Whether you’re a published author or simply a budding creative, it’s always nice to have some indication of how others handled similar situations in the past. Knowing what worked and what didn’t is extremely helpful as you push forward with your writing career. In this article, we’re going to delve into the topic of “how to write a novel in 30 days.” We’ll cover what type of beginnings you need, what tools you will need in order to succeed, as well as some of the pitfalls to avoid.
Start With A Plan
As we’ve established, whether you decide to write a novel or not, you need to have something to write about. What type of story do you want to tell? Do you have a strong main character you’d like to introduce to the world? What challenges does your MC face, both physically and mentally? All of these questions should be answered before you start writing a word. Without these crucial building blocks, you’ll likely find yourself floundering around in the thick of things and likely never finish the project. Writing is a very creative process, and like any other creative process, it needs to be approached with a plan in mind. Otherwise, you’ll likely find yourself swimming in a sea of red ink and unable to escape.
Use Short Stories
As we’ve established, writing a novel in 30 days is an impossible task. Even for those who attempt it, it’s incredibly difficult to pull off. Why? It’s because a novel is, generally, far longer than a short story. Ideally, you should write a novella, something in the neighborhood of 20,000 words. It’s a challenging length, which requires significant research and planning, in order to create something worthwhile. It’s too much for most people to handle in just 30 days. Even those who attempt it, don’t usually complete a novel in that amount of time. For those who do, it’s generally considered a great achievement.
Use An Outline
An outline is a rough plan of the story to be told. It should be comprehensive, covering almost every aspect of the story. On a classic outline, you would write the following:
- Prologue
- Chapter 1
- Chapter 2
- Chapter 3
- Chapter 4
- Chapter 5
- Chapter 6
- Chapter 7
- Chapter 8
- Chapter 9
- Chapter 10
- Chapter 11
- Chapter 12
- Epilogue
This is not a narrative outline; this is simply an outline of the major events that will take place in the story. It should be concise, but it should not be too tight or too wide. One of the great things about outlines is that they force you to be very specific about exactly what needs to happen in your story. Being too vague could result in a lot of rewriting and possibly even the loss of a lot of valuable time.
The Need For Research
Creative writing is all about presenting your observations and feelings about a certain topic. If you intend to write something based on reality, then you need to become an expert in your chosen field. In today’s world, a staggering amount of information can be found online. If you’re looking for a particular fact or statistics, you can likely find them at the click of a button. The challenge, however, is in interpreting and using these facts and figures to your advantage. One of the great things about outlines is that they provide you with a comprehensive roadmap for your research. Before you start writing, take the time to do extensive research. Be sure to look at everything from historical documents to scientific articles and published works. Being on the Internet is great for finding facts and figures, but it’s not always the most efficient or the simplest way to find the information you need. There are several ways to find the sources of information you need, whether you need something based on reality or you just want to make something up.
The Need For Revision
Once you’ve finished writing a novel (or any other form of written work, for that matter), you’re going to want to revise it. If you’re serious about writing, you can’t set the final product down and never look at it again. This is why revision is so critical. Even those who attempt to write a novel in 30 days frequently find themselves floundering around in the creative process. Because they don’t have the time to properly revise, they rush the whole thing and end up with something that’s less than complete. In today’s world, revision can be a tedious task, and it often requires a great deal of time. However, the effort is definitely worth it. After you’ve gone through the arduous process of revising, you can finally set the book down and be confident it’s finished.