent to do it. Iâm going to do it because I have something important to say to the world. I refuse to let anything get in my way.â
2. Put todayâs date at the top and your signature at the bottom.
Hang it where you can see it every day, and tell your family and friends about it.
As of this moment, youâre a writer. Don...
