Position:Home>Books & Authors> I'm writing a novel. How do you organize your thoughts?

the best thing you can do is to zap through your first draft!. Of course, don't make the plot a mess because you were zipping through it, make sure you have a plot you like, but focus on getting that first draft done!. Then, when you have a solid copy in front of you, take out your pen and, reading it as a reader would (i!.e!. get rid of the hatred of your work every author has), circle things and write what you would have liked to have happened there!. This is where your novel begins to take shape!. This does not happen in the first draft, the first draft is the foundation for a great novel!. The second draft is where you will begin thinking your story is organized, solid, and pratically amazing!. You will find that the "amazing" authors who get their books done in the first draft nobody really knows about, or particularly like!. So don't be fooled!. As far as beings busy goes, set aside a time everyday!. Ten minutes, even!. Preferably after you've gotten everything else done (if that's possible)!. If you set aside a solid time everyday, even if it's small, you'll find that you're getting more done than you would if you just 'let the writing happen' (a!.k!.a 'never write at all')
also, as far as struggles with dialogue go, it's not a matter of where you write that's making you struggle with it!. The best thing you can do to be confident about your dialogue is read it aloud to yourself!. If it sounds unnatural then rewrite it!. Characters should be relatively real people too!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

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hmm, my twin sister Holly is writing a novel and I know sje keeps all of her story organized in a folder!. We both write notes on the side if the margins and that becomes a little messy if you can't read it because there is too much!. I'd suggest keeping organized notes on a computer (preferably a laptop) and try that!. If that doesn't work, I'm not sure!.

Hannah-Lynne SullivanWww@QuestionHome@Com

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if i knew, i'd have written a novel and a half by now!. creativity came most fluidly at early hours in the morning!. or night, depending on how you look at it!. Www@QuestionHome@Com

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here's something that im trying :
get those little 6x9 recipe cards and write a main idea or topic on them that will start a new chapter , then as you have the headings of all your chapters laid out , write information on your individual chapters on other recipe cards that will stand out in those chapters that you can use as a "launching idea" for instance : my top card will read something like this "in the beginning" then the next card will catalog what main ideas i will be touching under the initial heading of "in the beginning" like "early experiences" and "background info" and the like -
then under those two card i start writing more detailed information about the main ideas and the subtopics in the first and second cards ,just general info and/or references that later on when i sit down to actually write it out i will have and all my thoughts will be in some type of pre-organization that i can reference and not have to rely totally upon memory or latter editing !.
so what you end up with are several different stacks held together with a rubber band or whatever with the heading of each chapter on top , then main ideas beneath that , then details under that !.when its all said and done you should end up with complete , well thought out and detailed chapters for your book and it's so much easyer than going all balls out in my opinion and you retain small bits of info that you might later forget to ad that will bring a more robust body to your book
hope this helps - good luck with your book ! Www@QuestionHome@Com

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Writing a book is a lot of hard work (and I should know, I've written several)

I always start out by jotting down all of my ideas!. I keep a journal for any additional ideas throughout the process, much the same as you do!. Then I start to create key scenes!. After a while, the format slowly starts to become clear!. The characters and situations begin to dictate themselves!. For example, if one person is said to be a pyromaniac, I'd include a scene where they set something on fire early on in the book!. Later, I would use another fire to help shape the climax!.

When trying to shape the novel into a well structured book, I use the first chapter to introduce the situation, the second to go into a bit more detail and then have the first crucial plot point come in the third!. (i!.e!. in my novel My Life as a Fallen Angel, Cat's mum dies in the third chapter, thus setting the character up to move to Melbourne to live with her father!.) From there, several additional things need to occur which will help you slowly move toward the final climax (Cat makes some no good friends, resents her dad who is a cop on the drug squad and tries drugs for the first time), where everything in the book should come together!. (Cat fights with her dad and leaves with her no good friends and takes drugs and eventually overdoes!.) You then need a final chapter, where everything gets resolved!. (i!.e!. Cat finally resolves her differences with her dad after her drug overdose and scatters her mum's ashes!.)

As for dialogue, it depends on the book, it's characters and the target audience!. Whatever looks and sounds right to you is probably the best choice!.

Best of luck!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

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