The Bog-Standard Basics Of Writing Your First Book

At some point in their lives, many people set out to write a novel. Head brimming with ideas, they sit down at the keyboard and blast away. But sooner or later, they realize they're in over their heads, and often quit altogether. So, how do you successfully push through and finish that beast?

Some common advice is "just write" or "just read". But what if you're already writing and reading, and you want more specific steps to help you? Below are the five bog-standard basics of writing your first novel.

Have a Plan

Planners and Pantsers, Gardeners and Architects: writers have a lot of terms contrasting the two main styles of writing. Essentially, it boils down to whether you prefer to plan the entire plot before you ever put pen to page, or if you like to wing it and see where the story takes you.

Unfortunately, as a new writer, writing instinctively is difficult if not impossible. If you plan out your first story beforehand, it gives you a template to work from and lets you catch mistakes before you're knee-deep in edits. Changing 100 words at the beginning could save you 10,000 down the road! And when the going gets tough, you can cling to your template like a life raft, powering through the difficult spots towards what you know lies ahead.

If you've already started your novel, don't worry. Take a step back and write out the rest of your book's outline. You'll be amazed how much it helps you put together a cohesive story.

Don’t Sweat The Edits

Everyone wants their book to be good, and many people spend countless hours poring over their pages, editing tiny details and tweaking their work to be the best it can be. Sadly, some people get so caught up in editing that they never finish their book!

The harsh reality is this: your first draft will be terrible. The good news is, so is everyone else's. First drafts are for getting ideas on paper and assembling the bones of your story. Get that story written, then figure out what you want to keep, and what you want to remove. It's a terrible waste of time if you end up meticulously line editing a chapter, only to realise later that you need to discard the entire section. Save your energy, and finish that dang story!  

Read Critically

Reading will improve your writing, without a doubt. But how do you read? What do you read? If you are serious about crafting a good story, it is important to see what has come before you. Pick up books in your genre that you enjoy, and read them more meticulously than you normally do.

As you read, try to look at how the author crafts their story. Do they have a lot of dialogue at the beginning? How do they write action scenes or love scenes? Is the world lush and rich with detail, or do they leave it up to the readers' imaginations?

You can even pick up books you don't like. Ask yourself, what don't you like about it? Is it the pacing? The worldbuilding? Or something else? Sometimes, seeing a hated literary trait in other works can help you spot and avoid it in your own writing. Critical reading is the single most important practice for improving your writing.

Take Notes

As you write, you'll realize you want to change something, or perhaps set up a plot thread later on. Write it down! You'll struggle to keep everything in your head, and getting your thoughts on paper allows you to keep all your ideas together, while also freeing your mind to focus on writing.

Sometimes you can make the changes to your manuscript on the fly, but as mentioned above, don't get too caught up in editing! You will have plenty of time to go back and change the mayor's name or add a side quest chapter for the hero, once the book is complete.

Write Your Way

Perhaps the most important advice a writer can get is: do what works for you! Writing is not a science, and like any art, it can be done in a multitude of ways. What works for one writer is terrible for another, and what one person hates, another person loves.

Experiment with different pieces of advice, writing styles, and strategies. If something in this article helped you, use it! If it didn't, discard it and move on. Everyone is different and requires different tools in their toolbelt. Try new things, continue improving your skills, and most importantly, have fun with it!