Got an Idea? Turn it into a Novel in 30 Days or Less!
By Mark Barnes
People can’t believe I did it, but I did. I wrote my first novel, The League, in about 30 days. I never spent more than two hours on any given day, unless I wrote then went back to edit. I also found and signed with a publisher in one month. Friends, family, and colleagues are fascinated when I tell them this. It’s not possible, they say. Then, I enlighten them.
The secret to writing a novel is quite simple. You don’t have to be John Grisham or Danielle Steel, either. In fact, you really need just basic writing competence. Although I have years of experience in writing (I was a journalist for three years), I don’t consider myself on the level of the aforementioned novelists, in terms of style and eloquence. What I am is a storyteller. I look for ideas that are unique. I look for a niche. Take Grisham, for example. His niche is courtroom drama. He uses his experience as a lawyer, takes a new angle on a case, and turns it into some type of conspiracy that no one has considered.
Now, I don’t know how long it takes people like Grisham and Steel to pen their stories, but they too must be fairly quick, because they’re turning out novels at a crazy pace. Don’t forget, the publishing process is usually six months to a year. So, they obviously write a novel or two, while a prior work is being published and marketed. So, how do I churn out my own work so fast, you might ask? As I said, it’s actually quite simple. I start at the end and work my way backwards.
I get an idea in my head of how the story will end, and I outline a way to get there. This usually takes a few days, maybe 10 hours total. Then, I sit down at my computer and start typing. I let the words flow, rarely stopping, until about two hours have passed. Knowing where I have to wind up helps me develop my characters and conflicts along the way. I usually write the story in about 25 days and spend five days or so editing and revising. There you have it - a novel in 30 days.
You can do it too. All you need is the idea. Figure out your ending, sit down, and start typing.
Mark Barnes has published several how-to books on real estate finance, Internet business, and self-publishing. Recently, he has expanded his horizons into the fiction world, with his suspense-thriller, The League. Mark is currently working on his second novel, another sports-related suspense thriller. He resides in a suburb of Cleveland with his wife, Mollie and two small children.
SOURCE: Wordpreneur.com — How to Make Money Writing!
