Writing A Novel – writing is more than just words on a page.

Writing is More than Just Writing ………….. in the past weeks I’ve been writing my novel – at least trying to – putting some of the work in my notebooks onto the computer and writing some new scenes too, but I’ve been doing a lot of other things too, all of which are part of my novel writing process….

Thinking –I’ve been thinking hard, imagining myself inside the novel, thinking about the place, characters and story. Sometimes I do this when I’m out walking, or ironing(Ugh!) washing up, on a train, just sitting at my desk – anywhere. I do it deliberately in order to discover as much as possible about the past and the future of the novel I’m writing. I ask myself Questions eg What happened to Liv while she was Missing – living in London? I come up with ideas – I ask What If (what ifs are also very useful if you are stuck in the plot)– I give myself choices. I make decisions – although they may change later, it helps me move on. Sometimes I go out for say a walk as if I am my character and try to see things as he or she would eg Will sees country hedges as hiding places for the enemy

Continuous Editing – When I’m getting to know what I’ve written (in this case approx 6 Chapters) I usually end up reading it over several times (not always on the same day) and Micro Edit as I go. I listen for the music of the language, how it sounds, if it’s awkward. If the words are the best I can find. I cut phrases, words, descriptions if I’m in any doubt. I am much more ruthless now about cutting. When I’m using description I try often to marry it with the emotion of the character or the scene so the description enhances the atmosphere. I watch for continuity too. At the same time I am also Macro Editing – again this is continuous and I am asking myself questions all the time. Eg What is the novel really about? (this can definitely be fluid and changing) Is it working for the reader? What will make them keep wanting to read on? Has it got pace? Do I end most chapters on a hook of some kind – a place that makes the reader want to know what comes next (particularly relevant for crime). Is there atmosphere? Have I got distinct character voices – I think I probably need to do more work on this. If I’m not sure then writing a first person piece for each character can help. Is the form working are there other better ways, viewpoints, tenses etc to tell the story in? These are just some of the questions I ask myself.

Reading and Research – I’ve been reading soldiers accounts of the war in Afghanistan and I will be visiting the DLI Three Rifles in Afghanistan exhibition next week. I am also researching the Suffolk countryside. And whatever I read if I find something to admire in it then I ask myself how has the writer done this and what can I learn from this?

Planning and Briefing – I think it’s important to brief oneself as a writer so for instance when I finish Chapter 3 I open a new doc put Chapter 4 at the top and type up a few lines (no more than ten) on what will happen in that chapter. I also list scenes or chapters as they occur and try to always have a rough idea of the next 4 or 5 Chapters in mind – even though this may change!

And to my way of thinking all of these things are writing!