STEP TWO: WRITING THE NOVEL

There is only one task here: write a complete draft of a novel. This can be easy or difficult and will be both. It will certainly be challenging. Ultimately, it is what you make it.

It is more akin to running a cross-country marathon than simply running so many laps around a track. Think of all the planning work you did as training for the marathon. It will certainly help, but still you must deal with each leg of the marathon as you encounter it. The emotional terrain you will be required to navigate will vary and will be the major obstacle.

At the outset you are standing on a hill, looking down over the course to come. You have planned. You have prepared. You believe in what you are about to do. It looks manageable. You know you will succeed. You have a clarity of vision that makes you sure of that.

Once you start down the hill you find yourself lost in a dense forest, the trail obscure at times. You will not always be sure of yourself, of the direction you are going in. You will have to use your wits, your map and compass (notes), your intuition. You will be tempted to give up. You will become convinced you are a fool and should never have gotten yourself into this mess in the first place. You will know for a fact that you are a failure and will never succeed at this or anything. You may even stop for a time, "to rest" you will tell yourself, but you will know you are privately considering giving up the race.

Then somewhere, deep down inside, you will find the courage to go on. You will go on. In time, you will know the finish line is not far. Eventually you will actually be able to see it. You will regain your grace, your coordination, and approach it with renewed hope. Maybe you aren't such a fool after all.

When you cross that line, you may collapse in a heap on the ground and sing "Glory, Hallelujah!". Or you may smile smugly and say you knew all along you could do it and you never doubted yourself. Either way, you will know you were challenged. What you have accomplished is one of the most difficult things anyone could ever try to do. And yet you have done it. You have crossed the finish line. You are a winner.

KEY IDEAS

Below are some key ideas to bear in mind while you write. Ideas that can help you keep a proper perspective. Ideas that can help you through some of the misery. Never forget these ideas:

This is a job like any other, or at least you can approach it like one.

Be professional in your work and your attitude toward your work.

Work hard, produce quality results within a reasonable timeframe.

How things may SEEM is not necessarily how things ARE: let the doubts come and go and don't give in to them.

Remember the beginning when you knew your idea was a good one. It still is.

Break the large task down into a series of small steps. Take it one step at a time.

Step back to see the larger picture when needed. If you can't find it, use your notes.

Allow yourself a short break from time to time, then get back to work.

Each time you sit down to write, establish a clear goal for that session's work.

Each time you wind up a session of writing, establish a clear goal for next time.

Remember the Fundamentals of Scene and Story (see later posting).

Keep it simple. It may be vastly complicated, but keep it simple.

Establish weekly goals, a timeline for progress. reward yourself at key points.

Do not expect everything you write to be perfect the first time you write it.

Focus more on the overall story. You can change the exact wording later.

Keep moving forward. Try not to go back over what you have already written.

Be gentle with yourself.

You CAN do it. Of course you can.

DON'T GIVE IN TO YOUR FEARS!

There are two great FEARS that can halt your progress. You must overcome these fears. Do so now. Quickly. Resolve never to give in to them.

FEAR #1: You're not any good.

Bullshit. Yes, you are good. You are capable. You had a great idea. It inspired you. You explored it, evaluated it, determined that it was a good idea, and then developed it in detail. You knew going into this that you had a good idea. And yes, you have known all your life, deep down inside, no matter what, that you are a good person, a capable person. You deserve to have your dream come true. Don't waste any time questioning this, doubting this, or wishing it were so. It is so. And, you can write. If there is something wrong or inadequate in your writing, you are wise enough to seek help, to learn something new, to improve. You can find help in online forums, in articles and books, from writing friends, classes, groups and teachers. But don't doubt yourself. Don't give in to self-doubt. Stop it cold and continue on your way. You have important work to do.

FEAR #2: What you have written is pure crap.

Bullshit. Not, it's not crap. It's good stuff. It may be much better than you realize. Sometimes we think it's garbage, yet if we put it aside and "rediscover" it months or years later, we may be surprised at how good it was, and wonder why we ever stopped writing it. Don't expect what you write to be perfect the first time. Writing is a process of layering, of building up a finished product through step after step of planning, writing, editing, rewriting, editing, rewriting, editing, editing, editing, editing, editing, and more editing. Start with something, and "grow" it from there. Plant the seeds in your first draft and watch as they develop into something damned good by the time you are done.

Another writer shared this quote, which I have found very helpful in overcoming debilitating perfectionism. I don't remember the writer or the book where I read it, but I remember the quote:

DON'T GET IT RIGHT: GET IT WRITTEN!

COURAGE

In addition to overcoming these two fears, there is one quality which you must cultivate in yourself: COURAGE. It takes a lot of courage to try to write a novel. It takes even more courage to succeed in finishing one. Be brave. Grab the bull by the horns and don't let go. Stare back at it with a look that says, "I'm not going to budge. I'm doing this. I'm going to do a damned good job of it, too. I have what it takes. I know I do. And now I'm doing it. I'm doing what I have always dreamed of. I'm writing a novel. A damned good novel....when it's finished."

Put the world on hold when you write. Don't answer the phone. Don't let anything distract you. Focus all your attention on your writing. Write wherever and whenever it pleases you, but establish a pattern, a routine. Try to write every day. The more often you write, the easier it will be to get into the story each time. The less time you will waste rereading what you have already written in order to get into the proper mindset. Condition yourself to get to work quickly. Think about your story. Carry it with you. Keep it fresh in your mind. Never let it get stale. Don't become obsessed with it, but be ever mindful of it. It's something very important and needs constant nurturing, constant care. Don't talk about it. Write it. Anything that would get in the way, set it aside, clear your mind, remember your purpose, your current specific goal, and get to work. External distractions, internal frustrations, whatever the source. Let nothing stop you. You must keep writing.

WRITERS' BLOCK

And, finally, a comment on that terrible disease that some writers get: writers' block. There are two main causes. One is just being tired, worn out, emotionally and creatively drained. If that's the case, take a break. Read a novel, a short story, something for fun. Something that inspires you. Read about the process of writing. Go outside and do something for fun, for recreation. Sleep. Eat. Socialize. As soon as you are ready, get back to work.

The other cause, in my experience, is more common: you don't know what to write next and so you freeze up and stop writing. Almost always, this is because in order to decide what to write next, you have to answer some deeper story questions, then use those decisions to guide you in selecting what to write next. Sometimes we know there is something we haven't decided yet, but we write on anyway, knowing we can sort it out later. That's fine, but eventually the "later" comes around. If you don't know what to write next, write down a short list of questions you have. What exactly do you need to know about your story, characters, or your characters' back story, in order to make a decision about what to write next? What other things do you have to figure out about your story? Your list might be three to six items long, give or take. Writing the questions down really helps. It makes them more concrete, reduces them to something specific. Sometimes it's almost painful to think of them, because you know to answer them you will have to do some serious reflecting about the story and how you want it to go, how it should turn out. Just do your best. Evaluate the options. Write a paragraph exploring each one. Then, choose the best direction for your story. Answer your unanswered questions, and almost always this will help set you on the right track toward answering your current question and determining what to write next.

Most importantly, no matter what you think, how you feel, what anybody says:

KEEP WRITING!

Don't stop until the entire draft is finished. You will learn a lot in the process and you will use that information to guide you in editing and/or rewriting. You need the WHOLE draft. So do it. Do it now. And keep at it. Until you are done.

YOU CAN DO IT!