NOVEL: So You Want To Write A Novel?

You're contemplating the big story, the grand tome that will make your name, and add to the riches of literature. Here are some things to consider:

1. Have you got the right stuff? You're going to need and interest in the human race, as that is, 90% of the time, who you'll be writing about. A writer needs a profound interest in other people, how they cope, and what sort of person they are. A warm heart, or at least an inquisitive one, is what you'll need to foster when it comes to other people's lives.
   
   
2. Head Banging. Be prepared for good hard toil. Joseph Conrad described writing as 'A horrible exhausting struggle like a long painful illness'. F Scott Fitzgerald said that 'Writing is a painful business'. Writers, typically, will do anything rather than return to the desk, so you should have a real love for the craft before you set out.
   
   
3. Hello or Hamlet. The more you read the better, but don't get overwhelmed by 'great' writers. What you read filtrates into your work. You are what you read, so read widely.
   
   
4. A Great Idea. Inspiration comes from everywhere. Look in newspapers, draw on life experience, or just write about what you know. Use it as a starting point and let the imagination take over. Let the ideas brew and develop during long walks or some alone time in cafés.
   
   
5. Giving up the day job. Success in writing is a combination of luck and talent. You have to write for the love of it, and not to make money quick, because although you may make money, it won't be quick.
   
   
6. Think ahead, be new. Write your own thing, don't try to emulate what is popular now, as by the time you've finished it and it comes to be published, the fad may have passed. Also you'll want to develop your own style, your own USP, because that is why readers will come back for a second helping.
   
   
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   NOVEL is a regular series of posts looking the creating of the novel.
    Image: http://www.sxc.hu/profile/humusak2