How to Write Fiction the Smart Way

Learning how to write fiction can be overwhelming at times: So many new things to discover, so many ideas bouncing around in your head, so many tasks to perform in the novel writing process.

Of course, these are the things that make writing fiction so exciting. But they can also bring you to a grinding halt.

Below are a couple of simple tips on how to write fiction without losing your sanity...

1. Work Smart

I'm sure that all of you have heard of this Chinese proverb: A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.

It's not bad advice. The journey in the case of writers is the planning and writing of a long work of fiction. And for that you need a map.

Fortunately, you have a great map - this website in general and, more specifically, the section on How to Write a Novel.

Study the map closely before you set out, and keep referring to it along the way. It truly tells you everything you need to know about how to write fiction that sells.

The single steps you take along the way - thousands and thousands of them - are like the individual work sessions you will spend at your writing desk...

• If you sit down to write and concentrate on one specific task - fleshing out a character, figuring out a plot twist, drafting a chapter - that will be one more step in the fiction writing journey behind you.
• If you try to do 100 things at once, you will simply become overwhelmed and won't achieve anything.

That is what I mean by working smart.

Sure, you sometimes need to spend a writing session looking at the "big picture" - how far you have come, what tasks you need to do next. This is like stopping to study the map.

For the most part, though, ignore the overall journey and concentrate on achieving just one small task today. It's amazing how they stack up over time.

Now for the second of my tips on how to write fiction the smart way...

2. Get Organized

Yes, I'm talking paperwork here. I know it isn't very romantic to say, but you should run your writing activities with the same care and precision you would give to a business.

Having said that, I totally appreciate that tidiness and organization come more naturally to some people than others.

Are you a tidy and organized person, or do you prefer to take a more laid-back approach to these things? Are your personal papers all in labelled folders and neatly filed away, or does everything just get shoved in a drawer along with whatever else happens to be in there?

Me, I'm from the neat-and-tidy school. I'm the kind of person who can't walk into a room without straightening a picture and rearranging the DVDs.

(I guess one of the reasons I got so interested in the theory of how to write fiction is that I have quite an analytical mind that needed to discover the rules of how novels are constructed.)

Now, it isn't my job to tell you how to live the rest of your life, but if you are serious about learning how to write fiction that sells, I would recommend that you be as organized as you can when it comes to writing your novel.

Specifically, I recommend that you have 2 files...

• The first file is for your planning notes: plot outline, character biographies, notes on theme, notes on setting, research notes. It won't be terribly full to start with. But as your novel grows in complexity, you will need to employ a good system of dividers.
• File number two is for the actual writing, with one division for each drafted chapter. Don't be tempted to scrap the planning notes as you write each chapter, because it is much easier to refer to those to jog your memory than wade through pages and pages of written prose.

So that is a snapshot of how I stay organized when writing a novel. And by the way, each file can be a real file from the stationery store or a virtual one on your computer - or both.

Speaking of computer files, you can always consider software for writers to make your job easier still. In fact, there are specially designed programs that are word processors just for creative writers...

• Not only does the word processing screen itself do away with all those buttons that writers never use (thus creating a more relaxing writing environment).
• But there are also special windows at the side where you can store all your notes and have them readily to hand as you write.

You can read more about this type of software in my Novel Writing Software Guide.

Back to the matter in hand...

If you are already the efficient type, you will no doubt cope perfectly well when writing your novel - and quite possibly by using a totally different method of organization to mine.

If efficiency isn't your long suit, I recommend you try to adopt a system similar to mine.

Having easily-accessible material is one way of helping you stay on top of your fiction. Bad organization leads to your fiction getting on top of you.

Next Step...

The final article in this section on how to become a writer is important.

Follow the advice in it and you will immediately place yourself head and shoulders above the competition.

Why? Because most students of how to write fiction are...

1. In too much of a rush
2. Quit too easily

Don't let this happen to you, not if you are serious about success.

The article is called Becoming a Writer Takes Time...