Position:Home>Books & Authors> WRITERS: Advice for writing a book?

Just start going!. I'm also an outliner, and it helps me keep on track!. However, it's important to realize that things may change for your plot and/or your characters, and you shouldn't stifle them if they start to tell you that something should change!. Make sure you really really know your characters - not just what they look like or what their favorite colors are!. Put them in a situation - how do they react!? How do they treat each other!? If they seem like a real person you could run into on the street, then you're good!. But real characters are the crux of a good manuscript!.

Otherwise, just make sure you don't rush it!. Scenes can be thousands of words, with appropriate description and dialogue!. The line between a good scene and purple prose is quite fine, so to keep myself on the "good scene" side, I pretend that it's a movie in my mind!. That way, I make sure what I'm writing is something that would actually be interesting to someone reading it or watching it, if it were actually a movie!. This helps me with description - if it were a movie, what would the character notice!? What's important to the scene, and more importantly, what isn't!?

I think the best advice anyone ever gave me was to write every day, even if it isn't much or if it doesn't make it into the final manuscript!. As long as I've written something, I feel more accomplished and better about my manuscript!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

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Before you ever start writing a chapter, always picture what happens in this chapter first so that you can really describe it properly to your reader!.

Try sitting in your bedroom and playing it in your head like a movie!. It really helps me, anyway!. Make sure that your characters keep their own individuality and don't start sounding the same!. For example, if Bill is the sarcastic one and Martha is the optimist, make sure they don't both start sounding sarcastic or that they don't sound anything like what they're supposed to be according to the personality you've planned out for them!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

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I find most endings to be disappointing!. Make sure through out the book that the ending fits the beginning!. (example: Stephen King's "IT" the story was great and then it ended up being a big spider!?!!?) Always throw in a few words that sends your reader to the dictionary!. I do not find a book worth while unless I learn a new word!. I have a hard time while writing of sticking to the point as my train of thought sometimes wants to go in another direction!. I have to make myself focus on the point and if the new thoughts are better I have to make myself rewrite the beginning to make it "fluid"!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

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You can look it up online!.
You don't need to start your story right from the beginning!. Start wherever you want to!. My english teacher taught us this really great trick for writing!. When you have ideas and you don't know where to begin, just get everything OUT!. She gave us the visual of just sneezing on our papers-- it will be a load of crap at first, but you can always go back and edit it, just get your ideas down on paper first!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

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Dont make it too unreal or exoctic!. try not to get it WAYY too far from reality!. But, still make it exciting/breathtaking!. keep you reader hooked!. use a lot of literary terms, but not to many, the reader would get confused and would be wondering what they are reading about!. If you gave a a summary of the story i could help you out more!. Hope i helped!Www@QuestionHome@Com

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