Writing a book with the intention of publishing it, especially if it’s your first time, is a complex and demanding task. Which is why we’re leaving some suggestions here, to help you decide where to start and how to organise your work!
Subject
For a first book, the subject matter of your work should be something that you’re really familiar with. Generally, only very experienced writers are able to write convincingly about something they don’t know much about.
Title
A book’s title is fundamental to its commercial success, especially in the case of books by Authors still in the process of establishing themselves as such. For this reason, it should not be thought of as a secondary or superficial detail. That said, even if you feel that you’re yet to find the right title for your book, it often helps to use a provisional one as a departure point for your idea. Even if when you come to present your work to the public, this initial title’s limitations become apparent, it usually turns out to be an important point of reference for the development the work you’ve undertaken for yourself.
Plan
Writing a plan for a book, in which chapters are set out in some sort of index, is essential in terms of ensuring the work’s proper structure. It’s quite normal that during the writing process, as the work develops, some chapters end up getting taken out, added in, or moved around. Even so, that initial plan is a very useful tool for carrying your writing through to its destiny as a properly crafted text.
Plot
A consistent plot is an indispensible ingredient for telling a story. You should also think about sub-plots and parallel lines of development to be pursued around the central narrative line, as these will help to enrich your work, making it all the more appealing.
Work by Chapter
Write frequently, for at least an hour, even if you don’t end up using all of what you write in every session. Work on each chapter one by one, and give yourself deadlines by which to finish each of them. Setting objectives helps to establish an approach to writing as something which is not merely done in the odd empty hour, but rather as an important task to be carried through to its proper conclusion.
Revision
At the end of each chapter, read over what you have written and try to correct any spelling or grammar mistakes, repetitions, and anything else which didn’t quite turn out as you’d hoped. Many Authors find it useful to read their work out loud, finding their writing to become more fluid and flowing as a result.
Notes
Ideas – for the plot, for characters, or for settings and scenarios – appear gradually and, often enough, when you’re least expecting them. That’s why many writers always carry a small notebook with them, so that they can jot down the details of their flashes of inspiration, for these to be included in the book when they get back to the act of writing.
We wish you every success in the challenge of writing your book. Go for it!