How Do I Even Start Writing?

Onions have layers. And so do books.

If you read my prior post from May, you’ll see that I started to tackle the most common question authors get asked, “How do you start to write?”

My prior blog post covers the basics, but I wanted to leverage my L&D brain to dive even deeper into the question, “How do you start to write?”   If you haven’t looked at the prior blog post, please do. It’s foundational to what I’m going to cover in this Part II blog.

What makes learning to write so challenging is that every single writer approaches it differently. What works for me may not work for you. This is the guidance that I was craving when I first started out. I’m creating it in hopes that someone else will find it useful as well.

Here are the steps I created to help me write my first book.  Keep in mind, I write Contemporary Romance. All my blogs are geared towards Romance only.

How to Start Your First Book – Megan’s Version

Step One: The Idea

The idea- This is the initial thought. I want to write a book about…….[insert idea here].

However, this idea usually captures the basics usually- the beginning and end. Or the beginning, something happens in the middle, and the end.

Example: I want to write a book about a girl who falls in love with a vampire.

Example: I want to write a book about a girl with an autoimmune condition that goes to dragon riding school and proves she’s badass and falls in love with a wing leader.

Now, the next step could be debated by my Pantser friends…. (which there are many of you) But I’d argue that most people need a little more direction beyond step one before beginning to write.

Panster Definition:  A writer who writes by the seat of their pants, letting emotion and characters lead the story instead of planning the whole story before writing.

Step Two: Establish Your Main Character’s Arc

Your character should grow from the first chapter to the last chapter… and I’m not talking about waist size.

• What did they learn?
• What did they overcome?
• How have they changed for the better?

Now, there’s several examples of how characters grow over time that is relatable to readers.

• Childhood trauma
• Divorce
• Self esteem issues

You’ll want to take some time and figure out what’s going on with your character. This is important to establish in the beginning, as it will inform how your character acts and what they say in the book.

For example, if the main female character’s dad abandoned her when she was five years old, she may fear that all men will abandon her. This affects how she approaches relationships, how she handles arguments with the opposite sex, and how she speaks which discloses her insecurities.

If you don’t establish the character arc in the beginning, it’ll make draft two a little more cumbersome as you re write dialogue and non verbal communication.

If you don’t establish the character arc at all, it will lessen the impact and emotional pull of the story for the reader.  And yes, that’s bad.

 

Step 3: Upending Expectations

Upending expectations is used to describe a sudden change or reversal of a situation.  Think plot twists. Step three prompts you to think about pivotal twists and turns that you want to put in your book. There could be one big one, or several small ones. Whatever your writer heart desires!

There are 3 ways to upend expectations

Revelation:

Imagine this: everything’s going smoothly, and then BAM! – a plot twist smacks you right in the face. This is where your character discovers they’ve been backstabbed. Maybe they find out that their best friend is actually their worst enemy, or the narrator suddenly realizes, “Oh wow, I’ve been an idiot this whole time!” and starts seeing the world through a new lens. (#RealityCheck)

Unexpected Consequences:

Your character walks into a scene thinking they’ve got everything under control, and then, surprise! The universe laughs, and things go sideways.  Take Priya for example. Priya writes anonymous love letters to her crush, Sam, hoping to capture his heart. However, Sam mistakenly believes his best friend, Sarah, is the sender and begins to fall for her. Priya’s heartfelt gesture inadvertently brings Sam and Sarah closer, leading to unexpected romantic complications.

Misdirection:

Misdirection is like the Houdini of plot twists. You make your readers believe everything’s wrapped up nice and pretty. Conflict resolved, right? Wrong! Just when they’re comfortable, you hit them with the truth bomb that flips everything upside down. Donna and Charley finally confess their love and get engaged, promising a happily-ever-after. However, Donna receives a letter revealing that Charley is the heir to the rival family’s fortune, sent to sabotage her family’s business. The revelation flips their romance upside down, leaving Donna to decide if she can forgive and trust him again.

Step 4:  Establish Environment & Timeframe

Now that we’ve established the fun stuff, here’s the not so fun, but just as important stuff to nail down.

• Where is your book located? Is it a small town? Big city? Exotic vacation town?
• What season is it? Is it summer, spring, fall, winter?
• What month is it? This isn’t always important in your story, but it’s good for your to orient yourself with from a planning perspective.
• What is the time span of your book? Are we following the main character over three months? Three years? This helps with pacing and moving the story along.

 

Step 5 – Interview your characters

If you haven’t already, you’ll learn soon that you’ll run out of things for your character to say or do if you don’t truly understand them, their personality, or their motives. It’s important to get to know your main characters (and some ancillary characters as well) so that you know how their mind works and what drives them. This will help inform how they approach conversations and different scenarios.

Questions to ask your characters:

What is the character’s motivation?

Can you trace back your characters to their youth.. Are they self aware?

What propelled them into the world that they are currently thriving or not thriving in?

What is character’s hopes and dreams?

What does your character think they deserve?

How has the character been treated in life? And why?

What are the character’s struggles/issues?

Does your character think life is hard or easy?

Do they make life look easy?

Do they feel awkward all the time and have trouble relating to people?

How much control does your character have? In their life? In society? Do they feel like they’ve been given the only direction and they can’t veer off? Or do the feel the freedom of changing directions?

How does class play into the characters?

Are they indoor people? Outdoor people? Extreme outdoorsman?

What drives them to risk their lives?

Do they play by the rules?

How much does your character compromise something they believe in order to get along with others?

What are the power structures that come to bare the character? Oppressed by heavy family structure, what the parents expect, power structures at work, power structures in society.

What is their belief on school? And the academic world? Trade school?

What do they value? Traveling nomad or white picket fence?

So, there you go!

This is what I wished I had when I started out writing. It helps answer the question, “How do I begin to write?”  The other part is, well, just writing. And if you check out my May blog post, you’ll see my Part I attempt to answer this question. Both blog posts combined should set any new writer on the write foot. haha.