How To Begin

 

Terry here, and this week we get to make up our own topic. So since I'm beginning my next Jessie Madison novel, I thought I would do a tiny tutorial for myself (and others who might be interested): 

How To Begin A Novel: 

 1) Think up characters. 

                                                    

     a) The protagonist. If you’re writing a series, that makes it easier. But even if not, you have to decide who your character will be—someone like you? Someone totally unlike you? What will their traits be? 

     b) Minor characters—even if you are writing a series, you have to decide which recurring characters will be involved, and what new characters will come on the stage (see plot, below) Example: In every book there is someone from out of town—either who has moved to Jarrett Creek recently or who is just visiting. 

    c) Victim—who is going to “get it?” And why? It may seem crazy, but I’ve sometimes had a victim and didn’t exactly know who did the deed or why. It makes for some scrambling at the end. So you ought to at least give some thought as to why. Also, will there be more than one victim. Example: In my Samul Craddock, I knew that someone had been killed a long time ago, but it wasn’t until I realize there was a second victim, that the story started to make sense. 

    d) The killer—oddly, I don’t think you have to know this right off the bat. Sometimes the killer reveals himself or herself to the writer later. At least, they do to me. 

    e) Antagonist—someone determined to keep the protagonist from reaching his or her goal for figuring out what happened. And every type of book has a different kind of antagonist. In a cozy, the police might not want an amateur sleuth to figure out what happened. In a thriller, the antagonist if often someone determined to carry out a deadly plot. 

 2) Think up a setting.

If you’re writing a series (sound familiar?) that makes it easier. BUT if you’re a small town you may not want every book to be exactly in that small town for fear of the dreaded “Cabot Cove Syndrome.” (see victim, below). So you may need to think of setting not quite in the same area. And if you aren’t writing a series, the world is a big place. Example: For the second in my Jessie Madison thriller series, I had to decide where Jessie would go next. I was enchanted by the name of the Calypso Deep, the deepest trench in the Mediterranean sea. But then I realized that it was too deep for diving. So I had to think of somewhere else.

The Aeolian Islands appealed to me. Volcanic islands off the coast of Sicily, where I’ve been before and which had just the right atmosphere. 

     

    a) Setting also includes time of year. So you have to decide when the book will be set. Is it going to be hot? Cold? Lovely weather? Raining? 

     b) And it also includes specific spots: a town? A city? The wilderness? The mountains? The sea! 

 3) Think up a plot. If you’re writing a series, this may be the hard part. You don’t want the same thing happening to the same people. And yet it can’t be too far-fetched, or your readers won’t go along with it. And if you aren’t writing a series, the plot can be anything! ANYTHING! The important thing is to think it through. You don’t have to outline exactly, but you do have to consider a few things:

     a) What type of book are you writing? If you’re writing a cozy, you probably don’t want a plot that involves the threat of world destruction. If you’re writing a thriller, best stay away from Miss Mary’s Knitting Circle. If you’re writing suspense, the plot has to be suspenseful (duh). If you’re writing a historical novel, there’s the whole question of research. Are you writing a humorous story? A serious exploration of murder’s consequences? Will there be a lot of action? Or is it mostly cerebral? 

     b) Does your plot involve something that interests you enough to sustain you through the months it will take to write the book? Are you willing to do the research involved? 

    c) Does the plot make sense? I learned over the years that it’s fine to “just start writing” when an idea pops into my head, but at some point it was essential to stop and take stock of whether the idea had “legs.” I had to ask myself if there was enough to it to keep the thread going.

 4) Do enough research to get you on the right (write) path. 

 Now the only thing left is to start writing. Butt in chair, computer open—NO! do not go to social media. Do not play any video games. Start putting words on paper. Simple, yes? Well…maybe not, but that’s another blog post.