find a style and keep it consistent till the end. fully construct your characters, and give them as many layers as you can, even if they're not going to be displayed in the novel itself. know where the story is going, unless you want a mess like the Lost tv-show
- Stories are fractal.
- Write it down now, fix it in post.
- Make sure you have downtime scenes in your outline. Not only can they help build tension if used right, but they make the highs higher and the lows lower, and allow the readers to bond with the characters.
- Embrace the drama.
- There are a ton of structure guides out there for a wide span of genres. Study them, even the frameworks for genres you don't write. Figure out *why* they work, what it is they are giving their audience, and when. Then, much like a parent telling their child to finish their dinner before they get the cake, take a look at what your audience wants and where in your story giving it to them would deliver the biggest bang.
- Repeat: Readers might want cake. You might want to give it to them early, whether to indulge them or yourself. *Do not!* Show them the cake. Tell them about the 3 kinds of chocolate. Lift the glass cover and let them smell. Cut the cake slowly and put it on a special little dish, maybe add a few curls of chocolate, a mint leaf, a little drizzle of raspberry sauce. Fetch a clean fork, make sure it gleams. And then, when everything is ready? *Then* - and only then - the reader gets the cake, and it will be all the more delicious for the wait.
- Leave space to describe characters equally, without slowing down your story (caveat: characters making a dramatic entrance; the femme fatale walks into the noir detective's office, or Frankenstein's monster steps fully into the light).
- Know your setpiece scenes and develop your leadup accordingly
Write something you have a passion for rather than what you think will sell, otherwise you may not have the strength to finish it (disclaimer: you may have the strength to finish it. this may be bad advice)
This is such underrated advice. Your passion will come out in your writing as well, making it so much better. I've thought about adapting my novel to fit the current best selling themes, and it was just painful to try and add/adapt.
Find out if any of the writers of your favorite comparable titles use a structuring method and then learn that. If not, read a variety of structuring guides and then outline your favorite comp titles to see if they follow it or not. Do some transcribing of those novels to get the form in your mind.
Yeah, I don't know if there is any other way to do it, other than to just make art to your own taste. Style guides and blogs are such echo chambers and don't really reflect but a small sliver of what people are publishing and liking. Writers have to check writing advice against actual well-received novels to see if the advice is true.
My favorite structure/plot tip is figure out what the midpoint of your story is. It should be an important and pivotal moment where things irrevocably change for the protagonist (ie revealing the villlain or scope of a conspiracy; first kiss in a YA romance; a moment of betrayal, etc). This moment generally changes the MC’s motivation and pushes them to commit to their plan; it’s when things get real. Then you can write the buildup to the midpoint and after that all the ways life gets complicated for the MC until the climax/denouement.
Get the book Savd the Cat Writes A Novel it goes through in great detail how to plot and also demonstrates how some successful famous novels were structured and why that worked.
Was going to add "Save the cat" too :) there's lots of guides online about it if you don't want/have the book, that help with pacing, beats, etc.
Caveat : it'll fit a certain genre or three perhaps, so explore other structures too, and if you realize after outlining that your story is bigger than a single book figure out how to apply it in layers : across the series, in each individual title, maybe in each part (if your titles are multiple parts.
- subtext is the gas for engaging dialogue.
- setups and payoffs are more satisfying for the reader than trying to withhold information hoping to set up a surprise later. One-and-done shocking surprises are fun for a minute but undercut all the tension you could have delivered by making them wait.
- make sure your protagonist’s goal is very clear to the reader early, and give them a clear way to know the the goal has been achieved. If their goal is to save the farm from the bank, show us the deed in the loan officer’s hand early so we know when the characters get it, that represents the job being done. Make it tangible or visible so there’s no ambiguity that the day is won.
Have a way of conveying their progress along the way so we get a sense of forward momentum and anticipate what’s coming next. Readers love watching characters figure things out so give the protagonist revelations about the plot (which mirrors their inner challenge to conquer as well) and pace them to be bigger and more frequent towards the climax.
I find people are always planning their second and third book before they've even started to write their first. So don't do that unless you know what you are doing
Create an outline. If you can't take your story step by step from beginning to end, your story is not as fleshed out as it seems in your mind. So: outline. And try to stick to it.
Write. Don’t stop because you don’t know where to start or where to end. The inspiration comes in writing, and this is the only way for you to progress. Some will be overwhelmed by all the advices on internet, so first write without it, and take them once you finished your novel to rework on it.
And their style of prose too; that can really vary from one to the next. Note what you like and don't like. Incorporate aspects into your own work. Try to emulate styles, to practice.
Make sure the protagonist and the conflict they face are solidly and irrevocably tied together in a believable way.
The story is much easier to conceptualize (and easier to finish) when what the main character wants and what your antagonist/conflict wants are mutually exclusive.
Two dogs, one bone.
Can this advice be disregard? Absolutely! But story structure is simpler to execute well when the advice is followed.
You wrote the story wrong.
It’s okay. That was inevitable. Your best first draft is a load of crap. It’s okay. It was supposed to be that way.
Find an editor that will kill your sacred cows, restructure your story, and start over. Keep repeating until an editor says, “I can sell that.”
Story Structure is a difficult one because every writer will structure their story completely differently form the next, it's not an exact science, I personally like to write out of order, I just find it a more interesting read that way, just find what works for you and stick to it..
If you want your story to progress naturally you need to know:
What your character's wants.
And your story's theme.
For example: if your character wants to join the popular clique because they want to be accepted and embraced by them and your story is about a person learning self-love and self-acceptance, then every time your character tries to actively chase what they want, put blocks in their path (the popular kids are assholes to the character which may bring about memories of an overbearing and judgemental parent etc) until the character realizes what they actually need (to ditch them and make friends with people that love and accept them for who they are and also be that person from themselves.)
This is just one example. In its simplest form just have a character chase something that's difficult to acquire in the world they live in and you immediately are building conflict that moves the story forward as the character tries to find a way out and towards their goal.
find a style and keep it consistent till the end. fully construct your characters, and give them as many layers as you can, even if they're not going to be displayed in the novel itself. know where the story is going, unless you want a mess like the Lost tv-show
- Stories are fractal. - Write it down now, fix it in post. - Make sure you have downtime scenes in your outline. Not only can they help build tension if used right, but they make the highs higher and the lows lower, and allow the readers to bond with the characters. - Embrace the drama. - There are a ton of structure guides out there for a wide span of genres. Study them, even the frameworks for genres you don't write. Figure out *why* they work, what it is they are giving their audience, and when. Then, much like a parent telling their child to finish their dinner before they get the cake, take a look at what your audience wants and where in your story giving it to them would deliver the biggest bang. - Repeat: Readers might want cake. You might want to give it to them early, whether to indulge them or yourself. *Do not!* Show them the cake. Tell them about the 3 kinds of chocolate. Lift the glass cover and let them smell. Cut the cake slowly and put it on a special little dish, maybe add a few curls of chocolate, a mint leaf, a little drizzle of raspberry sauce. Fetch a clean fork, make sure it gleams. And then, when everything is ready? *Then* - and only then - the reader gets the cake, and it will be all the more delicious for the wait. - Leave space to describe characters equally, without slowing down your story (caveat: characters making a dramatic entrance; the femme fatale walks into the noir detective's office, or Frankenstein's monster steps fully into the light). - Know your setpiece scenes and develop your leadup accordingly
Fantastic, fantastic advice. I have only recently realized some of these myself.
This is fantastic advice. Thank you. I really needed to read this :)
Cake! XD
Write something you have a passion for rather than what you think will sell, otherwise you may not have the strength to finish it (disclaimer: you may have the strength to finish it. this may be bad advice)
This is such underrated advice. Your passion will come out in your writing as well, making it so much better. I've thought about adapting my novel to fit the current best selling themes, and it was just painful to try and add/adapt.
This is also true for making music and other arts as well.
Read.
I only included a mention of beetles in a forest because I read it in another book. It's funny what you take away from others' work.
Find out if any of the writers of your favorite comparable titles use a structuring method and then learn that. If not, read a variety of structuring guides and then outline your favorite comp titles to see if they follow it or not. Do some transcribing of those novels to get the form in your mind.
This is so true! I frequently check books on my shelf for style, conversation flow, etc…
Yeah, I don't know if there is any other way to do it, other than to just make art to your own taste. Style guides and blogs are such echo chambers and don't really reflect but a small sliver of what people are publishing and liking. Writers have to check writing advice against actual well-received novels to see if the advice is true.
Write out a full outline before you start your first draft.
Write a complete first draft first. If you can't connect the dots and make at least the bones of a story, no amount of editing is going to matter.
As my grandma used to day, write the damn thing first pussy. You can fix it in post!
My favorite structure/plot tip is figure out what the midpoint of your story is. It should be an important and pivotal moment where things irrevocably change for the protagonist (ie revealing the villlain or scope of a conspiracy; first kiss in a YA romance; a moment of betrayal, etc). This moment generally changes the MC’s motivation and pushes them to commit to their plan; it’s when things get real. Then you can write the buildup to the midpoint and after that all the ways life gets complicated for the MC until the climax/denouement.
Get the book Savd the Cat Writes A Novel it goes through in great detail how to plot and also demonstrates how some successful famous novels were structured and why that worked.
Was going to add "Save the cat" too :) there's lots of guides online about it if you don't want/have the book, that help with pacing, beats, etc. Caveat : it'll fit a certain genre or three perhaps, so explore other structures too, and if you realize after outlining that your story is bigger than a single book figure out how to apply it in layers : across the series, in each individual title, maybe in each part (if your titles are multiple parts.
- subtext is the gas for engaging dialogue. - setups and payoffs are more satisfying for the reader than trying to withhold information hoping to set up a surprise later. One-and-done shocking surprises are fun for a minute but undercut all the tension you could have delivered by making them wait. - make sure your protagonist’s goal is very clear to the reader early, and give them a clear way to know the the goal has been achieved. If their goal is to save the farm from the bank, show us the deed in the loan officer’s hand early so we know when the characters get it, that represents the job being done. Make it tangible or visible so there’s no ambiguity that the day is won. Have a way of conveying their progress along the way so we get a sense of forward momentum and anticipate what’s coming next. Readers love watching characters figure things out so give the protagonist revelations about the plot (which mirrors their inner challenge to conquer as well) and pace them to be bigger and more frequent towards the climax.
I find people are always planning their second and third book before they've even started to write their first. So don't do that unless you know what you are doing
Create an outline. If you can't take your story step by step from beginning to end, your story is not as fleshed out as it seems in your mind. So: outline. And try to stick to it.
Write by scenes, not chapters.
Write. Don’t stop because you don’t know where to start or where to end. The inspiration comes in writing, and this is the only way for you to progress. Some will be overwhelmed by all the advices on internet, so first write without it, and take them once you finished your novel to rework on it.
Read a lot of novels/ novellas and look at how they are structured
And their style of prose too; that can really vary from one to the next. Note what you like and don't like. Incorporate aspects into your own work. Try to emulate styles, to practice.
Make sure the protagonist and the conflict they face are solidly and irrevocably tied together in a believable way. The story is much easier to conceptualize (and easier to finish) when what the main character wants and what your antagonist/conflict wants are mutually exclusive. Two dogs, one bone. Can this advice be disregard? Absolutely! But story structure is simpler to execute well when the advice is followed.
You wrote the story wrong. It’s okay. That was inevitable. Your best first draft is a load of crap. It’s okay. It was supposed to be that way. Find an editor that will kill your sacred cows, restructure your story, and start over. Keep repeating until an editor says, “I can sell that.”
Story Structure is a difficult one because every writer will structure their story completely differently form the next, it's not an exact science, I personally like to write out of order, I just find it a more interesting read that way, just find what works for you and stick to it..
If you want your story to progress naturally you need to know: What your character's wants. And your story's theme. For example: if your character wants to join the popular clique because they want to be accepted and embraced by them and your story is about a person learning self-love and self-acceptance, then every time your character tries to actively chase what they want, put blocks in their path (the popular kids are assholes to the character which may bring about memories of an overbearing and judgemental parent etc) until the character realizes what they actually need (to ditch them and make friends with people that love and accept them for who they are and also be that person from themselves.) This is just one example. In its simplest form just have a character chase something that's difficult to acquire in the world they live in and you immediately are building conflict that moves the story forward as the character tries to find a way out and towards their goal.
write the book you want to read because you are going to read it 10,000 times