The process of writing a novel can sometimes feel rather daunting. Unlike writing non-fiction, where the information already exists and your job is to organise it and add your perspective, writing fiction requires you to make stuff up!
99% of the time, when you start writing you won’t have all the answers or a clear direction for where your story will go. In fact, there are many authors who go in completely blind and have none of the answers when they start. They call it ‘pantsing’ – writing by the seat of the pants! So instead of planning they start from a single idea and then see where the idea takes them.
Maybe you’re a pantser or perhaps, like me, you like to start with a bit of a plan. My planning process starts with four simple elements that can be worked with in any order, to develop an outline.
Setting
The setting of your book covers the where and the when. Which country is your story set in and during what time period? Now, of course, with fiction you don’t have to stick with reality – that’s one of the fun things about it: it can be anything that floats your boat! In most of my own fiction, I use an invented land in a (roughly) medieval time period. But knowing your setting gives you a basic framework to start from.
Characters
The characters in your book cover the who and the why.
At the time of writing, I’ve never come across a novel that doesn’t have at least one character! It’s the characters that bring a novel to life and so the majority of books have a range of them.
As you write, you’ll likely need to create extra characters to advance your plot, but before you get started it’s worth working out who your main characters will be. Then spend some time getting to know them. What do they look like? What kind of personality do they have? How do they see the world? What are their likes and dislikes? And so on.
Write all these elements of your main characters down so you have this as a reference point, which will help you to be consistent with them throughout your writing.
Plot
Your plot covers the ‘what’ – what are the characters you’ve created going to do? Personally, I start from a high-level plot (usually 8 key steps) and then I add in detail. Other authors I know write a wide range of different plot points (hundreds sometimes) and then organise them to make the story.
And if you find yourself struggling with your plot, why not look to outside sources for inspiration – mythology, history or perhaps other books. A great example of this is George Lucas. While working on a script for a science fiction adventure he simply couldn’t get the plot to tie together. He found inspiration from the framework developed by academic Joseph Campbell in his 1949 book, ‘The Hero with a Thousand Faces’, and from it Star Wars was born!
So don’t struggle, get online and you’ll find a whole range of different frameworks for plotlines and I’m sure there’ll be one that works for you.
Style
The style of your book covers how you want to write: For example, do you want to write in the first person (“I ran towards the house”) or the third person (“She ran towards the house”)? You can even write in the fourth person (“We ran towards the house”) but over the course of an entire book that can be quite a challenge for the reader!
Your personal writing style is something that can take time to develop (hence why in part one of this series I recommended you write every day), so be patient and keep practicing.
The style of your book also includes things like: how much dialogue do you want? Do you want it to be romantic? Graphic? Gritty? Funny?
When it comes to getting clear on your setting, characters, plot, and style, this is where reading lots of other fiction can help. Feel into their style and see what resonates with you and why you enjoy it – this will tell you a lot about what you like and the approach you want to take.
With these four elements – setting, character, plot, and style – worked out, you’re well on your way to being a writer!
If you have dreams of writing a book and need some expert help, visit contentalchemy.co.uk and take a look at Book-writing Gold, my academy to step you through every stage of becoming an author.
