Six Pieces of Advice to Write Your Novel

I found this article on Writer's Digest and I thought it would be good to share for those preparing for NaNoWriMo

Source: http://www.writersdigest.com/editor-blogs/guide-to-literary-agents/how-to-write-your-first-novel-6-pieces-of-advice

1. The world has two sorts of writers: people who talk about writing a novel and people who actually do it. I spent several decades among the former and I have to tell you, it feels great finally to join the ranks of the latter. To paraphrase Nike, stop talking about it and just do it!

2. Write a mission statement … and contract. When I started Island Apart, my mission was to use the skills I had acquired writing food stories and cookbooks over the years; the publishing and media contacts I had accumulated; and the promotional savvy I learned from dozens of book tours (and being married to a publicist—more on that in a future blog) to start, write, and finish a publishable novel within a year. Note the words “start,” “finish,” “publishable,” and “within a year.” These dictated a course of action, goal, and deadline, which made me take the process seriously.

(What a movie can teach writers about how to start a story strong.)

3. The secret to writing a novel—or any book—is writing. You won’t turn out elegant prose every day. But it’s important to keep cranking it out. Bad writing eventually leads to good writing and paragraphs eventually add up to pages, chapters, and a finished novel.

4. There’s no one right way to write a novel. Some writers start with a plot (vague or meticulously planned); others use as their point of departure a phrase, character, situation, or moral dilemma. Some writers craft meticulous outlines before they start writing; others let the characters drive the story. Island Apart began as a title—not that title (more how and why it changed in a future blog). My original title was The Hermit of Chappaquiddickand the minute I had the title, I knew the who of my story (my protagonists) and the what (what would happen). What I didn’t know was how to get from the beginning to the denouement. Fortunately, I didn’t have to make the journey alone—I had the characters to guide me. They knew where they needed to go.

(Agents get specific and explain what kind of stories they’re looking for.)

5. Write with your eraser (or delete button). In the course of writing Island Apart, I jettisoned whole characters, situations, and chapters. I probably wrote 1000 pages of manuscript to wind up with a finished book of just under 300 pages. It hurt and I fought every deletion (my wife was a ruthless editor), but the final book is better for all the cuts.

6. Take the time to celebrate the milestones in your writing process. When you finish a chapter, take yourself and significant other out for dinner. When you finish the first draft, uncork a bottle of Champagne. (Not prosecco, real Champagne.) I timed the completion of the first draft to coincide with my birthday. I made a great ceremony of typing the words “The end” just before my birthday dinner. I also took the time to make a sententious speech to my children about the value of setting goals and working hard. I’m sure the latter went in one ear and out the other, but it sure made me feel good.

GIV

The Mortal Instruments by Cassandra Clare

So, because half of the people I know kept telling me to read The Mortal Instruments series by Cassandra Clare, I decided to give it a try, but what I discovered, and I have known this for a while but this series really proved it to me was that everyone has different reading tastes and not everyone will think the same about a book series.



When fifteen-year-old Clary Fray heads out to the Pandemonium Club in New York City, she hardly expects to witness a murder -- much less a murder committed by three teenagers covered with strange tattoos and brandishing bizarre weapons. Then the body disappears into thin air. It's hard to call the police when the murderers are invisible to everyone else and when there is nothing -- not even a smear of blood -- to show that a boy has died. Or was he a boy?

This is Clary's first meeting with the Shadowhunters, warriors dedicated to ridding the earth of demons. It's also her first encounter with Jace, a Shadowhunter who looks a little like an angel and acts a lot like a jerk. Within twenty-four hours Clary is pulled into Jace's world with a vengeance, when her mother disappears and Clary herself is attacked by a demon. But why would demons be interested in ordinary mundanes like Clary and her mother? And how did Clary suddenly get the Sight? The Shadowhunters would like to know. . . . 

Now the books have a good plot, but I found the writing to dull. Now the fact that this is being made into a movie and becoming the next franchise, I don't even think I want to see the movie. One reason I was so disturbed by the series is because in book one, Jace and Clary have romantic feelings for each other just to find out they are brother and sister. It turns out in book three they aren't related but because of that revelation is the reason most of my friends turned away from the book. I think another one of the reasons I don't really get a kick out of the books is because I know about what Cassandra did in the Harry Potter fandom. But if you read the details closely, you can see where her main characters are pretty similar to the Harry Potter characters, but you can see how it has the essence of Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter, and Buffy the Vampire Slayer. It is so clear she is trying to copy Rowling but really folks, no one will ever be like J.K Rowling.

I wasn't too impressed with this series, and I HAVE read way better books that deal with angels than her books, and after finding out from a friend what happens to Clary in book five, I can safely say I don't think I will read the rest of the books in this series. This book didn't even have much angel elements which made me very sad. I am also shocked this "stuff" is being turned into a movie. From what I heard, since I didn't like her The Mortal Instruments, I've been told I would get a better liking to her other trilogy The Infernal Devices, we will have to wait and see just how much I like that series.

2011 Worlds Championships Women's Team Final

In 2010 Russia was the team to beat. Now Team USA is the one to beat in gymnastics. Team USA swiped the gold medal leaving Russia with the silver. Congrats Team USA