This post was originally published at Novelicious.com and is now at WritingTipsOasis.com. WritingTipsOasis.com acquired Novelicious.com in June 2022.
1. Never, ever give up. It took me years to get my first novel published, and if I hadn’t resurrected it after all the rejections, it would still be in that desk drawer.
2. Get a great big edit. You can never be too rich, too thin or have too many edits. Before sending your work to an agent or publisher, I would always suggest someone else reads it. Competition is fierce and a prospective agent isn’t going to struggle through bad grammar and a boring, misspelt plotline, so if you can afford it, spend some money on an editor. If ultimately you don’t get the book deal, you do have an edited book – so what’s to stop you self-publishing? If you can’t afford an editor, then ask bookworm friends to read your manuscript for you… and edit, and edit again.
3. Take your own journey. Before I finally sat down to write my first novel, I read and re-read articles and bought a million, ‘how to’ books. This works for some writers, but I’m so undisciplined I use ‘reading’ about it to procrastinate and delay the actual moment of writing. No-one else can tell you how to write your book – it’s your journey – so own it.
4. Dive in, make a big splash, and don’t be shy. Many first time writers are quite understandably self-conscious about revealing themselves and their feelings in print. There are whole chunks of your heart being smeared across those pages so you’re bound to feel a little exposed at times. Just don’t let it hold you back, don’t imagine your mother-in-law reading it or worry what your husband will say – just do it. Give your all to that blank page and keep reminding yourself that no-one’s ever going to read it unless you want them to.
5. Love and care for your characters, make them real. Live inside your characters and be with them at every step, feeling what they feel, and understanding how they might react. It may sound a little dramatic, but when I finish writing a book, I grieve for the characters I have spent each day with. I have to promise myself I’ll write another book with those same characters (even if, in my heart I know I won’t) because I can’t bear the thought of not being with them ever again. If the writer doesn’t believe in her characters – how can the reader?
Sue Watson’s new book, Younger, Thinner, Blonder, is out now.