How to Write a Novel

NOVELS

A novel is a long narrative in literary prose, and usually fiction, containing a single long-story. Some good examples are: “War and Peace, Eragon, Harry Potter, Homer” and these are just some of the many. Under inspiration, you may want to write a novel. But are you ready? Here are some advices and tips.

THE TITLE

First of all, we need to think of a good title. Let’s look at it this way. Suppose you are in a book gallery, walking from shelf to shelf, what are you seeing? Books that are aligned on the shelf, its spine facing toward you, which, of course, contains the title. So the first look, either a costumer, book – reader, librarian, will look is the title of your novel. If it is no interesting, he or she may walk past it. If it is, he/she may just stop and take it down from the shelf

Titles are usually 1 to 10 words concluding, or stating the main point of your novel. It may be a name of your main character, the empire where your story takes place, what country, or  even you can call it “The Adventure of XXXX”. All in all, its the eye-locker. The part where your readers look first. If they find that intriguing, they may just open the book, so…..what’s our job now? Make him/her never close it again.

THE BODY

Now we should think of a good idea, what your novel is about. Some tips:

1. First of all, we need to know what most readers like. Like if you are in 1798, you might just want to write a romance novel. If you are in 1956, write a novel about cowboy love story. And now, 2010, you could just write about a space-war. Of course there is the time of where to write. Like now, no one is interested of old witchcraft in the 1400s. Instead, you write something about modern magic. No one would be interested in Old Savage Wars. So, let’s write two commanders of a spaceship that battle in space. We need a topic that adjusts to the readers appetite. Of course, it must be related toward your title.
2. Have a good look of other popular novels. See: What they write about. How did they write. When did they write. Who was it that wrote. After that, take a look at this situation. You can’t read a book called 39 Steps, and write a novel about 9999999 escalators. Now take a look back at Step 1.
3. Unique. Have a unique topic. Something that has never been wrote. The complete BASE could be same like science, fiction, real life, but its contents must not be same. Because every reader has a feeling that no other book, no matter how great it is, could not be better than the original. So, if we can’t be better, let’s be the original.

CHARACTERS

What characters should I write?

HUMANS

Unique: either by accent, state, language, body, they must be interesting. like a hunchback, a man who can twist his arms around his waist, a man that can develop into 100 shapes (The Series of Unfortunate Events). A bodiless head suspended in midair of a three-story bus, a mad man with his left eye turned into a X-Ray Viewer (Harry Potter). It’s got to be unique. No one wants to read the life or the adventures of a completely normal guy/girl. If you really want to make everything normal. Make the event unique. Ha!

ANIMALS

News: Write things about the lifestyle, the habitat, the life-course about animals that people don’t usually know. Either make a squirrel talk, a penguin wielding a machine gun, a group of ridiculous mouse that has an inspiration for cooking?

Aliens

Strange: Really freaky guys, eyes at the back, waist on top of their head, whatever, just imagine. Tip: Grasp your hair, and think of everything that you ever seen and MIX. That is a really cool alien. Believe me.

THE ENDING

1. A good ending. A popular ending where the evil dies, and the boy and girl main characters kiss over the monster’s body. OK. That’s easy. IF you want to make it like that, we need to make the event really HARD. DIFFICULT. And make the win, not as easy.
2. A bad ending. OK, this is a matter of who meets bad ending. You can make your character meet a bad ending, but be warned! Your readers will not be content if you have not a good reason. Suppose you make a character, so kind, so smart, and he/she end up dead, your readers won’t be too happy. But if you make your character stubborn/don’t listen to advices, blunder off and get smashed by its worst enemy? It will just make your novel a fable. People that won’t listen to other people’s advice, meet this ending: SQUISH.

I hope you like these tips.