What system do you have with writing your novel?

Well, I am attempting my first novel. Motivation is great and I have written it in my mind. Just finding a system to actually write it, is hard.

How do people go about writing their novel? Do you write a certain amount per day, or once a week? Interested to read peoples replies

 

I've never attempted a novel, but I've put out a few short stories here, most of which have been well received. Reading other people's work, there are several elements worth mentioning. Who/what/where/when/why has to be given to the reader, one way or another. Persons in a dialog have to be defined to the reader. The dialogs that follow should be realistic and should portray things that would actually be said if the story were to come to life. The background information has to be grounded in fact and for that reason the author has to "write what you know" as Hemingway says.

Spelling and grammar have to be perfect unless you are intentionally writing in some dialect. If you're writing in dialect, you can't write in King's English. If you look at my work you'll see several cases of bad English (verb declension errors, double negatives) that are there because the person being portrayed would never use King's English. However, a lot of the contributors on this channel never learned King's English, and never will.

If you choose to write by making posts here and doing saves, be warned that the text editor in use here inserts random line feeds and often loses picture centering attributes. (I like to insert lots of pictures. My readers are TV generation, and asking them to read anything at all is quite a leap for most of them.)

Given all that, there still has to be a story line. My first effort, "Anacapa", had no story line to start with. It was going to be about a guy sitting on a beach, looking at the ocean, contemplating past, present and future. That's all well and good, but it's not a story. The reader will close the book (or web page) and turn on his TV.

So, I introduced a story line, something original, something that had never been attempted before. Boy meets girl. I tried to bring a family of whales into the story, but I don't know that I succeeded.

To do a complete novel, you might want to do something along the lines of not only developing a story line but keeping the reader in suspense, and adding surprise endings. That's beyond my capabilities at the moment.

For my postings, go to Writers Forum, find the Display Options dialog box at bottom. Select "From the Beginning", "Sort on Thread Starter", "Sort Order Ascending". Go to page 8 (March 2008) and look for Dirtydog.

Good luck.

 

I may attempt to write at the least one page (Microsoft Word Document) per day, if I am not focused on receiving an education, and I also believe that isolation from sources of distraction is beneficial, as well as the slight deprivation from something which I am attracted to. I will reward myself with something once I have completed the required minimum of writing for a specific period of time, in order to motivate myself.

 

I try to diversify my System, Template, Style and methods.

(i) I'll jot down / file and later come back to them at a time when I feel that my creative 'juices' seem right, (hence my file of notes!) then methodically sift/re-write passages and try to formulate either verse or tale from a different prospective.
(ii) I'll go out to a secluded location (Pad in hand) and when I find a comfortable location, try to write a short story in one 'session' (I can always refer such back to (i) if it's not quite right)
(iii) I'll sit in front of my P.C. and write and Save when inspiration rises
(iii)(a) Set a time to (as above) to write and Save
(iv) I have tried 'a Chapter a day' can be a constructive way to build up your essay.
By having different methods, 'I' find that if I am having trouble (bit of a mental block) I can switch, mix n' match and sometimes find a better way to convey my message.
Ultimately, you have to be comfortable and relaxed in communicating your thoughts, feelings and story-tale, or your message will get lost.
I believe that writing is a fantastic way to express imaginative thought provoking and understanding to others. To that end; although it’s not 'always' possible (we all get creatively frustrated) you should enjoy doing it.
You say you've the story in your mind, one suggestion would be to transpose them into short chapters. You can then re-visit, amend and link these up a cohesive story upon reflection, without trying to tie things together - as you go along(?)

Hope this has given you a couple of options to consider

<*Peace + Love ~ Save the Planet *>

 

I often find that writing things out by hand helps to flush out what you want to be in your novel, and later transcribe it on word. I tried writing a page or two a day on word, but I would just burn out after a day or two. When I write by hand, it get alot more done, and for some reason, at least for me, the story that is already in my head comes out fuller and even in more detail then what was in my head when I write.

 

I have always found that NOT trying a system works the best.

I tend to just write as it comes and don't even bother checking the spelling and grammer. After I have some sort of ending to the given segment, whether it is a paragraph or three pages, I THEN go back and edit it.

I feel like worrying about trying to fit things in flaws it. Obviously there will be inconsistancies and plot holes, but thats that editing is for.

I know one of my professors was one of those people who outline everything and make a chart with bullets. I think he even had notecards posted on a wall to make order out of things.

 

Well, I brainstorm and talking with some of my friends who are writers hoping to get an Idea I can roll with. Then I started writing, just let it follow. I probably sound like a hippie, but it works. Also, listening to bands like Linkin Park and Three Days grace or singers like Natasha Bedingfield help me too. But the key thing is to have a topic you can go with, not a forced one.

 

I have some kind of a weird anxiety about writing...probably because my dad is a fairly well-respected author and poet. His friends are mostly writers so I know many of the people in the Toronto literary scene and he's been bringing me to readings regularly as long as I can remember..
You'd think this would only encourage me...I do have my own independent opinions about all of their stuff but with anything I write, I've always felt really intimidated. My dad has the impression that some people's writing is pretentious or not so interesting, or that it's just too obvious...I'm often uncomfortable writing because I feel so incredibly pretentious.
I have to go back and edit every word when I only have one line written. I've got all this pressure to be brilliant or cutting-edge and I feel like whatever I write will be so below him. I mean, it's easy to just say to myself to write what I like but there are subconscious anxieties in it.
So, I very rarely show him my writing and sometimes I go as far as to have him not look through whatever book I'm reading; (not that there's any point...he's probably at least familiar with it already...) Whatever I write, he's already done.
This sounds really pessimistic and the clear solution would be to just get over it. But I dont know just how to do it.

That said, I do a lot of writing. I dont have a "system" per se.
On a simplistic level, I sometimes follow Kerouac's "spontaneous prose." I sit down, write till I feel like stopping and dont edit before I take a break.
Other times I try to be more conscious and less emotionally involved.

My dad gave me the advice: "The way to write a novel is to write one page; nd then write another page. When you've got a hundred pages, you have a novel."

 

dont be a pussy just write

 

What an eloquent way to put it.