This post was originally published at Novelicious.com and is now at WritingTipsOasis.com. WritingTipsOasis.com acquired Novelicious.com in June 2022.
1. Find your story. My books usually spring from a question. What if? The Curvy Girls Club came from a question after my mum pointed out that if most of the population is overweight, then being slim isn’t the norm. So what is normal, and how does that definition change from person to person?
2. Get the words on the page, whether you feel like it or not. You can always rewrite later. A blank page is much more daunting than a paragraph you aren’t happy with.
3. Have a junk folder. When you rewrite, don’t delete, but save the words in a document for later. You’ll probably never use these words but it’s comforting to know you can get them back if you need them.
4. Be able to summarize your book in a sentence. This is the 30 second pitch and if you want to get published, you’ll be asked for this over and over.
5. Have fully-formed characters that the readers care about – they can love them or hate them, but they must care what happens to them and wonder whether it will all turn out okay in the end. Dramatic tension is critical, whether you’re writing crime, literary fiction or chick lit.
The Curvy Girls Club by Michele Gorman is out now.