How to write a novel...?

Ok lets’ get things right from the start, this is not a how to write a good novel blog, but all the little tips everyone had said that I had written down and thought I would share. Some of it may sound contradictory, some may sound way out there weird, but as I have come to know, every writer has their own way of writing and sharing part of your wisdom may help someone else.

First rule is to NEVER under any circumstances think your first draft is good enough for publishing. Nearly every author has said that the first draft is a throw away but a good starting point for your novel, story, blog etc.

First drafts can be written in a few minutes to a few decades. But if you have to think too hard about it then it’s time to put it away and let it develop in the back of your mind until you’re to tackle it again.

Be prepared to sit down with all your notes and literally cut and paste your story to make it flow well and help get those ‘creative juices’ flowing.

Inspiration comes from the corner shoe store down the road next to the mall….ok we know that it can come from anywhere, but as Jackie French said after having to answer that question repeatedly, it can be as small as a pattern that catches your eye to a big emotional event in your life. 

Getting a good editor is a great key to getting passed the tiny chance your piece may be picked up from the slush pile. Take your time when it comes to editing your own piece as well. Most times we can correct our own work if we take it slowly.

Do your research when it comes to publishing houses. Don’t send your piece to every publisher hoping one will pick it up. Pick a publisher that works with the type of novel you have written and make sure you answer their key selection criteria in the cover sheet. Most times that is the only chance you get to impress a publisher.

Remember the chances you’re going to make millions out of your novel are pretty slim, but not impossible. So it is important to either have a part time job or investments that can help you. (if only it was that easy)

To help you focus, going into a ‘lull’ and tuning out all outside white noise and distracting thoughts can help develop story lines, characters or ideas to whatever piece you want to write. (Most times these happen for me in the shower where I can’t just write down my ideas) A lull is a fantastic way of meditating for writers. It doesn’t require any awkward poses, or noisy chants, it is just you and your thoughts of creativeness. It’s a place that is personal and happens differently for every person but it is a fantastic way to tune out the world and have your creative world around you.

Your first novel will take 3 years and 3 days to write…3 days of you trying to start, getting frustrated, scrapping ideas, having bad habits of writing before actually starting to write coherently. The novel may only take you 12 months to write (less if you’re lucky), but then it goes to an editor, a publisher and then once you have made all the corrections you need to, then it gets published.

Your first novel will take 5-10 years to write…from the time you start writing your novel and you finish, then you edit and re-edit and re-edit again, then send it to a publisher and re-edit again the process can take up to 10 years

Now after all that information and advice who would really want to tackle writing a novel? Then answer….ME!!

I don’t care if it takes me 3 years and 3 days, 5 to 10 years or 20 years to write a novel, this is something I really want to do and after the writes festival weekend I have more inspiration to keep going with it and more support from the networks I made that I feel as though it is an achievable goal.

A womens' place

This seminar was at the end of a very feminine focused day that I had chosen and was most looking forward too. To have a panel of highly influential people discussing ‘A woman’s place’ lead by our own deputy Vice Chancellor, who all had their own personal experiences to draw on as to what they thought ‘A woman’s place’ was, could only be an influential session.

There were three panellist two were female and one male (who I thought was incredibly brave, but had a right to be there).  Professor Jane Long was leading the panel and gave a great introduction as to who these three panellists were and their roles they had done. Pen at the ready, I was ready to take as many notes as I could. With the exception of a few key ideas that were put forward I was really disappointed with the seminar. Professor Long asked a few questions here and there but then seems to sit back and let it get carried away with the dialogue and become more of a panellist herself rather than someone who was supposed to control the conversation and guide it in a way that was relevant.

The first panellist was amazing in all she had accomplished, especially when she was dominated by men in the work place and had to ‘prove’ her self-worth. I would have liked to have heard more about her story of breaking barriers (which she doesn’t see that she did but more so she just thinks that they came to accept her), and what she thought of for upcoming women scientists such as herself. The third panellist was the only male and raised a few good points of interest when it came to not only the males’ perspective, but where males are at a disadvantage and how the discrimination can be worse for men. However the second panellist dominated 80% of the seminar and while her accomplishes were great and she did raise a few interesting points of the new feminist movement that happened in the late 1990s, she  constantly had an opinion to everyone else point and would either interrupt others or keep talking with her own point once they were done.

In all honesty I lost interest about ¾ of the way through that the baby playing on the floor beside us became more interesting. At one point the mother started breast feeding and I thought to myself that this woman knows her place and she should be up there.

There was no control over the panel and as a deputy Vice chancellor I really expected her to have much better interview skills than she had. Overall the seminar I feel was nearly a complete waste of my time as the main thing I learnt was how NOT to conduct a panel interview, which as an undergraduate you already know how to do.