I'm currently about 26k words into my first draft of my first novel. I really like the ideas I've been coming up with, I've been mostly discovering writing it based on just a core idea.

The problem I'm finding now is that because I chose at the start to write in first person past tense, there are certain limitations I feel like I'm running into, which maybe some more experienced writers could help me with.

At about 26k words in, I feel like I'm probably about half way through the story. I don't know how it's going to end yet, but I feel like where it's at now in the story it couldn't' possibly go on like this for another 60k words or so, to make it to an average novel length. Part of that problem is definitely the pacing being too fast, which I know I'll be able to slow down and fix in a revision to extend and flesh out what I've already written. But also I feel like the medium of first person is making me feel a bit stuck, as I can't jump into other characters, or tell stories that my character (who is inherently a little reclusive) isn't there to witness.

There's also only so much internal whining I think a reader could bear in this guy's head alone, fretting about his (quite severe) problems. I think I initially chose first person because I wanted to be in the characters head, and also maybe because for my first novel I thought that limitation would be helpful to not get too overwhelmed.

I guess I'm looking for advice on first person past tense writing in general. How to fill out a story and a world when seeing through just one person's limited perspective and how to create an interiority for them which doesn't get old fast.

After reading chekhov , dostoevsky I kept wondering did great , classic authors learn their craft? Did they need to read , study before writing how to create their style, how to put their ideas , what to focus on and their purpose of writing? Because I feel this is how my writing process is going so far

Or they just have to be very talented ? If not would like to hear examples of famous author's crafts

My particular problem is that I'll outline a scene, chapter, whatever, and then get BORED. I don't want to follow the outline anymore. Something in my head even goes as far to wonder, "Why write anything? I know how it ends." I'll completely drop the project for a while, then try to outline again, because I still can't follow the outline.

Does anyone else experience this? What do I do? I can't finish a damn thing. 😭

I have the typical information on the Copyright on the page, but I wanted to know if it's possible to indicate that if my work was used for "Training" purposes that would open them up to litigation? My work is already registered with the US Copyright office if that helps. I've looked at several places including Author's Guild, but no one mentions whether it's okay to say this.

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I'm curious about how other people go about the activity of writing. I'm hoping some of you are willing to share :).

Some things I'd love to know:

When do you write? Where do you sit? What do you listen to? What do you use to write? How long do you write for? How do you set the mood for writing? Etcetera etcetera.

Thank you!

I have started writing a book, and i have done about 8 pages. I edit it as i go instead of completing drafts, so i would say these pages are near enough good for me. Obviously i might go back to editing them if i feel i need to, but I want some opinions on it as i have never written a book before and because its my own work im unsure if i am bias towards it. I feel like i have a different way of writing to most people, and im worried if its not good i might waste my time writing the whole book. Although im worried to post it on here or anywhere incase it gets stolen. Anyone have any tips?

Hi. I’ve been working on my first book for about a year and I’m a little over two-thirds done with the first draft but I keep thinking about things I really want to change and I find myself look forward to the opportunity to change them. I know people always say to finish the first draft, reread it, and then start the second draft, but… how important is it really?

I have ADHD and I’m medicated, but I still have a hard time getting myself to sit down and actually write. I’m 65k into my first draft, so I’ve managed to write a good amount, but I get distracted so easily, even when medicated.

Does anyone have anything that helps them stay focused? All the advice is “sit down and write” but if you know anything about adhd and executive dysfunction, that’s not really how it works. I just want to write so bad, but I have a really hard time making myself. Any advice or thoughts?

I'm scrapping my first draft 40k words in, and it's fine.

I tend to get bogged down when I outline, and I've started taking the advice to just start writing, which has been working much better for me. I used to freeze at the outline stage, and giving myself the freedom to write something-- even if it's bad and ends up getting cut-- has been so helpful. I wrote 40k words in about two and a half weeks, even though I still hadn't worked out some very necessary details of the central mystery of my story, specifically involving character's motivations. Once I started writing, I decided pretty quickly that the details I had planned weren't working, but I couldn't figure out how to get my characters from here to there in a way that did. I kept writing, hoping I would figure it out as I went along.

While I stalled on the A storyline, I moved the B plot too quickly. Now that I've finally worked out how to execute the A story, I have to rewrite pretty much everything. The B plot needs to simmer for way longer, which means the first eleven chapters I've already written are almost entirely worthless now. A few passages here and there might end up working later on in the new draft, but the vast majority is going to end up in the trash.

This isn't actually unusual for my process. I don't really know what a story is until I start writing it. I have to live in the world for a bit, live with the characters, and once I do I usually end up scrapping a lot. So that's where I am now.

Luckily, I'm even more excited for the story now that I've figured out what it is, but I'm still not exactly looking forward to starting Chapter One again. Still, I'm motivated. I'm happy with what I've got planned now, and looking forward to the next 40,000 words.

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I've written for fun for a good few years, but I've always just started writing and took the story wherever it goes, and done little editing, revision, etc. so I'm very new to things like outlining, drafting, editing, revising, etc. So I'd really really appreciate tips on all of the above, but mostly on outlining. Thank you!

I have 47 poems that I wrote in a year-long poetry program that I took through a local university a couple years ago, as well as 25ish more that I've written since, both on my own and in workshops. Many of the poems have gone through several revisions based on peer feedback. Near the end of the program, I got a developmental editor who worked closely with me to edit my poems and even helped me to think about a good order for them if I wanted to try finding a publisher. Two individual poems have been published in magazines so far (I'm only sending out two or so a month). Even though I haven't had a lot of success with magazines and literary journals, time has been passing and I'm thinking of self-publishing a chapbook to showcase this body work. I get the sense that chapbooks are a bit of a way to get work out there quick and cheap, so I'm wondering how much more effort I should put into "perfecting" it.

How much editing do poets usually do for a chapbook, especially one they want to self-publish?

How do you know when editing is done and the chapbook, or any book of poetry, is ready to enter the world?

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Ok so due to ”life stuff“, I’ve just had 12 weeks away from writing.

I knew this gap was coming, so worked hard beforehand, and successfully completed the first draft of my novel before the break.

I then emailed it to myself, and have been re-reading and making extensive notes over the months (nearly 12k words of notes alone!) on my phone so I have now got a pretty good idea of what draft 2 will look like.

The question is: how to restart?!

Logically I’d start back at the beginning and do my reworks chronologically, but I know I’m bound to be rusty.

Other thoughts are; do I tackle one of the scenes I’m most excited about/have the most ideas about reworking? Or do I ”eat a frog 🐸” on day one and go for one of the scenes I know will be a bit trickier.

I am desperately excited to get going again; I just need to know how to build back up to it in the right way!

TL;DR - How does one go about resuming writing after a 3 month break without messing up existing work with the inevitable “rustiness”!

Thank you 🙂

There was a recent thread over at r/classicliterature that talked about those books that the sub’s readers considered their Holy Trinity.

However, as I was writing my response, I realized that there is a difference between those books that I enjoy reading vs. those books I am influenced by — as a writer.

For instance, I absolutely love Lonesome Dove as a reader. Incredible characters and very immersive. McMurtry makes everyday life seem so interesting and lived-in. However, I am not sure if that style would necessarily work for me as a writer. I feel the same way about Becky Chambers — her ‘hope-punk’ is a good read, but not quite what I want to write.

On the other hand, while I also enjoy Flannery O’Connor as a reader, I enjoy her far more as a writer. I feel the same way about McCarthy. His prose is incantatory and is a delight to read and listen to, but more than just reading it, I want to write like him.

I am sure most of us writers have had a wide variety of influences, and we all struggle to find our voice (at least those of us relatively new to writing). So, who are your influences?

I’d say generally I have a few that are core to my identity as a writer, plus a few others:

1. Ficciones by Jorge Luis Borges — by far some of the best stories ever written. They are mind bending and incredibly thought provoking. I find myself looking to Borges for twists and structural ideas in my writing.
2. Dune saga by Frank Herbert — such a fantastic treatise on civilization and single points of failure. I would in fact rate the last two books of the series much higher than the first. Herbert was brilliant — and as someone who wants to write more concept-driven SF, Herbert is my favorite.
3. On the third one, I’m torn between Moby Dick, so much by Faulkner, Morrison or others — but I would pick Blood Meridian by Cormac McCarthy. I’d say in many ways, Blood Meridian is the culmination of McCarthy’s attempts at incorporating Melville, Faulkner, Milton, KJV and many others. It’s a synthesis of all of those styles in a unique way.
4. And finally, I’d also add Emily Dickinson’s poetry to the list. Her ability to evoke visually and emotionally is unsurpassed in my opinion. Sylvia Plath would also be up there but if I had to pick one, Emily Dickinson.

Other influences:

• Andy Weir: When I first started writing SF, I really tried to lean into Andy Weir’s style for the sense of humor. But while it seems to work to an extent, it is not my natural home. But he’s certainly been an influence.
• Southern Gothic: This includes William Faulkner, Flannery O’Connor, and Cormac McCarthy amongst others. I went to grad school in Georgia and having family there has also greatly influenced my tastes. If I had to pick a favorite category, this would be it.
• Toni Morrison: Needs no explanation, but I would say that the oratory tradition that seems to permeate in Toni Morrison’s works has influenced me.
• Willa Cather: I enjoy writing the early pioneer life in the style of Willa Cather, particularly O Pioneers! and My Antonia.
• Larry McMurtry: I mentioned Lonesome Dove, but also his other books such as Horseman, Pass By and Comanche Moon. Much like McCarthy, he tells a specific kind of story and I think his first two books in the Thalia & Texas trilogy are underrated.
• Iain M. Banks: Grew up reading Banks and similar to Andy Weir, I enjoyed the combination of humor along with the world-building and the complexity of his worlds. But I am torn between how much of this I want to incorporate into my own writing.
• Jim Corbett: His Man Eaters of Kumaon and other books are a masterclass in an experienced outdoorsman dealing with wildlife attacks. Reading those books growing up has had an influence on how I think about writing wilderness situations. I’d also add both Redmond O’Hanlon and Barry Lopez to the list for similar reasons.
• Plenty of poets, but in addition to Dickinson and Plath, I would especially add Christina Rossetti, William Blake, and Charles Simic.
• Dan Simmons: The Hyperion Cantos being influenced by Chaucer is a structural model I find myself favoring. I'd also add The Great Book of Amber by Roger Zelazny, along with Lord of Light, as similar influences.

So who are your writing influences? Who are those authors you’d consider your Holy Trinity and beyond?

A professional editor (developmental) suggested I combine my two books (one a sequel using same main characters) into one book. Editor said traditional publishers rarely take series. But, wow, both are about 95,000 words. I'm afraid I'd lose a lot of character and plot by cutting so much. But I really want to be published. I remember reading that Bonnie Garmus (Lessons in Chemistry) cut 100,000 words. Do I prioritize my dream or acknowledge realities?

I am not a writer, but I had a dream to build a world and story back in 06. And only this year did I sit down and write it.
I'm doing my third pass but I keep finding things I want to tweak and it's bugging me. I want to submit it to an agent but I'm so critical of my own stuff I hesitate. It's been my "baby" for years in a way.

It's at about 140k words, which... Is a lot. And I'm periodically writing book 2. It's a big story big world and lots of stuff involved. I don't wanna send it off yet cause then it'd be set in stone if I forgot something.

What do you do in situations like that? Just go on with book 2? Or polish book 1 into oblivion like I'm apparently about to do.

Finished my novel at 55K words. Very happy with it, but one problem. It's too fast (and obv too short). All the beats are there, all the plot. Every sentence is advancing plot or character. When I read other novels, I read so much "mundane" stuff, like getting in a car, starting it up, things that I would selectively omit, just regular sentences that don't do anything important, but are part of a good story. Or at least a regular one.

Any advice for layering this in as I go through my draft? My brain is so wired for important lines that I feel self conscious "wasting" the readers time with trivial details, but feel my novel is lacking it. Thank you.

This might seem like a random question, but whenever I’m explaining to someone that I’m a writer or talking about my book, they often ask, “How long have you been writing it?”

This is a weirdly complex question for me because it really depends on what you define as “writing” and my “book.”

For context, I’m 17 right now, and I started my “book journey,” per se, around the time I was 13/14. I still have the same characters I did back then, but everything else was entirely different. It was a romance/mystery/coming-of-age type of thing, and my characters were really different, too. Now, my book is more of a political fantasy, so I wouldn’t really say it’s the same book because it doesn’t share any of the same plot, world, or themes.

I was writing that old version for maybe a year, and then I went through a super traumatic experience (my 5k chapter got deleted 💀), and I abandoned writing it for years. During that time, I did a lot of brainstorming, worldbuilding, and all of that, which eventually led me to my current book. I started actually writing the first draft about a year ago.

So, for me, I’m pretty unsure of how to answer this question. Maybe you have a more normal “start” date, but even then, do you count it from when you started actually putting pen to paper or when your brainstorming started happening?

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I've been thinking about this for a while, and thought it might be good to try and articulate this thought online...

Characters are simultaneously the most important aspect of storytelling, and notoriously the most difficult to write.

But, in a strange way, I think Dickens and King both have a similar way of approaching 'character', which makes their work incredibly powerful and captivating.

A lot of writers (including myself) build characters by hanging a set of idiosyncrasies, back stories, and internal contradictions onto a physical description of a person. That is to say, we may describe someone as wearing a suit and tie, with slicked back hair and polished shoes. Then add as dressing, a slow reveal of this character attending Harvard, wanting to spend more time with his kids, and secretly still picking his nose when no one's watching.

It's kind of a cookie cutter approach to sculpting character. It ticks the boxes but there's something missing.

The hypothetical character is fairly well drawn, but still feels intrinsically hollow.

What Dickens and King both do, is they embrace our natural propensity to stereotype. They lean into our innate, psychological predilection for making assumptions about people. When we first meet Bounderby in Hard Times we are told: "He was a rich man: banker, merchant, manufacturer, and what not... A man who was the bully of humility."

No immediate physical description, but everything we need to know: he is a caricature that we all recognise.

His journey through the book emphasises this stereotype in a way many authors are afraid to double down on. They almost feel ashamed of having created a caricature, and want to jump to adding in some complexity. This is ironically less compelling as it subverts our expectations before we even have expectations set. Bounderby is set up as such a tightly drawn cartoonish figure, that when we get a twist around his back story later in the novel, it is a genuine surprise.

King uses this same technique with ruthless efficiency. I'm currently reading the Mist and, as with many of his books, he is introducing a fairly substantial cast of characters trapped in the supermarket, all in quick succession. But within just a few pages we know instantly who they are; the rebellious motorcycle driving teenager, the prickly store manager, the prophetic older woman from the antiquary shop. In a way, we've all met these people before, in our own lives or in other stories.

Rather than fearing archetypes, both authors recognise that we automatically defer to them. And instead of creating an empty vessel comprised of physical traits to 'hang' quirks onto, they allow us to hang quirks onto a pre-existing (Jungian) archetype that already exists in the readers subconscious.

In this way the characters feel richer and deeper at their core. Whilst allowing their unique aspects to genuinely subvert our expectations around that archetype.

So i have a question regarding what types of writing apps people like.

For example, what type of app will you go for?

1. Free but limited (in features) writing / worldbuilding app
2. google docs and drive apps
3. Microsoft word
4. open source github writing apps
5. one time payment app that has everything you need (maybe 100+ dls, but its one time payment)
6. subscription based that is cheap per month (between 5-15 dls) and has everything you need
7. free apps (web or desktop) but to get more advance features you need to pay (example: world anvil and campfire)
8. desktop apps
9. web apps
10. apps (desktop or web) were you can collaborate with other writers or worldbuilders
11. a combination of the above?
12. i dont know what i might be missing

Thank you

EDIT: So yeah, after some feedback…I might’ve ended up doing the shitty fan thing of overreacting to people not liking a thing I enjoyed. And falling into the trap of not wanting to engage with any actual good faith criticism because it might feed into the overall internet hate machine brought up by charlatans like Critical Drinker and Lily Orchard.

I want to believe I’m someone who ultimately stands up for artistic expression and shows solidarity for a group of people that constantly gets thrown under the bus from society at large. Someone fighting against the bad faith actors and grifters poisoning the well of actual writing critique and good faith criticism.

But as so many of you pointed out, I have a habit of falling into the trap of conflating criticism made in earnest with jerks just shitting on something to get their kicks. Putting too much stock into what people who will never give my work a fair shake just because of who I am or people who would rather call someone a slur then fairly judge a work of fiction.

Ironically, I’m guilty of doing exactly what I criticized. Just like some jerk conflating a female character having basic competence with being ‘a Mary sue girlboss’, I conflated people giving actual fair criticism about stuff like Lanterns and Helluva Boss with guys like Heelsvsbabyface throwing a tantrum over pronouns in Starfield or the lunatics on tumblr who think Jason Aaron deserves to be stabbed for his Avengers run. It often felt like agree with any kind of point that remotely sounded like that would be conceding to their lunacy, bigotry and hatred.

So yeah, everything said below is coming from an amateur writer fearful that his work is going to get torn to shreds from people caught in the hyper-critical internet hate machine and still having a long ways to go to learn that most of the time, people don’t criticize out of hatred, but out of genuine love for writing as a craft. Not everyone is Ryan Kinel bitching about ‘too many good black people in Batman.’ Just people expressing themselves.

So yeah, take everything unbolded with a grain of salt and from someone who probably just needs to get back to writing his fun pulpy stories.

So I only learned about this kind of writing "criticism" from Solid JJ's newest video on the Lanterns finale (which finally made me unsubscribe from his channel, but I should've done that months ago since he's a channel making meme videos about comics that he admits that he doesn't read) and the top comment about that video was that this was a 'Themes & Such' ending.

So out of curiosity, I looked up what this was...and now I regret it because it's some of the most anti-intellectual and uncurious nonsense I have ever seen. Appearantly, it was first coined to shit on the ending of My Hero Academia (which, as an MHA fan who enjoys the ending, that opened a lot of wounds I have with the negative parts of the fanbase). And it's meant to basically make fun of works that...you know, actually have themes and writers sticking to the story they want to tell rather than what the fickle fanbase wants. Oh, and it's also meant to insult the people who like stories with themes.

Like...since when did a story having themes become worthy of mockery? When did an author sticking to their guns and not bending to fan pressure and fan expectations become something that's evil/frowned upon?

It reminds me of how creatives like James Gunn and Stephen King get mocked for having recurring themes, locations, and character archetypes in their stories. Are writers not allowed to have comfort zones or recurring elements? Are Furmanisms now just bad instead of charming?

Do we not want writers to be ambitious with their work anymore? Do we just want safe shit that appeals to the widest demographic? Do we not want to be challenged or made to feel uncomfortable with our media? I'd be genuinely curious to how these 'Themes & Such' guys would react to something like Hereditary or Fantastic Planet.

This kind of "criticism" bums me out because...well, I'm going to have themes in my stories and I plan on sticking to my guns about any story decisions I make. Because from Transformers to mainstream and indie comics and manga, I've seen authors butcher their stories because the fanbase screams at them and threatens to kill them, and I refuse to feed into that nightmare.

What do you guys think?

I am an aspiring author, I love to write and I always have since I was a little girl. My biggest dream is to become a traditionally published author, however I am currently in school to become a teacher.

I guess as much as I hate to admit it, teaching was a fallback for me. Some days I tell myself, "You are being smart." I tell myself this because becoming a traditionally published author happens to 1% of writers, and to be quite frank - I have never been apart of the 1% in any aspect of my life. I am not very smart, I eat like shit, I am terrible at maths and sciences, etc. I get by in all these areas in my life. But when it comes to writing, I feel maybe that is one thing I can do. Maybe even exceptionally.

I truly do believe that I am a talented writer, and that it is something that comes naturally to me. And for that reason, sometimes I wonder; am I being smart? or, am I scared?

I suppose what I am getting at is, do I have a chance? Even if I am unfamiliar with the publishing industry, with editing, even grammar in some areas. I have no mentor, nobody to ask.

I want to know if you think it is possible for someone who knows nothing other than that she loves to write and that she is good at it, if she could become a best selling author one day?

EDIT/UPDATE: Hi I just wanted to thank everyone so so much for commenting and getting back to me on this. I am trying to answer all the comments but there are so many! Thank you guys for all the support and advice! I am feeling so much better about my writing and my story!