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    Planning before Writing a Novel
    Planning before Writing a Novel
    Planning before Writing a Novel
    Ebook80 pages1 hour

    Planning before Writing a Novel

    By Shruti Chandra

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    About this ebook

    First-time fiction writers often get stuck in the middle of writing a novel mainly because they do not have an outline they can stick to. Outlining a novel before writing is essential for carrying on with a story of 80,000 words or more.

    This book includes ten questions after answering which you will be have the entire outline of your novel in front of you. You will have built your protagonist, antagonist, major characters, setting, plot, theme, narrative POV and genre of your novel.

    It will also help you to learn the art of visualization, polish your prose, keep yourself motivated throughout the writing and build the first scene of your book. Avoid writer’s block and obvious potholes; get a book under your name this time.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherNibiruki Books
    Release dateOct 18, 2012
    ISBN9781301956678
    Planning before Writing a Novel
    Author

    Shruti Chandra

    Shruti Chandra is the author of The Return to Beginnings, a novel. She has also authored many non-fiction books on fiction writing. She distributes her time between her reading, her daughter, and her writing.

    Read more from Shruti Chandra

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      Book preview

      Planning before Writing a Novel - Shruti Chandra

      Planning before Writing a Novel

      By Shruti Chandra

      Published by Shruti Chandra at Smashwords

      Copyright 2012 Shruti Chandra

      Table of Contents:

      Genre

      Theme

      Protagonist

      Antagonist

      Major Characters

      Setting

      Plot

      The Art of Visualization

      Narrative POV

      Writing your First Scene

      Get it down. Take chances. It may be bad, but it's the only way you can do anything really good.

      - William Faulkner

      Introduction:

      Writers need to come down from their pedestal and spell out the truth. I write for fame. I write for satisfaction. I write for praise. There are many reasons for writing a novel and all of them are worthy. Whatever is your goal, be proud of it. Write a book through which you can achieve it. Of course, writing in itself is a pleasure which is highly addictive.

      Another myth about writers is that they sit at their desk with a coffee mug (or drink), uncombed hair and all, and wait for inspiration. The Muse arrives and they begin to scribble, one page after another without thought, much like a typist being dictated. Anybody can put out twenty or thirty pages using this method, but they won’t be able to write a book, simply because books are not written that way. People who use this approach get stuck at some point during the creation of their book and abandon their work.

      Novel writing requires planning and thought before the actual writing begins. It does not sound exciting, but it can save you disappointments later. Your twenty page story can easily go on till the hundredth or two-hundredth page if you plan your book. Whatever efforts you exert in planning your book will save you effort in re-writing and editing after finishing writing it. For first time novelists, outlining their novel is highly recommended. It will help them in:

      Cutting down the writing-time of their book and making their first draft read better.

      Lessening the time they would spend in re-writes and edits after finishing writing their book.

      Getting freedom from writer’s block. You will be in control.

      The ten questions I have prepared for writers will help them in inventing and getting to know the characters, plot, setting, point of view, conflict, prose and theme of their book real quick. You may write the answers to the questions in a separate sheet so that when you are done, you will have the entire plan of your novel in front of you.

      You have been thinking of writing a novel. Forget fancy terms and author lingo. To write a novel, you need a story. You have the burning desire to write a story; you only need to know how. Answer these ten questions and you will have the outline of your story with talking characters, setting, plot and theme. It is no magic. These ten questions will create the skeleton of your book. It will help you to fill spaces where most first-time writers get stuck. People call it writer’s block, but it is nothing but lack of planning.

      Write down your answers on a separate page so that after you are done, you will have ten milestones for your novel.

      Genre

      Question 1: What do you want to write about?

      Pick one

      1. Romance

      2. Fantasy

      3. Action

      4. Science Fiction

      5. Adventure

      6. Satire

      7. Crime

      8. Literature

      9. Children's Fiction

      10. Young Adult Fiction

      11. Horror

      12. Mystery

      13. Historical Fiction

      14. Chic Lit

      15. Thriller

      16. Women's Fiction

      17. Comedy

      18. Graphic Novel

      19. Erotica

      20. Fan Fiction

      21. Gothic

      22. Tragedy

      23. Stream of consciousness

      24. War

      25. Realistic Fiction

      It's better to write about things you feel than about things you know about.

      - L. P. Hartley

      The genre you choose is explained below:

      1. Romance

      Your novel needs to focus on the romantic relationship between two people, usually of the opposite sex. It may have an optimistic ending where love finds fulfillment. Your main characters will be the hero and the heroine who will fall in love and struggle to make their relationship work. Conflict or friction can be due to internal (personality traits) or external (society, family, environment) factors. Romance can range from sweet to extremely hot.

      End Goal & Conflict

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