Writing novels as a hobby

Writing novels

Anybody with a passion for words and storytelling can start making entertaining and deep stories. With the self publish online bookstores available (such as LULU.com ) you can publish and give away copies of your own book to friends and family.

Writing down stories is often challenging for most writers, and novels pose the greatest challenge due to their depth, length, and sheer chemistry of prose, style, voice, and characters than build from one chapter to the next.

Equipment Needed to Write a Novel

Most modern novelists use a computer and a word-processing software program, such as Microsoft Word to create their tomes. Most agents and editors currently accept submissions using Word only, though many still accept hard copy as well.

If the goal is publication on some level, then writing the novel on a computer or other word processing program is the safest option.

If a person doesn’t own a computer and has no interest in one, there are relatively inexpensive processing programs that are designed specifically for the person of writing. One can also purchase a flash-drive (also known commonly as a thumb drive) for a computer and use a computer and basic word processing program on a local public library computer.

How to Start:

Having a solid idea is one thing, but without the desire and determination, no idea is going to be enough to carry a novel through from beginning to end. Writing is a solitary art and requires the author to disconnect from the rest of the world, and family, for the time that he or she is working on the novel.

The first step in writing a novel is to eliminate any and all excuses from one’s vocabulary. Temptations will alight at every corner, and some will be enough to stop the novel before it’s even begun.

Set a schedule as though it’s for a job that pays every week. Don’t be late for your scheduled writing time and don’t cut out early.

If you plan on writing for fame and fortune, the process is going to become overwhelming and those long hours staring at a blank page will draw out like a long winter night with the power out. Then writing will truly begin to feel like work. And it shouldn’t.

The first pages may flow as smooth as silk, but this certainly won’t be the case for the entire novel, unless you are gifted and blessed. Writing is going to feel like work. Expect this in the beginning because if you don’t, then it will be tempting and appealing and almost seem justifiable to put off the writing work one day.

Excuses will kill a novel before it has a chance to breathe and grow. When you are aware of them, address them, and focus on them in the beginning, then you can head them off at the pass when you are into the heart of your novel.

By reading, both wonderful novels and terrible ones, a writer absorbs different styles, begins to learn about character, voice, tempo, rhythm, and all of the elements that make fiction work as an art form. There is no excuse for a writer to not read.

It’s not only important to read other novels, but also instructional books on how to write a novel, how to develop character, and all of the other aspects of good novel writing. By reading these types of books, one can garner a great deal of information on the basics. By reading everyday, whether it’s a newspaper, novel, memoir, or instructional book, for example, a writer builds his or her skills naturally.

The Process

A novel may have dozens of characters, multiple plot lines, and numerous scenes, all are moving toward one ultimate conclusion. A novel can also focus on few characters and one or two settings, but will also encompass a wide berth of tension.

When setting out to write a novel, an idea is generally the spark that ignites its birth. Some writing instructors will teach that the idea should be evolved and explored before the first sentence is written. Others will promote the notion that a novel should be a free-formed expression that the characters and the settings begin to evolve and light the way toward the conclusion, much as real-life is encountered. No one field of thought is right, nor is one better than the other. Experiment with your own approach to writing a novel, but if you have written short stories in the past for example, then you already have your method of writing determined.

Drafts:
Write your first draft with your heart. Write your second draft with your head. This is one of the age-old and tried and true bits of advice that is passed onto novelists for generations.

Novel writing is a process of drafts. No novel was ever created in its final form on the first draft.

Write the first draft of the novel without worrying about how it sounds. Put the idea down on paper, moving from one sentence to the next. Never, ever go back and read a sentence you wrote with the intention of editing. Don’t worry about how it scans and forget about typos or misspellings or grammatical faux-pas. That’s the work of the second draft.

When you commit to the first draft without worrying about editing, then the idea is giving free reign to run amuck and explore all of its glorious possibilities.

Some novelists have been known to generate ten, fifteen, or more drafts of their work, though these subsequent drafts are more like edits, fine-tuning characters, prose, and other dynamics. Once the first draft is complete, then it’s time to celebrate.

 When writing a novel, there are generally a thousand questions that come across the author’s mind. Some of the most common questions are as follows:

How long is a novel?

A novel consists of over 40,000 words. Anything less than that would fall into the characterization of a novella. Most modern novels range from between 60,000 and 100,000 words. For first time authors, anything over 100,000 words will make publication through traditional means much more difficult.

One shouldn’t begin to write a novel with a word count in mind. It should flow as naturally as possible and on the second draft, any issues or concerns with length can be addressed and changes made at that time.

What if my idea has already been written?

It doesn’t matter. Each person’s approach will be unique and that is what is important. Make sure that you don’t plagiarize, copy characters without permission of the original author, or steal passages from another author.

If you feel that your idea is too similar to another recent novel, or a classic, then allow the idea to ferment in your mind for some time. Odds are you will catch a new angle on and old idea and that will make it truly unique.

What are my publication options?
If you wish to become the next New York Times Bestselling author, then you will need to write incredibly well, and go through the traditional publishing houses, which can take years following the completion of the novel to bring it to print.

If you only want to write something for posterity, meaning you wish your friends and family to have a copy and don’t care too much about becoming the next Stephen King, then there are dozens of self-publishing and print-on-demand services that you can use to get your book into bound printed form.