Many people, likely including you, are capable of writing the next novel that hits the bestseller list. Unfortunately, it is also true that most who have this ability never find out about it. Anybody can write, but it takes years of hard work to produce a masterpiece capable of placating the masses. This is not a how-to guide to finding inspiration, or even writing in the purest sense, but rather a guide to what you should and shouldn’t do when you’re crafting your next brilliant piece of art.
Keep it on the DL
First, always follow the rule of KISS — keep it simple, stupid. This refers to both your plot and your language. When you want to show off your language skills and smith up a few good 15-letter words, hold on: assess your character. Does the amazing synonym “pulchritudinous,” fit your poor, uneducated farmer, or should you just write “beautiful tree” instead? This isn’t a crossword, and the average American reads at about an eighth grade level. Consider this when you want to flash your feathers and you’ll be fine.
DIY reading
When you’ve found your inspiration, make sure your writing doesn’t read like an instruction set or a play. You don’t need to tell the reader everything down to body language and evil gazes unless they wouldn’t infer that with their imagination, in which case you should rewrite your novel anyways.
Give a rat’s…
The third rule is to actually care (And be passionate!) about the subject on which you’re writing. In this case, we’re talking about novels, but you need to care about anything you’re writing about, whether it be fiction or not. If you really only care about yourself, you can probably get away with writing an autobiographical novel, but that’s for another time.
Don’t be afraid of the delete key
When editing, ask yourself — for every sentence — if the subject at hand conveys a new meaning or shows something new about your character. If not, it’s gone. End of story.
But don’t overdo it, either
Preserve the structure of your novel when removing content. If a sentence is necessary for everything else to make sense, keep it! Or, better yet, move it into another sentence. That way you’re pruning while preserving, which is an art in itself, and the reason most authors have editors.
Get an editor
Whether they be paid or pro-bono, find somebody who will read over your novel and make changes necessary to making it great. Heck, have three or five or 20 editors. Either way, just find somebody who will give you an objective, third-party opinion about your novel and will improve it.
Whether you’re going to write now or later, keep this advice in your head like a nagging voice (after all, somebody has to tell you what you already know, or else you won’t follow it). Don’t be responsible for the next American flop; do be responsible for the next great book talked about on Oprah*!
* Yes, sometimes writers can make jokes, too.
