How not to write a novel and avoid bad advice
What can help you, and what to avoid. Do online programs help you become a great writer?
As a new writer if you look online you’ll find a vast amount of websites that sell programs teaching you how to write your first novel. Hosted by actual successful authors. But are they worth it? We need to look at the advice given. Is the advice going to make you a great writer? Can you go from being a dreamer to a professional writer based on the advice given from bought programs?
in this blog, we will look at how not to write a novel and avoid bad advice…
HOW NOT TO WRITE A NOVEL AND AVOID BAD ADVICE
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As a new writer, you sit down and watch these online programs you paid for hoping to be given tips that will change your life. Turn you into a massive success. But what you end up getting is a host with simple statements like “Believe in yourself.” “Don’t give up” “Work hard.” These tips are nice, but do they truly make you a great writer? Do short little quotes make a difference, to lifting you up to Stephen King style writing and success?
In reality, people don’t need little sweet quotes, what they need is real advice on how to write a sentence.
TEACHING THE FUNDAMENTALS OF GRAMMAR
Sadly these programs don’t actually teach the fundamentals of grammar or sentence structure. The advice given is average, there’s nothing wrong with telling someone to believe in themselves. (It does help because there are some who need a pep talk to get them going. But does it actually make them a good writer?)
That’s like a contractor hired to renovate a house asking the architect for the blueprints but the architect says in order to build a house “you have to believe.” But that means nothing. The contractor needs actual blueprints to work off of. Just like how an up-and-coming writer needs help with grammar and story structure.
LOOKING FOR REAL ADVICE
It’s like a taxi driver asking you where would you like to go, and you replying “I believe in you.” The taxi will not move. The driver needs a specific address. There comes a point when you need to put aside the “words of encouragement” and actually get specific.
When someone looks up writing advice online they want actual real advice on how to write a sentence and story, not motivational tips. Because if you can’t write a sentence, you cannot write a novel.
THEY SHOULD HAVE MORE BASIC ADVICE
Some of these online programs give advice on “theme” and “the three-act structure.” But fails at giving advice on fundamentals like sentence structure and how to write a paragraph. Everyone has to learn to walk before they run. A new writer has to learn grammar before learning the bigger things like themes or subplots.
The shocking part is their advice turns out to be common sense. It’s not the full breakdown on writing from basic to advance you’d expect. The videos mean well, but you’d think if the biggest names in writing are giving advice on writing they would have full in-depth step-by-step instructions on how to write. To help out all amateurs and professionals become better.
THEY GIVE TOO MUCH BACK STORY
In some of these videos, the author spends a lot of time giving their life story, where they came from, who they are, and how they got into writing. The stories are nice, but how do they actually help writers learn how to write a sentence with proper grammar?
Should you avoid them altogether? Not really, because they’re not all that bad. They do have some amazingly helpful tips. Any new writer could benefit from them, but for the money spent you’d think they’d be filled with non-stop advice that could take a new writer and make them amazing. However, must new writers after purchasing these courses don’t feel they learn enough to truly write a publishable novel.
THE ELEMENTS OF STYLE
However, there is an answer. There’s a book titled “The Elements of Style” released back in 1918 which does a fantastic job at teaching readers the basics of grammar. Your average new writer should be reading “The Elements of Style.” You can’t go wrong there.
Stephen King has a great book on writing titled “On writing” which also does a great job at teaching new writers the basics of how to write a story. Many rank his book “On Writing” as one of the best teaching tools for new writers.
GIVE YOURSELF TIME
Here are a few tips to make note of. Don’t make the mistake of finishing your novel and sending it off to a literary agent the same day. You need to give yourself some time. put the novel away for a few days and then come back to it. You’d be amazed by how giving yourself time can expose errors in your writing.
If you send the book off too quickly the literary agent will spot the mistakes right away and reject it. But if you take your time you will be able to fix them yourself, increasing your chances of getting published.
FREE YOURSELF OF DISTRACTIONS
Never think the literary agent will do all the work for you in fixing your novel. They are too busy, they will simply reject it and return it. Publishers expect you to submit a perfect novel. Don’t think they’ll fix your novel for you.
Remember having the TV on or internet around you will be a distraction. You’ll spend more time watching TV than writing. A good idea is to isolate yourself from distraction. The radio, internet, and TV are good things to avoid while writing.
DO NOT WRITE AN EPIC NOVEL
Try to avoid having a friend or parent review your book for you. Of course, they will tell you it’s amazing. They want to see you happy. It gives you a false sense of the idea of your novel.
Another thing to avoid is taking on too much at once. Wanting to write an epic novel right away. Wishing to be the next Tolkien, but in reality, you need to slow down and write a short story first. Get your feet wet before diving in. Learn how to craft a story with proper grammar and proper sentence structure. To a point where everyone can understand what’s happening.
YOU HAVE TO READ EVERYTHING YOU CAN
A great bit of advice comes from Stephen King, he says in order to be a great writer you need to read a lot. Too many new writers will jump into writing right away without thinking about reading. We read to learn. You want to see how others are writing and learn from professionals
As a new writer don’t go writing a story that has a wandering storyline. Being a panster (someone who makes the story up as they go along, not planning anything) might sound like a great idea, but it takes time to master that ability. (The ability to stay on a course that the reader can understand.) It’s a good idea for new writers to have some idea of where they want the story to go. So that way your story doesn’t wander all over the place.
MAKING IT UP AS YOU GO ALONG
But new writers hear how Stephen King makes up his stories as he goes along so they want to try it. But in reality, he has been writing for so long he knows on a subconscious level how to stay on course. He knows how to stop his stories from wandering. A new writer may not have this practice.
The last thing you want is for your story to be rejected because the literary agents say, “It wandered all over the place, I had no idea what the story was about.” This can happen to new writers. Planning even in the smallest amount can make a difference.
START WITH THE ENDING
Margaret Mitchell came up with the ending of “Gone with the wind” first, then moved back towards the beginning. As a new writer, this can make a huge difference. It can keep you on track.
Make sure you avoid placing yourself into your novel as the protagonist on purpose or accidentally. New writers tend to do this. The problem is your protagonist will be passive. your lead character will not do anything you wouldn’t do (which is most things.) Because as humans we avoid conflict, we avoid danger.
YOUR PROTAGONIST NEEDS TO TAKE RISKS
But your protagonist should do scary, risk-taking things. Nancy Drew will go into a haunted house and The Hardy Boys will follow a dangerous criminal to see what he’s up to. In real life, we avoid these things. But if your protagonist avoids them it makes for a boring story.
Another reason you don’t want to place yourself in your novel is “you know who you are”. Your character description will be weak without knowing it. You don’t have to describe yourself to yourself. However, the reader will have no idea who the protagonist is, due to it being so underwritten. In your mind, the protagonist is not underwritten in any way, because it’s you. But to everyone else, it’s the weakest character, where the protagonist needs to be the strongest developed character.
THE CHARACTER WILL COME ACROSS AS EMPTY
Ask literary agents what’s wrong with most novels, and they will say an underdeveloped protagonist. Why? Because the writer placed themselves into the novel and didn’t put any description into the character.
Your character will come across as empty, lifeless, flat. You want a character who is complex. This is why if you take yourself out of your novel and create someone new you’ll make them complex and well described. Because you will need to describe them to yourself and in the process do a great job describing them to the reader.
WE ARE MORE THAN ONE OR TWO TRAITS
This is why villains are so complex and turn out to be the best character. Because the writer spent so much time thinking about them. The writer put all the description and character-building into the story, making them so real and complex. But the lead character is you so you don’t feel you need to describe yourself to yourself. So the character ends up empty.
Also remember, we are not one or two words. If someone says “come up with one or two character traits to create your character” that’s weak advice. As humans we are everything. We are a universe inside our own heads. We are capable of everything. If someone asks you “what are your character traits?” You should say “all of them.” Because as people we are all everything, we are complex. We cannot be summed up with one or two words.
VILLAINS SEE THEMSELVES AS GOOD
Remember villains believe they’re good. No villain sees themselves as the “bad guy.” In America’s Civil War, the south and the north both saw themselves as “the good guys”. We’re all heroes in our life stories. Keep in mind, villains are not bad for the sake of being bad, they have reasons for what they do. They should not walk around wearing all black “looking evil”. We need villains who believe they’re doing good. It makes for a complex story.
you might be interested in these blogs…
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