Photo courtesy of The Mountaineer | November is national novel month, so take some tips from Newswire’s own aspiring author, Luke Feliciano.
- Establish A Strong Main Character
Your main character is going to be the main focal point of the novel. My suggestion is to create a protagonist that readers are going to be able to relate to. That way, they will be more intrigued and inclined to read your book!
- Have Meaningful Dialogue
Dialogue is crucial to a novel’s development. Without it, the reader gets no sense of how characters interact in exchanges with other characters. Dialogue can also go a long way to providing the reader with character development through the thoughts and words of a person.
- Know Your Audience
Is your intended audience children? Teenagers? Adults? In any case, you should gear the word usage in your novel towards your audience. For example, if you are writing a novel for teenagers, it’s perfectly okay to use explicit language and talk about more mature subject matters.
- Develop A Main Plot & Subplots
Your main plot is obviously what your book is going to be about in the long run, but it is important to also develop subplots. Subplots are exciting because often times, a main plot and a subplot intertwine and affect each other. Essentially, writing a chapter of a book without progressing the main plot or subplot won’t do anything for your novel!
- Don’t Be Afraid To Take Risks!
I would encourage any aspiring novelist to take risks. Be bold. Be different. Write something that you feel that a reader would want to read. Don’t shy away from possibly touchy or edgy content.
- It’s Going to Take Time!
I started writing my novel when I was a senior in high school and I am still only eight chapters in. Writing a novel is a marathon, not a sprint. There were times when it took me around six hours to sit down and write an entire chapter. Once, you are done writing a chapter, you aren’t even close to being done. Revisions can always be made and should be made constantly!
- Plan Ahead and Write Down All Ideas
Planning is key. It’s almost impossible to sit down and write something without having a guide, otherwise, your thoughts are all jumbled up. One of my main pieces of advice is to know the direction you want to take your novel and plan ahead for it. I already know what’s going to happen in my novel and I have every chapter set up with detailed summaries and quotes to go along with it. Every time you have an idea, write it down. You never know when you might be able to use it!
By: Luke Feliciano ~Sports Editor~