Almost everyone I know has a story idea that grips them and doesn’t want to let go. The studies even show that this is a huge bucket list item for many people, but book writing is hard – and getting started is even harder. Whether you are writing a short story or are interested in novel writing, you need to know how to start writing a novel as a beginner.
Fortunately, the writing process doesn’t have to be as complex as we often make it out to be.
What are the first steps you should take to get your story structure onto the page?
Here is what I’ve learned the hard way after more than a decade of creative writing under my belt.
1. Understand WHY You Write
Fiction writing is a bit trickier to pinpoint what you hope to get out of the writing process compared to nonfiction writing. But there is something to be said for knowing why you absolutely must tell the story in your heart. This writing tip might seem a bit unrelated to capturing words on the page, but I promise you it’s worth a half-hour of your time at the beginning of your story.
Why does this step matter?
Because if you don’t know why you’re writing, you will never be able to stick with it to see it through. The reason you are writing this story should be to share something very specific with the world and your ideal reader. It isn’t just about the plot points. It’s about the level deep beneath the surface. This is what compels you to keep writing, even as it gets harder to do so in the mucky middle of a long story.
Action Item: Write a single page about why this story matters to you, print it out, and pin it to the wall by your writing space.
2. Schedule Your Writing Time
Unfortunately, there are no easy novel writing tips that don’t involve some variation on this theme: you need to have time set aside to write. Your main character can’t come into being on the page without the space to come alive. You’ll never be able to put that plot point into writing if you don’t have time to sit down.
This is where you have to start thinking about whether your why matters enough for you to sacrifice your time to put it on the page.
Most professional writers will tell you some variation on the idea that you should write every day. I don’t necessarily ascribe to this theory, but I do think there’s something very important about writing as regularly as you can. Your schedule should have time built into it for you to work on character development, capturing your plot points, and all of the activities that go along with being a writer.
Even if you can only work on your book two days a week, be generous with your time and give it to your characters. As you write more and more often, you may feel writers block disappear and your writing journey will evolve over time.
Action Item: Look at your schedule, hour by hour. Be honest about where you can carve out time to practice your story writing. If you only have thirty minutes, set a timer and just get started. Good luck!
3. Stop Editing As You Go
One of the cardinal sins of the beginning writer is that they feel their words have to be perfect the first time they put them on the page. Before you send your pages out to a literary agent, you absolutely should go over your debut novel with an eagle eye for plot holes, grammar, syntax, and all of those fun things. But now is not the time for editing to take over your work.
Imagine the scenario that plays out for many an aspiring writer: You spent yesterday writing 500 words. When you sit down today, you read over what you wrote yesterday and start tinkering with it. A word changes here and there, but before you know it, your entire writing block is over and you have no new words to show for it.
Let your writing session be for just that: writing.
You can’t write a great novel if you never put words on the page. Get it all out and only then should you come back to editing it.
Action Item: Take that good idea you have and write forward. Don’t look back at what you wrote yesterday. Just dive into where you want to write today.
4. Do the Hard Work of Plotting
This is going to be a controversial issue, even among experienced authors. It’s hard work to wrap your mind around an entire story from the start. A beginner writer will often claim that they fall into the category of a pantser (someone who writes by the seat of their pants). They might call themselves a discovery writer and intuitive writer.
But I would argue that your writing session will be far more productive if you have an idea of where you want to go.
I recommend following Jennie Nash’s Inside Outline where you can marry the plot point to the actual point of how it relates to your story. All of this work frames your story from the beginning and helps you to see if a good idea is going to hold together as you write forward. If this seems like too much work, I would recommend at least doing some pre-writing.
I believe this concept originated in Rachel Aaron’s book 2K to 10K but it’s talked about extensively on the #AmWriting podcast too. Prewriting allows you to capture the essence of what you want to say in a single writing session and can help you to get more words on paper.
Action Item: Jot down an idea of where you want to go in your next writing session. This can include what happens, why it happens, what your character learns, bits of dialogue – anything that helps you write faster and better.
5. Don’t Set Word Count Goals
Especially if you’re going to be pursuing traditional publishing, you might want to think about how many words your story will be at its completion. However, this can sometimes be unpredictable to measure which leads to frustration. Some days, your words might flow and you might find that 2,000 words come out in an hour.
On other days, it might take you two hours to write 500 words on a challenging scene.
This is part of the challenge when you start writing as a beginner. Progress can be hard to measure.
Instead of thinking about how many words you’re committing to the page, focus on your schedule. If you have been following along with the action items found here, then you know when you can schedule time. Make goals that you can measure:
- I will work for one hour on this scene.
- I will spend two hours plotting.
- I will spend thirty minutes doing pre-writing for tomorrow.
The time spent on a scene is measurable and totally within your control whereas the number of words you write may not be. If you miss your goal because you run out of time, you might try to convince yourself that you aren’t a good writer – which is so far from the truth!
Action Item: Come up with measurable goals that will help you move ahead on your story.
6. Get Some Accountability
It’s very easy for writers to shrug off the hard work of doing the writing, especially if you have other responsibilities. Writing is often the first thing on the chopping block when something more important comes up, which is why you need someone to hold you accountable for getting those words down.
This is where a writing group can come into play.
If you know that you have a group of people who expect you to reveal three new pages of material or a certain number of words or whatever limit you set, you are more likely to get those words down on the page. As an aspiring author, this is one of the best ways to get more done. The social impact of not getting it done is embarrassing, so you’ll be more inclined to stick with it.
Some people may object: I don’t have any writer friends! Then register for a local writing class that forces you to turn in pages for workshops. Get a beta reader to read through your early pages. Surely, you at least know someone who loves to read, even if they aren’t a writer themselves.
Not only does this hold you accountable, but it can help you clearly identify if you’re hitting the character arc you need. Their insight can be invaluable for those who start writing as a beginner.
Action Item: Find a group of people or a beta reader who can help hold you accountable for getting new pages out on a regular schedule.
7. Find a Writing Space
This final tip is a little less about writing skill and more about the actual act of writing. You need a space that signals to your brain that it’s time to slip back into your story. This doesn’t necessarily mean you need a home office or a spot in a coworking space (but it could, if that suits you).
Simplify things for yourself and have a designated space for your writing: a seat at the dining room table different from the one you eat in, a corner of your living room, or a special chair. It can be completely free to find a space that suits you or you can invest in some small items that make it feel cozier like better lighting, a larger desk, and a scented candle that’s meant to inspire you.
Stephen King talks about writing with the door closed and this can be ideal. It’s a physical way of saying that your work isn’t up for debate right now. When someone sees you in your writing nook, they know not to bother you because you’re doing work that matters deeply to you. They aren’t invited to read over your shoulder or to interrupt.
If you can find a place where you can physically shut the door, so much the better. If not, let everyone in your family know that you’re not to be disturbed when you enter your writing space.
Action Item: Find a place in your home where you can write without interruption. Add a few small touches that spark your creativity and make it feel cozy.
How to Start Writing as a Beginner
This final note isn’t necessarily a writing tip to help you, but it’s the truth: you can only be an aspiring writer if you actually start to write. Harry Potter was written in J.K. Rowling’s free time around her full-time job. There is no reason why you can’t do the same until you have a debut novel (or a second or third novel) cobbled together.
Take action today to get your words on the page.
If you’re ready for a new challenge, join me on the 90-Day Novel challenge. I’m sending out a sneak peek of what I’ve been working on in my Substack newsletter on Sunday, so be sure to sign up here to get the first glimpse of it as either a free or a paid subscriber!