How Do You Start Writing A Book?

  

Most of us dive right in with an idea we feel is the most compelling to begin a story. We will often think of a scenario, a concept, or perhaps just a sentence that could draw the attention of a potential reader. We might then make it to a chapter or two before we inevitably run out of steam and wonder where this piece of writing is headed.

You may feel tempted to keep writing without any kind of a plan.

Sometimes that seems like the right thing to do because we feel so good about the new reality we are creating. We get so pumped we cannot imagine that this good feeling will ever stop. Or, on some level, we know it will end but we don’t care, because this moment of surety and clarity is so powerful, all engrossing, sweet, and satisfying.

But how do you sustain your enthusiasm for writing when this feeling goes away?

First of all, you need to decide what you’re writing.

A short story? Something longer? Perhaps an entire novel?

Sure, write when you are inspired. Fill the pages with words, ideas, descriptions, emotions, agendas, and do all the fun stuff that makes you feel alive. Write all day if and when the inspiration strikes.

But, just before you go to sleep, ask yourself, where is this piece of writing headed? What is it going to be? Your answer will define how you continue, and help ensure you will finish.

The easiest part of writing is starting.

The hardest part of writing is finishing what you start.

So the best way forward is to know your ending before you get too far into the writing.

Better still, know the ending before you even start.

Honestly, you will save yourself a lot of heartache and rewriting if you stop and think through the ending before you begin.

It doesn’t need to be complicated or even complete. But at the same time as you might say to yourself, THIS would make a great start, you need to add THAT would make the ending work. Having a strong idea for the end of a project will keep you going through the darkest times. Remember, THIS and THAT is where it’s at. This phrase will help you focus.

A novel is a huge undertaking.

Hell, so is a short story.

My students are always asking, How do I maintain the motivation to keep writing?

The best way is to know your ending. That’s the anchor that will hold you steady.

I know many authors say they write better when they don’t know where they’re going. That may be true if you like fixing things later on, which will happen anyway - even when you make full outlines of your stories. It’s just the way the creative process works. Like all the great masters, we like to shape and hone works of art as we go along.

But we’re not robots. We don’t just look at what everyone else has done and copy that. Well, yes, that is, in a sense, exactly what we do in a round about way but human creativity is better, more than just that.

Inspiration hides from us in the undergrowth, around corners, in the basement, or in the attic. Then it jumps out on us. Making us start, literally and metaphorically.

Inspiration, the feeling that somehow something is JUST RIGHT is an entirely human response. A machine can point you towards an answer or three, but only a person can decide on the best course of action, the best solution, based on a gut feeling. And the wonderful thing about humans is that we won’t all make the same decision. Not every solution will be right for everyone. We can each make our own solution work for us.

That’s the problem with Hollywood, Disney, Marvel, and with creating via committee. There is no such thing as a perfect formula. There is only the answer that works FOR YOU.

And your solution will be different from mine, better than mine, better than anyone’s. In fact the only solution that is right is the one that is right for you.

Because once you have decided the answer, the ending, or the plot twist, or whatever, that is what motivates you to continue. When other people come along and tell you the answer, they can kill your idea, your inspiration, and your motivation immediately.

You have to believe in yourself and believe that your decisions are correct and valid.

If you’re struggling over an idea, a choice, a decision, that’s all good. It’s part of the creative process. The trick is to make faster, better decisions so you don’t get blocked by your own lack of courage or commitment. You have to get used to making decisions and sticking with them - at least until you finish the first draft.

Only then will you know what you have and whether the inspiration you felt at the beginning of the project was justified.

Truth is, not every great idea works perfectly.

But the important thing to do is to keep coming up with ideas and working on them until you finish them. In other words…

Keep Writing!

Rob Parnell’s Writing Academy