How to Write a Novel

It starts with a declaration. You make it to yourself or maybe to someone else. You say, “I’m going to write a novel,” and add it to your lifelong to do list. For years, it sits there, tucked between “plant a tree” and “jump out of an airplane.” You go about your life. Then one day, your novel’s number comes up.

You’re nervous, excited, and just a little bit scared. What if the plot sucks? What if it’s a big hit? You start dreaming about agents and publishers. You try not to think about Oprah, but sometimes you wonder what it would be like, sitting in the chair next to her, talking about how yes, it’s true, you wrote the first draft in 30 days.

You don’t really know how to write a novel because you’ve never done it before. But you’re not going to let that stop you.

No time for idle dreams, you get focused and concentrate on your characters. They’re starting to take form, one by one. They’ve got names and personalities, talents and obstacles that they need to overcome. They’re interacting, forming relationships and you feel like some kind of puppetmaster tweaking their strings until they take shape and start to come alive.

At first, there’s no plot. Just a bunch of half-baked scenes and situations. Your mind dances with outlines, note cards and brainstorming sessions and you can imagine it all coming together so you start to plan and scheme but then you realize that you’re not planning a novel at all. You’re just planning ways to plan your novel. You’ve been here before. Mind mapping and plotting, preparing and researching, writing up character sketches and building worlds where nothing ends up happening.

You’ve got a bottom drawer full of them and there just isn’t room for one more, so you decide to take a different approach.

You’re not going to get caught up in the plotting. The little devil on your shoulder whispers in your ear, “but plotting out a storyline is so much fun,” and you smack him upside the head because you already know that if you plan it out then writing it is no fun at all. You remember what that’s like, how twenty pages in you get struck by an even better plan and then you’re off, leaving one novel idea abandoned for another newer, shinier one.

Well, not this time.

This time will be different. No planning, no brainstorming, and no outlines.

When the time comes, you just sit down and write. You figure that’s exactly how to write a novel. And you’re right.

The words come at a maddening pace and you type furiously trying to keep up. Characters appear out of nowhere and a world starts to form. This thing comes from inside you but it has a life of its own. There’s no thinking or spelling, no fact-checking or punctuation. It just comes pouring out. A thousand words. Two thousand. Five thousand. Ten.

It’s a mess and you know it but you don’t care. First person and third person, perspectives intertwined in a linguistic orgy. Your characters’ names are changing from page to page and you don’t bother going back to make corrections. They’ve already lived in more cities than you care to count. Each one has more personalities than a psychotherapist’s dream patient. Your starring couple had eight kids back on page one but now there’s only two. What happened to the other six? You don’t care. You’re busy.

You’re writing a novel.

You’re writing a novel and you’re curious to see just how many words you’ve written. 10,000. Good. Keep going. The characters have ripped the plot out of your hands and now you know why accomplished writers say things like “let the story tell itself” or “you don’t really need a plot.” All the scenes that popped into your mind before you started have drifted off into the neversphere and the characters are getting into trouble without any help from you.

If you type any faster, your fingers might wiggle right off your hands but you’ve got to keep going. Someone’s about to get hurt. Someone else is about to find true love. Another person is going to discover a secret that will change the world. Fifteen thousand words. Twenty. Twenty-five.

Yes, this is how to write a novel. You know there are other ways but you don’t care. This is how you do it. You’re halfway there and it’s surreal. Each writing session is more exhausting than the one before. Your body thinks it’s having these adventures for real and your mind is inclined to agree. You polish off another 2500 and fall asleep with the cat on your lap and your laptop wedged between the sheets and your legs. You dream in words. You dream in text and pages and clicking keys. You dream in numbers. Thirty thousand words and all of a sudden this thing becomes real. You. Are. Writing. A. Novel.

You’re more than halfway done. Over the hump and through the climax to the final scene you go. Your novel is permeating your life now, slipping into casual conversations, popping up on your blog, buzzing through your cell phone. You can’t stop thinking about it. So close to the end – fifteen thousand words to go…

…and suddenly you find yourself sitting there staring at the screen, and not a single word pops into your head. Not “the,” not “Then,” not “anything.” Writer’s block? You don’t believe in it. You get up and start to panic. Now what? What next? Exercise, shop, eat, work, exercise again and eat some more. Suddenly you realize what’s supposed to happen and it’s going to take you straight to The End, those two little words you’ve come to despise.

What are you supposed to do if you finish this novel without reaching the proper word count? Word count is everything. It’s the clock by which writers tick and you don’t want your clock to break. Not this close to the finish line. You must reach your word count. You’ll write an epilogue if you have to.

Back at the computer, the words are burning down your arms like wildfire. Every muscle from your shoulders to each fingertip is swollen and strained but there’s only three days left. Five thousand words a day. You can do it. You know it’s crunch time. When you’re all done, you’ll know exactly how to write a novel. You’ll have written a novel. That thought keeps you going.

And you’re off again, lighting dictionaries on fire, burning through the thesaurus. Words go off like fireworks and you’re lit up like a Christmas tree. The characters run around frantically tying up loose ends and leaping over final challenges that appeared at the last minute. Someone’s laughing. Someone’s dying. And the villain makes his final stand.

You’re writing a novel and this is how you do it. Day in, day out, word by word, you write. You sit and you place your fingers over the keys and you make them walk, make them run, make them dance and they will tell you a story, a story pulled from the depths of your soul, a story that is uniquely and oddly you. A story that is yours.

And that’s how I wrote my novel.

Special thanks to NaNoWriMo Pep Talkers, the NaNoWriMo staff, and every single WriMo participant this year for helping me achieve one of my life dreams – learning how to write a novel. Knowing you guys were writing your novels and going through the same highs and lows helped me get through it. And I have to credit at least 10k words of my novel to those pep talks! I wrote a novel. And damn, that sure feels good.

Six Different Truths

I’ve been told that I’m complicated, that I have many layers, and that I’m not quite the same person from day to day. I suppose it’s true, and I like to blame it on the stars. Since I’m a Gemini, that works out rather nicely because Gemini is a multi-faceted sign.

Kate, who blogs at Live Out of the Box wonders if she could see more of my layers and has tagged me to reveal six things you don’t know about me. Even though memes make me twitchy, this one was fun (and challenging) so here you go – six different truths about yours truly.

1. The Incredible, Amazing Cat

My cat, Zoe, taught herself to pee in the toilet. One night I heard a tinkle coming from the bathroom but I knew everybody in the house was asleep, so I peeked in the bathroom and there she was, perched on the commode like it was the most natural thing in the world. When I started squealing with praise, she just looked up at me as if to say, “Where else would I do this?”

2. Don’t Eat Wilbur

I don’t eat pork. People usually think this has something to do with religion (it doesn’t). It’s something that started back in 2006 when I was accidentally exposed to several graphically disturbing videos, which depicted pig slaughter among other things. I also like pigs and have heard that they are more intelligent and trainable than dogs (I love dogs too). So, I just stopped eating pork altogether. It wasn’t that hard to give up, especially since the very thought of eating pork now makes me gag.

3. Excuse Me While I Pass Out

I have fainted twice – once in 1991 and again in 1999. The first time it happened I was at a party talking to a friend and I went over like a tree, although nobody yelled “Timber!” It was the oddest sensation – I felt like I was outside of my own body and it seemed like I was floating above the scene and then flying around. When I came to, I couldn’t move my arms or legs and I couldn’t talk for about 20 minutes. It was one of the strangest experiences I’ve ever had.

4. Shakin’ My Money Maker

The first time I ever performed on stage was for a dance recital. I was four years old and the number was “Honey Bun” from the motion picture soundtrack for South Pacific. The girl next to me in line peed all over the stage during the performance and I didn’t want to step in it so I didn’t quite follow the routine. One of my fondest memories of that day was my aunt bringing me a beautiful doll and a dozen yellow roses – quite a gift for a four-year-old!

5. I Love the Moon

I love the moon. The entire night sky is mesmerizing, but the moon is most beautiful, and sometimes I can see it outside my window when I’m lying in bed. I can lie there for hours looking at it, and I’ll even readjust my sleeping position so I can watch it glide across the sky.

6. Neomaxizoomdweebie

My all time favorite movie is the The Breakfast Club. Of course, I am a child of the 80s, so that’s just one sampling of all the 80s stuff that I’m crazy about. But think about it – John Hughes wrote the entire screenplay over a weekend. There are just seven actors in the movie (plus a few cameos and extras), and the entire film takes place in a single day in a single location (a school). It explores labels and cliques and I bet it’s as relevant to teens today as it was twenty years ago.

Tag, You’re It!

I get to pay it forward by tagging six people to tackle this meme:

1. Brett at 6 Weeks
2. Deb at G’s Cottage
3. Deb at Punctuality Rules
4. Jaden at Screenwriting for Hollywood
5. Milena at The Leaping Thought
6. The Sterling Watson at Indoob

…and anyone else who wants to participate. If I tagged you and you’re not into it, just discard the invitation. No apologies necessary. I know, memes aren’t for everyone.

Here are the rules:

1. LINK TO THE PERSON WHO TAGGED YOU
2. POST THE RULES ON YOUR BLOG
3. WRITE SIX RANDOM THINGS ABOUT YOURSELF
4. TAG SIX PEOPLE AT THE END OF YOUR POST AND LINK TO THEM
5. LET EACH PERSON KNOW THEY ARE TAGGED AND LEAVE A COMMENT ON THEIR BLOG
6. LET THE TAGGER KNOW WHEN YOUR ENTRY IS UP

Oh, and have fun with it!

A is for Apple

credit: Spintwig

So the computer crash of ‘08 is finally behind me. What a week it’s been!

I spent hours online checking prices and specs and finally decided to buy another PC instead of a Mac. The windows computers are more affordable and frankly, I felt like the last thing I had time for was learning a new system.

So Many Choices

After perusing the many options, I settled on an HP tablet notebook, but I wanted to go into a store and try it before buying. The tablets are attractive because you can take handwritten notes, use a stylus on the screen, and also navigate by touch.

In the store, I was impressed by the way it worked but wondered if I would really get much use out of it. Plus, after browsing the aisles, I realized I could get a more powerful laptop and buy a peripheral stylus and tablet for less money. I started over, checking out the oodles of windows-based laptops and that’s when I started getting sick and tired of computer shopping.

Keep in mind I was sticking pretty much to the HP section. The models are so poorly named I couldn’t keep them straight in my head and a couple hundred dollars difference between the various models was confusing because the features were basically the same. What a nightmare.

What Would You Do?

Throughout all this, a very helpful salesman was assisting me and answering my questions. In the midst of my frustration, I finally said, “Alright, tell me this — what kind of computer do YOU have?”

“Me?” He sort of blushed. “Oh, I built my own.”

“Nice,” I responded, impressed. “Is it all tricked out?”

“Yep, it sure is.” Wait, that wasn’t a blush. This kid was glowing with pride.

“Okay, so let’s say you wanted a store bought computer. What would you get?”

“Oh, that’s easy. I’d get a Mac.”

All I could do at that point was sigh.

Zen Happens

I walked over to the Mac section and sat down in front of the MacBook Pro. I’d already done the research and knew if I was destined for Appledom, this would be the machine for me.

It was sleek, simple, and easy on the eyes. I blinked and ran my finger across the touchpad. The screen lit up.

And that’s when I got The Feeling.

The Feeling always shows up when I’m in great need. Sometimes it shows up when I’m not. But whenever it appears, I do as it says because The Feeling is always right. It’s helped me buy cars, make career decisions, and gotten me through some tough times. Sure, The Feeling is a little bit like my muse, and has a tendency to run off at times when I could really use its advice. But for the most part, it’s always there when I really need it and that’s what matters.

So I was pretty relieved when The Feeling showed up while I was sitting at the Mac station. Actually, I was so out of sorts from the whole experience, I would have been happy if it had appeared at any station, maybe even Dell.

Okay, not Dell. I may have actually doubted The Feeling if it rooted for Dell.

Deciding Factors

“Apple it is,” I said. And the rest, as they say, is history.

There were a few things that sealed the deal for me.

• Two years no interest means I can afford to spend a little more (thanks Best Buy!).
• All the new PCs have Windows Vista and the older versions of Microsoft Office conflict with it. In other words, I had to buy the latest Office whether I got a Mac or a PC.
• I’m sick and tired of Microsoft. Their software doesn’t work right and they build an operating system on which their own software doesn’t run properly. Could they be any lamer?
• Everyone I’ve ever talked to raves about how well their Mac works. PC users just complain.
• When my intuition rears its little head and starts giving me instructions, I obey.

The Mac Life

I’m not fully switched over yet. I’m still using my old laptop for most of my client work because I’m much faster on the PC than on the Mac. There are some significant differences that I need to adjust to before I can switch over completely. Also, I need some (expensive) software for the Mac and that’s going to have to come later.

Here are the things that are difficult for me with the Mac:

• I miss the HOME and END keys. I use those a lot and really wish the Mac keyboard included them.
• The DELETE key backspaces and there is no BACKSPACE. I liked having both.
• Right click used to be my friend. Yes, I know I can connect a two-button mouse, but then I’m not really adjusting to the minimalism that is Apple. I’m learning how to do CONTROL-click.
• I do not like COMMAND- keyboard shortcuts for cut, copy, and paste. That key is just in the wrong place and CONTROL is in a better location for those shortcuts.
• No games! Where is my spider solitaire? Eeek!

Other than that, I’m loving the MacBook Pro. It feels solid, is nicely designed, and easy to use. I’m looking forward to making the full switch over the next few months.

photo credit: Spintwig

It’s a beautiful thing.

Oh, and I hope you all backed up your computers this past week!

Now, back to our regular blog posts about creative writing.

Inside the Writing Community

Writers are notorious for being loners. We spend hours in solitude, bent over our keyboards, laboring over prose and poetry. And when we’re not absorbed by our own writing, we’ve got our noses wedged deeply into someone else’s, because if there’s one thing we love as much as writing, it’s reading.

When we finally pry ourselves away from pages of text, we’re usually greeted by our non-writing or non-reading friends and family members. They don’t care about alliteration, character development, or dangling prepositions. They want to know where you’re going for dinner.

Writers have access to books and websites full of writing tips that provide useful ideas, inspiration, and guidelines to help us be better at our craft. What’s often missing from those writing tips is this: embrace the writing community.

The Heart of a Community

At the heart of every community lies a common, shared experience, and it’s no different for writers. Only other writers can understand our unique struggles. Whether we’re tangled up in a messy plot that’s going nowhere, trying to form a poem into a publishable work of art, or working through a stressful revision on an article or essay, the challenges we encounter as writers are particular to our craft.

When we surround ourselves with other writers, then it becomes easy to find a friendly comrade – someone who can sympathize or lend a bit of writerly advice. Someone once told me that getting married means your life has twice the joy and half the sorrow, and the same is true of being involved in the writing community.

Other writers will relate to small accomplishments and celebrate them with you. When I finished the first draft of my novel, the non-writers in my life wanted to know if I’d already sent it out to get published. My writer friends said, “Good for you! When are you going to start revising?” This stark difference punctuated why the writing community is so important to me as a writer, and made my heart sing with appreciation for my writer friends.

The Writing Community

One of the things that makes me proud to call myself a writer is the community itself. Throughout our lives, we usually find ourselves involved in various communities and I’ve found that writers tend to be warm, supportive, and generous people. Whether I’m sitting in a live workshop, or interacting with writers online, listening to interviews, or reading books full of writing tips, I always sense kindness from other writers.

Plus, writers come in all shapes and sizes. There are fiction writers, poets, novelists, and of course a slew of nonfiction writers. Some are heavy on the grammar. Others, not so much. Some consider their writing an art. Others view it as a livelihood. Some writers are solitary, shy, and withdrawn. Others are highly social, outgoing, and extroverted.

Exploring the writing community is fun and it can be exciting, especially when you meet other writers that you really connect with. And like all passionate people, writers generally love to talk about their passion and are glad to engage in conversations about grammar or swap writing tips.

Getting Involved

With the Internet, connecting with the writing community has become a snap. It may take awhile to find exactly the type of community you’re looking for, but rest assured, they’re out there. You can find writers blogging, hanging out in forums, and participating in community projects like NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month).

Looking for an offline writing community? Check with your community center to see if there are any local writing groups you can join. Book clubs are a great place to find other writers. One of the best places to meet and mix with writers is in a workshop or class, so see if any creative writing classes are offered at a nearby community college.

Whether you join a small writing community or start your own, you will reap incredible benefits and pleasures from mingling with other writers, and by simply being a writer, you are already part of the larger writing community, so why not get a little more involved?

You can always start by leaving a comment and sharing your own writing community experiences. Have you found a great online forum or are you looking for one? Did you ever participate in a workshop that changed the way you viewed your work? Do tell!

And keep on writing.