The three step method that will get you writing � guaranteed!

You dream about writing a novel or maybe you have already started one yet for some reason the manuscript is collecting dust in a desk drawer. There is no complex psychological barrier that prevents you from writing. You can write out a complete novel from start to finish in no time and with no anxiety. I guarantee it. Here are the three easy steps.

 

Step 1- Free up some time by turning off the television!

The most common complaint is "I can't seem to find the time to write". Turning off the television solves this problem. How much Tube do you watch every day? How much do you watch every week? What do you really get out of it? Turn it off! Better yet give it away. I'm serious. Me I am pretty lucky. All the buttons on my television are broken and I can't find the remote. So my TV is stuck on channel 3 which means the only thing I can do is use the VCR. For a while I could use the VCR to change channels but I lost the remote for this too so the only thing I can do is pop in a tape and press play. I watch one or two movies a week and I am definitely not missing anything -it's my gain. Now I have the time to write and so will you. Maybe you will even read a little more.

 

Step 2 - Gather all the materials you need by buying a notebook and a pencil

I hear it all the time: "I can't use a computer well. I can't spell. I don't have the things I need to write.

What kind of software should I get? Well I got something for you. You only need a notebook and a pencil. You don't need a computer. You don't need a book on writing. And you don't need anything else at all. What did they do before the computer was invented? They wrote things out long hand. And you should do this too. The computer is way too much of a distraction. How many times have you logged into your computer to do something and got side tracked only to find the hours pass by and you didn't accomplish what you set out to do?

There is an additional bonus to writing with a pencil and paper. It inspires creativity. There is just something about the physical act of writing that will bring you back to your childhood and the creativity that is locked inside there.

 

Step 3 - Sit down somewhere and write

That's it. Just write. Don't let your mind psyche you out. Don't even give a second thought to all that stuff about dialogue, setting, characterizations, plot lines and the like. It doesn't have to be great. It doesn't even have to be good. That will come later. It is just like exercise. The more you do the better you get. You will improve. But only if you write.

Sit down and write the first sentence and watch it grow into a first paragraph and then into a first page and then a first chapter. Writing a novel is kind of like rolling a snowball downhill. Once you get it started it takes on a life of its own. Before you know it the story will be writing itself.

If the blank page scares you then here is the first sentence for you. Fill in the blanks and don't worry about giving me any credit!

"His name was _______ and he appeared to be an ordinary guy. But he was anything but ordinary. He was a __________ and this is something that the rest of the world could not understand.

 

Remember

The only thing that is preventing you from writing is the fact that you are not writing. Don’t worry about anything except whether or not you are writing. Grammar, punctuation, spelling, passive sentences are all meaningless if you have no novel at all and a novel with a thousand mistakes is better than no novel at all. Write the story and consider all the mechanics of writing later. Along the way your writing will improve.

 

Does this method of writing work?

It sure does! This is the exact method I used to write my first novel. It is no great work of art but it is done and it is published. And since then I have finished my second novel and I am now working on my third and fourth.

The name of that first novel is Fulcrum Shift and the very first line I wrote is "The figure walked quietly down the cobblestone alley with purpose". Look it up on Amazon.com and when your novel is complete, published, and available on Amazon you will be proud of the results even if it’s no great work of art.

 

Will Kalif is the author of two epic fantasy novels. Read more of his stuff at StormTheCastle.com or check out his site devoted to epic fantasy at Epic-fantasy.com

 

 

Reviews

[Nick Anthony]

Will, good advice but please bare in mind that not all writers are the same. For me, pencil and notebook does not work. As Dwight Swain notes, all advice is suspect until proven correct. What Dwight meant is that in many Creative Writing classes, unless the teacher is a published author themself, they will often times teach from a preplanned course instead of personal experience. This is not bad, but writing excersizes do little to advance the writer in the craft of writing. Why? The true writer with the drive, wants to write and not do damn exercises. Excercises do serve a place though for those who are unsure if they want to dedicate the time to reading and writing and may refocus their thoughts.

As many published authors have noted, writing is a business and the sooner you treat it as a business, the sooner you will improve. By this, they mean you have to write, everyday. It matters not what you write, so long as you write everyday. One of my mentors, Ms Andre Norton instill this in me at an early age. This also includes reading an equal amount. Reading books by other authors, and books by writers, agents and publishers on the techniques of the selling writer will help newcomers understand that there is more to the craft of fictional writing than what they learned in school.

My advice to newcomers, dedicate a time period each and every day for two things. 1 is reading, the other is writing. Find a place where you will not be disturbed. If you like music on, fine, but if the music starts your feet tapping - turn it off.

As to novels in any genre, my biggest advice is finish the first one start to finish. Then worry about the revising and editing. Just getting the first one out of the way is often times the hardest part for many writers and I hear it all the time, I have lots of story's started, but I never finish them. Once finished, put it away for a few months, work on your reading and writing new work. Then come back to the finished one and start reviewing it, making notes on what works, does not work, and what to change. Once you have a grip on the changes, make them and then go back again, and again, editing for grammar, punctuation, structure, formating, motivation and response units, POV, and those dreaded Passive sentences and grammar that leads to passive writing. Even editing for tense shift will help improve the piece.

Work at you own level, at your own speed. Those writers who hold regular mundane jobs...keep them. If you have a house full of kids, spend time with them first, but make sure they all understand that mom or dad has private time for their writing and reading.

I like what you are doing as encouragement for new writers, but I would love to see some examples of topic's or suggestions by other writers than yourself. It lends credability to the pieces you are writing and takes them from blogg to helpful information.

Nick.