Since Summer 1999, I've been doing something nobody asked me to do. I've written books. I thought that writing one book was a huge undertaking. But, as it turns out, writing a series of books with crossover characters is an even bigger mountain to climb. Along the way, I've learned a few things that have kept me writing and, I hope, will keep you writing too.
1. The First Line Is Key: Let me put it to you this way - when I walk into a bookstore, how I browse is to take a copy of a book, flip to the first chapter and read the first line. It used to be that I'd give the author three paragraphs to hook me. But now I see that the beauty of writing is hooking them in with the very first line.
2. Keep the Chapters Slim: Each chapter is a scene. A scene that must advance the plot. Pack whatever pertinent information you need to and then move on to the next scene.
3. Keep it Simple: This piece of advice is interchanageable depending on how you write. If you like to write long, drawn out sentences with poetic prose, that's perfectly fine. But what I've found that keeps me engaged as a reader are short, simple sentences. No dressing required. If there are some clever nuggets of prose they should come naturally and not be forced. My style is somewhat of a balance between Stephen King, Charles Bukowski and Harlan Ellison. Or, at least, that's what I'd like for it to be.
4. Do Not Hold Back: Here's something that I've learned the hard way several times over. Do not hold back. Readers can tell and they will call you out on it. If something feels visceral and almost too intense, put it on paper. No one ever decided to play it safe when writing a novel. Writing a novel is a jump into the unkown, wondering if you have the strength to climb back out. If you pull punches, clean up your language or try to cater to only one section of the audience, you will lose all of them. For example - my characters curse. But they don't curse on every single page like it's a Tarantino movie. If my characters are at their breaking point, they don't shy away from a grunted cry of "Fuck!" or "Oh Goddamn It!"
5. Every Story Is The Film Behind Your Eyes: Before I picked up the pen, or laptop in my case, I wanted to be a filmmaker. Much like the writer Garrett Robinson. However, I knew nothing of how to cast actors, secure sets, acquire permits or props or even when to film. I just knew how to tell a good story. But I've found that filmmaking and writing go very much together. If you have a scene you want to write, you picture it in your head first. Let's say, for instance, that you have an opening scene where a man enters a hotel and rings the bell at the concierge desk. You know all the details. But the reader will get bogged down if you describe every stick of furniture in the lobby. Only you know which details to focus on in order for the reader to get an idea of where the scene is going yet don't give away too much. Is the man sweating? Is he carrying a secret? Is the hotel manager against him? Is he meeting someone in his room?
6. Write about what you don't know: They often say 'write what you know' but I'm a firm believer in that writing is a journey into the unknown. Sure, you can add some of your experiences and expertise. But always leave enough room for free will.
7. Don't let research intimidate you: Research should be the last thing on your mind. This isn't a term paper. If it is, I'm sorry. But if you want to write fiction, there may be some points along the way that you have to look up or google. Just don't do it while writing because it breaks the flow. Always leave it for the "look that thing up later" section of your brain.
8. Connect with your characters: If your characters do not have wants or needs then they have no soul. They don't have to like the same things you do. But they do need to be relatable and a reflection of the human condition. Allow them the space and opportunity to play.
9. Don't sweat the page count - the story will tell you when its done: If it's a handful of scenes, it's short. If it has three to four acts, it's a novella. If it is something that builds over time, it's a novel. No matter what - remember that the story will be done when the last line feels right.
10. Make every chapter a cliffhanger: I know you can't make every chapter someone literally hanging off the edge of a cliff. It is your reader that needs to be on the edge. Make it so that every setup builds to a payoff.
11. Play to your strengths, bury your weaknesses: When writing, I tend to get bogged down by overly descriptive phrases. So I cut them. I like my sentences nice and neat. You shouldn't overwrite a scene to where its 50 pages in and the characters are stuck in the Same Room. Bury the boring parts of your manuscript or they will bury you in unnecessary text.
12. Outline in your head: There are authors who are pantsers and plotters. Pantsers work by the seat of the pants, on the fly. Plotters map out every detail before they write one word in their manuscript. Let's face it, the outline is already in your head. It is condensed into twenty or so bullet points of what will eventually happen in your story. And if you know that, you can write everything in between.
13. Make it re-readable: One thing I love when reading is to go right back to the beginning chapter and reread the setup. Now that's a good book. You want to give the reader an experience. One that says, one of these days, I have to re-live those moments in the book again. They're too good to fade from my memory.
14. Let it cook: Like with any process, you need time away from your creation to come back to it with new eyes. See if things have marinated well. Does it still make sense? Does it still capture your imagination? Will it grab others? Does it resonate? Will this matter 20 years from now? I can tell you from experience, if you keep coming back to it, then it's a good idea that deserves the right amount of time to cook. However long that may be.
15. Leave the reader wanting more: An alright book will have you put it down and say to yourself, "Well, that was a pleasant distraction." But if you know what a reader wants and needs, you'll have them saying at the end of your story, "I wonder what those characters are up to right now."
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