Now that the school year is almost over, many of you who are reading this blog are planning to write outside of your school work, or begin writing creatively on your own. Well, here are some basic hints to writing some exceptional fiction stories. (We will be reviewing other types of books in a different blog).
Thanks to Road Trip with Raj for sharing their work on Unsplash.
Before you start writing, there are several things you must decide. These first five tips will cover that.
1. Be sure to come up with at least one main character to your story. It is generally a good idea if you're just starting to write to have just one, but if you are brave you could try two, or even a team. You can decide on the names for them later.
2. Every good story must have some element of an enemy, or opponent to the main character(s). This can be the environment, a person/monster, or something else.
3. Always have at least one fellow writer that can read over your piece of work and point out mistakes. If this comes in the form of your peers, or someone that has been writing professionally, anything works. Remember, the more people that you have assisting you, the better the end product will turn out (if you are just writing for fun, this isn't as necessary, but it can still help).
4. Because this blog can't cover everything, it is a good idea to take a writing class, if you haven't already. While writing classes don't always spend much time on fiction as compared to bigger projects, everything helps, as I have learned during my experience as a Co-Author and Editor for Whitemane Chronicles (coming soon).
5. Write with a team! It doesn't have to be just you writing. It's more fun to write with other people, and easier. Writing a 200+ page book by yourself can be a daunting task, but with others, it can turn into an enjoyable event.
These final five can change the way you write for the better. Even if you choose to write your own way, keep these hints in mind!
6. When writing fiction, it is recommended to use a hook. You can do this one of several ways: by starting the book with an action scene, by copying one of your best-written and active sections to the front of the book, or really anything else that will draw readers to finish reading your work.
7. Chapters can be a pain to integrate into books. Some places are natural chapter breaks, while others cause a struggle to see where to switch over. For the size, I recommend at least 5 pages, and no more then 30, but I've read books that go over that border on both sides. Whatever works for you.
8. When switching over to a different chapter, press Ctrl+Enter to place a page break (opens a new page and leaves the previous one blank). When switching over to a different perspective, simply place your preferred break (anything from a row of stars, three dots, or an empty space).
9. One way that people write fiction is by writing a rough draft. Personally, for me, I prefer writing to the best of my ability for the entire story, so there is less to edit. However, I do occasionally write down ideas that I don't want to lose as a rough draft. Do whatever works for you, or try both out and see which one is better! You can even do both.
10. Write! Set yourself a schedule, and stick to it. Be sure to include extra days just in case something comes up, but if not, use those extra days to touch up your book.
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