Two years ago this June my mom challenged me to write my own book. (teaches me to complain about a couple of cheap romance novels - and no, they are not on my Goodreads shelves!)
I’m not yet published, but my first book - which is going through rewrites and revisions - I just started writing without any sort of plan at all. I had no idea what I was doing. Was it a mess? Oh yeah. Definitely, but there are a lot of great parts that I plan to use in the rewrite. My spinoffs? I have two that are nearing completion of my first draft and two more that are in the planning stages.
I just turned 52 and I started writing in June 2020. June 11, 2020, to be exact.
My initial idea started when I literally sketched out a town square. Then, I created a list of all sorts of characters I thought would be fun. I started giving a handful names, histories, etc, and from that my first story developed. It’s a weird process, but it’s working for me for that is the basis of all my stories set in Grant's Crossing, Ohio, a small town conveniently founded during the Grant administration. And after nearly two years of writing, asking questions, learning, rewriting, asking more questions, learning more… I’ve found my groove
I’m hoping to have at least two books ready for publication by the end of 2022. I have no specific timeline beyond that but I've discovered I absolutely love writing!
Looking to write? This is my suggestion that may or may not work for you, but it's what I did.
- Jot down some ideas as bullet points. Then keep adding bullet points.
- Done with bullet points? Add some details. Bulk them up. When you can’t think of any more details with one, go to another.
- Then, create your outline - move stuff around and see what works.
- Go from there and start creating a story.
You can do this. I’ve never dreamed of writing which is crazy considering how much I now love it. By all means - have at it and never worry about how you have to write or even how much. Just start writing and see where it goes. You can always revise and reorganize as you go along. There’s no right or wrong way.
Good luck to you!
Happy Reading!
- Heather
P.S. I love bullet points. Can you tell? HMB
Instagram - @GrantsCrossing
Goodreads - H.M.S. Brown - for this and all my book reviews
You need to join the Insecure Writers Support Group. There's a website, a Facebook page, and a monthly blog hop. It's a great way to meet other authors and get some traffic to your blog.
ReplyDeleteGood luck with your writing!