Growing a Novel
There are two schools of thought on this. Some authors swear they do very little plotting before they start writing and have no idea how the novel is going to end. Other authors spend a long time plotting and planning before they write anything and have a clear idea about how characters are going to develop and how the novel will end (I fall into the second camp). Certainly if you are a beginner it makes sense to spend time plotting and planning to ensure that you don’t take a wrong turn half way through and end up with a huge rewrite job on your hands.
Only when you are sure the idea has potential should you allow yourself to write anything. But don’t start writing the story – start by making notes. In a notebook write any details, reminders or facts you want to remember. You might just want to write a paragraph synopsis of the plot at this stage, or maybe background details or a character profile.
Divide the notebook into different sections, one for characters, one for plot, one for any research you need. You might have ideas for a few scenes or even lines of dialogue, if so jot them down.
Examine the plot and try to break it down on a 1-10 list, if you know where you want to start put it at number 1, if you know how it ends put that as number 10 and try to fill in the gaps in between.
When you have filled in all the numbers see if you can expand it to 1-20 or 1-30. This may go on to form the basis of your chapters. You need to work out roughly how many chapters you will need of approx how many words, bearing in mind that the average novel is around the 80-90,000 word mark.
You might want to try breaking your chapter plan down into scenes. This helps it to seem less daunting and keeps it on track lengthwise. Use a separate bit of paper for each scene, keep them small so you can’t write too much. Write the setting in one corner, the time or date in another, whose PoV it is in another and then write no more than two sentences describing what happens.
Keep doing this for every scene, start trying to put them in order, maybe even grouping them into chapters. When you’ve written as many as you can think o,f go through and ask yourself why each scene is there. If it doesn’t satisfy the purpose of characterisation, moving the plot forward or adding conflict, scrap it or combine anything you want to keep with another scene. Keep doing this, taking the weakest scene out until you are convinced you only have strong scenes left.
Remember the importance of plot being a chain of linked events and that it should be led by the characters. Start asking tough questions. Why would the character do that? What is their motivation? How would other characters react? What if?
Before you start writing you need to know your main characters inside out. Write character studies and profiles of them. The psychiatrist’s couch style questionnaires in some of the Sunday newspaper magazines are a useful way of getting to know a character. Keep a diary written in their ‘voice’. You may want to cut photos of anonymous people out of catalogues and magazines and use them to put a face to your characters and help them come alive. Stick it on the wall next to your computer.
The first draft
Now, and only now should you think about starting to write your first draft. It usually helps to start at the beginning. The first paragraph is crucial but don’t get too bogged down with it. If you can’t get it right first time carry on in the knowledge you can come back to it when you rewrite.
Set yourself a word target every time you sit down to write and try not to get up until you have met it. Always stop writing for the day at a point where you know what comes next. It makes it easier to get started the next day.
You might want to re-read your work from your last session but don’t go any further back than that. Only rewrite anything which is threatening to throw you off track. Now is not the time to rewrite. Keep writing.
If you do get stuck on one particular scene, move on and go back to it later rather than letting it hold you back.
When you have finished the first draft put it away for as long as possible. You will need a fresh pair of eyes and greater objectivity before rewriting.
When you do start rewriting think of it as if you were renovating a house; there is no point decorating a room until you are sure the foundations and structure are sound.
When rewriting you need to look for any big problems before getting down to smaller alterations. If you can’t see the wood for the trees, use the COPPICE AIDS guide below as a checklist to see where you can improve your writing.
CONFLICT Does the main character want something but there are obstacles in the way? Do they have a problem to solve or some internal conflict to resolve?
OPENING Does it grab your attention, leave you asking questions?
POINT OF VIEW Is it the most effective point of view to tell the story? Is it consistent?
PLOT Beginning, middle, end. Does it keep your interest all the way through?
INDIVIDUAL STYLE Good words, phrases and images. Varied sentence structure.
CHARACTERS Are they characters? Are they believable? Do they provoke strong emotions?
ENDING Is it satisfying? Is it credible? Is there a surprise, a twist in the tail?
ATMOSPHERE Have you created a sense of ‘being there’? Used five senses?
IDEA Is it original, full of potential?
DIALOGUE Does it develop the characters? Does it sound realistic? Does it contain conflict?
SHOW DON’T TELL Have you told the reader how a character feels rather than shown them through character’s eyes?
Rewrite, concentrating on those big issues first. When you have finished read it through again thinking about smaller matters, areas you could cut, improve, line-editing. A good target is to cut ten per cent of your first draft while editing. |
