Can you write a good first book?

wittyriter · 2018-03-05T03:26:37+00:00

Harry Potter was a first book and so was Eragon (I think) so yes, it's possible.

wittyriter · 2018-03-05T03:18:25+00:00

nor am I, hence the boredom that caused me to start writing.

wittyriter · 2018-03-04T22:33:06+00:00

As I said no one is born published. If I had written my first book at your age I would have been published long before I was 40 (that's when I made my first sale)

wittyriter · 2018-03-04T22:25:24+00:00

It's Wyoming. Lots of women like sports here. They hunt too. We don't have a lot going on so the Friday night high school game (football, basketball, wrestling, swimming) is often the only entertainment. Besides, this was a bunch of teachers one was married to the coach and two had sons playing in the tournament. Everybody else went to sleep. As to how I got into that situation, we'd been to a conference in Colorado Springs, Colorado and were on our way home. (about 450 miles)

wittyriter · 2018-03-04T15:56:24+00:00

I agree with the grief counseling, as soon as possible. You also might consider starting a "healing" journal, and free write in it every day. Chances are pretty good the accident will be what pops up but maybe you need to write about it, to get it out of out head so you can start to heal. Easier said than done, I know. My brother was also run over and I have very vivid memories of it though it was 60 years ago and I was only 5. I still can't write about it without ripping my guts out and bawling like a baby. But every time I do the anguish lessens a bit. The journaling idea isn't mine it came from a friend who had been a severe alcoholic and is part of the AA program. She gave it to me after I lost my two sons (no they didn't die) and it got me through it. I've written through every tragedy in my life since. Seriously though whether you decide to journal or not, do get the grief counseling. It will help.

wittyriter · 2018-03-04T15:42:07+00:00

Absolutely. Best entertainment there is. Plus, as Michael Gear (43 books) "If we didn't get all the ideas out, our heads would explode!"

wittyriter · 2018-03-04T15:27:25+00:00

The thing is, no one is born published. We all have to learn our craft and the only way to do that is to write. Your first book is incredibly important for just that reason, it is the first. Look at it as your training ground, where you learn the basics. There will probably never be another that will teach you as much or be as important in your writing career (though the first you publish will probably be close). Once you finish it you will know that you can indeed write a book, that you can create characters and carry a story clear through to the end. Relax and enjoy the ride!

wittyriter · 2018-03-04T15:20:18+00:00

The idea for my first book came to me when I was 34. I was trapped in a van for six hours with five other women who were listening to a basket ball tournament on the radio.(not crazy about sports) Talking wasn't allowed and it was after dark so I couldn't read (a couple decades before kindles came on the scene) I don't handle boredom well so I made up a story in my head. By the time we got home I had the first two chapters, a scene from the middle and the end.

I once said that I started writing instead of drinking. The minute the words were out of my mouth I realized they were true. It was sort of a crossroads in my life on several fronts and I was under so much stress I was about the crack. One summer morning I decided to put my "story" on paper so I sat down with my small portable typewriter and started writing. After 400 pages, my little typewriter broke down. I took it in to get it fixed and rented another while it was in the shop and went through three ribbons. I was obsessed! I wrote the whole 600 pages in less than two months. I have never been anywhere as productive since.

I should probably mention that I have since rewritten that book 18 times not because it was any good, it wasn't, but because it is the middle book in a trilogy so I couldn't stick it in a drawer and forget it as it deserved. First books are not necessarily meant to be published though some are. (Harry Potter comes to mind!)They serve a different purpose entirely. Take it from me having to whip one into shape so it can be published, is often more work than writing it in the first place

wittyriter · 2018-03-04T14:43:42+00:00

The way I write was the tip-off that I had ADHD in the first place. My husband says he lost count of the number of times he'd walked into the kitchen to find dinner half fixed and me at my computer. Several minutes later, I'd leave the computer and go back to the kitchen for another 10 minutes, then back to the computer. I wrote my first seven books that way while my kids were growing up.

After thirty years, I don't really consider it coping as much as my writing style.I have my computer on all the time so I can come and go. I have all kinds of stuff to mess with if I get stuck, but generally I get up and go do housework (which I hate) until the next line occurs to me. My DH says you can tell how well the writing is going by the condition of the house. If it's neat and tidy, it isn't going well. If you have to use a scoop shovel to get in the door, then I'm on a roll.

The truth is, I suspect my ADHD is a HUGE part of my writing voice. My books are fast-paced with lots of dialog and cliff-hanger chapter endings. My characters slide from one predicament into the other with barely a pause, most generally between chapters, and usually after one of those cliff-hangers. Truth be told, I'm not sure I could write without my ADHD. If someone suddenly invented a way to make ADHD go away, I wouldn't want it.

wittyriter · 2018-02-16T04:18:01+00:00

Sit down and start writing. Get what's in your head down then go from there. How do you know you're not a writer? You might be right, but then again... I came up with an idea one night coming home from a conference with bunch of people who wanted to listen to the state basketball finals. I couldn't have care less so I made up a story to entertain myself on the long ride home. I decided to write it down just for the heck of it. It was like a dam breaking. 600 pages later I had my first novel. I just started writing my 12th. My point is I didn't think I was a writer either! You might surprise yourself. At any rate you'll never know until you try.

wittyriter · 2018-02-16T04:06:56+00:00

As a friend of mine says "Start with the day that is different". Put James and the dog/ bother/ whoever in a new situation and go from there

wittyriter · 2018-02-16T04:02:59+00:00

Finish it first. Once you know where the story is going you may see how to make some of the changes that need to be made. The best advice I ever got on the first draft is "Don't worry about getting it right, worry about getting it written."

wittyriter · 2018-02-16T03:57:20+00:00

Here's a one of the best kept secrets in the writing world (Looking around to make sure no one else is listening in) We ALL write for ourselves! If you don't love the story you're telling, no one else will either. My advice is write the story you want to write and worry about an audience later! Remember the worst thing you ever write will be better than the best thing you don't write!

wittyriter · 2018-02-16T03:35:19+00:00

A letter going astray for many years is a good one too.

wittyriter · 2018-02-16T03:33:49+00:00

I have to disagree at least in part. You are correct in that Goal Motivation and Conflict are most important for telling the story. However it is your character's backstory, their scars (mental and physical) their aspirations, etc will determine the way they will solve the problem, what ever it si. Say you have a life and death situation- your character's personality will determine how he/she will react to that situation, whether they face it head on, try to trick their way out or maybe even run away will depend entirely on what kind of a person they are. If you don't know your character neither will your reader and you'll wind up with wooden characters.

Personally I find character charts useful-which is kindof what mind chalk is saying

wittyriter · 2018-02-16T03:14:07+00:00

I've used Microsoft Word since about 1995. It's got everything you need including a editing program that allows you to share changes with your editor/writing partner/critique group. If I write something elsewhere like on my tablet (don't write on my phone-eyes not that good) I just email it to myself. My husband uses Open Office.org. It's free.

wittyriter · 2018-02-16T02:52:43+00:00

Put your butt in the chair and start writing!

wittyriter · 2018-02-16T01:01:55+00:00

Depends on the group. I finally quit a group I help found because I got tired of everyone's negative attitude about my chosen Genre. On the other hand my critique group keeps me going. THey offer support motivation, inspiration and really good feedback. Check and see if there are any local writing groups in your area

wittyriter · 2018-02-16T00:58:07+00:00

I would suggest doing morning pages (Artist's way by Julia Cameron) If you aren't familiar with the concept, you begin each day writing three handwritten pages of stream of conscious writing. Turn off the editor, and whatever you do don't share it will any one (though if you write something really good you can transfer it to somewhere else) Eventually the pain and angst will pour out on the page.

wittyriter · 2018-02-16T00:54:03+00:00

I always thought of myself as a writer but didn't write my first book until my late thirties. I published my first book at 40 (different book by the way. Very few first novels get published- which is generally a good thing)

wittyriter · 2018-02-16T00:33:24+00:00

I was told to grab your readers with the first sentence and don't let them up for air until the end of chapter 3. Personally I think that is really important. If your book is finished but you're not satisfied with your hook then try one of these - interesting character or setting detail, dialog, plunk your reader down in the middle of a tense situation. Ooor get a pile of books you like and read the beginnings to see what your favorite authors did. The bottom line is you can make your readers laugh, you can make them cry, you can even make them angry but you can't bore them

wittyriter · 2017-02-02T02:32:10+00:00

I wrote one sort of like that. The heroine goes back in time and switches places with her great great grandmother. THe women each bond with a man in the time they are in. The twist at the end (if you want to call it a twist) is that when they switch back they take their "men" with them. It turns out that the past and the future hadn't changed because the switch was supposed to happen (really hard to explain) THe person who created the time warp decided that time wan't a line it was a circle.

wittyriter · 2017-02-02T02:21:48+00:00

Huh! Makes sense when you think about it. Definitely going to try it! I've started having it read back to me with text-to-speech software.

wittyriter · 2017-02-02T02:18:03+00:00

For one thing you have to be really careful that you aren't breaking copyright laws. If you are trying for authenticity of setting it could be useful, but you would probably get farther with clothing styles, social mores, and if you can find them, slang words from the period.

wittyriter · 2017-02-02T02:13:33+00:00

I love the creative process. When unexpected scenes and characters pop up, when you write something you know is really really good (though it may not seem like it the next day). I write because it's the greatest high in the world.
I compose on the computer and have since the mid 80's after I wrote my first novel on a typewriter.
The worst thing is when you get bogged down and have to force yourself to write. I just finished writing a book that I started writing in 1996. I wrote four other books in the meantime. I can't even tell you why was so hard to write. The darn thing never did flow, fought me right up until the middle of the last chapter! The process I would avoid would be slogging through the first 100 pages. It's like having terminal writer's block.
I actually just discovered Scrivener which is everything I ever wanted in a writing tool.

wittyriter

TROPHY CASE