Thread: Need some help

First I should mention that I am an avid reader of Stephen King and Harry Potter. I've read other books and series but those are my favorites. I'm not sure if that has anyhting to do with me starting to write, but I felt as if I should say it.

Basically, I've had this intricate story in my head for a few years now. I've been looking for a good story to write ever since I was very young and it finally clicked. For the last few years it's been slowly forming in my head and now I have such a rich, complex and imaginative story floating around that I don't know where to start. In my head it's a 9 book series that's interwoven in such a perfect way that I feel it's become a part of me now. In my head, it's a perfect series. I'm not normally a sensitive guy, but I can actually make myself cry just by thinking about certain story points. I feel connected to each character, I know that must seem strange. Sometimes I tell my sister the story of each book it and she just about cries from it. I know it will span across many genres but it's main one will be fiction/fantasy. It seems like a young adult type story, but I believe that real life can be cruel so i don't want to tone down my story. It's the most realistic that fantasy can get I think because a huge part of it is how the world works behind closed doors and it's my interpretation of how life can be the most cruel when you're at your most vulnerable, like that shadow oiut of the corner of your eye when you're scrambling for the light.

The point I'm trying to get at it, I don't know how to put my story on paper. Right now it exists only in my head, and I want to bring it to life. I tried writing 30 pages, but I scrapped them in favor of a new opening to my story. The story plays like a movie in my head often when I'm bored and it's all there, I just can't get it down on paper. I've never written so much as a short story so I'm not familiar with the process of writing a story. Maybe someone can help me get started, because if I don't write this story I know I will regret it.

well you can list your main points in order of witch they will occur in the story then expand them into sentances and paraqgraphs that is easy enough i guess

Once scene at a time.

Envision your main character. What are they wearing? Walking, sitting? Look on their face? Most importantly, what are they thinking?

You get into your character's head, then get your reader there. Next, how does your MC interact with their environment? Are they alone, with a group or alone in a group? Focus on a few small things and really bring them to life. Just pick things that explain your character's condition and situation.

I think a lot of new writers are too linear, just trying to get from point A to B. Learn to breath deep in each scene and don't rush (unless rushing is appropriate.)
Jumping back and forth in time and space shouldn't scare you or alienate the reader, IF the reader buys into the premise early.

I hope that made some sense to you. Build slowly, but build solid.

I was in a similar situation to you last year. I had this character and story in my head for years before starting to write it. I spent a few weeks just writing about the character and his circumstances and environment and various events. Then I gave it a rest and then started the main story. Then as I was writing new ideas came and I ended up writing a story that had changed a lot from the story I had in my head previously. My advice would be to just start writing and don't care if what you are writing is good or not, just keep going forward and new ideas should come.

Just some thoughts, hope something here helps


First, I think a big problem people have (especially when writing their first novel) is that they start out with a series in mind, rather than focusing on the small miracle it takes to get that first book published, let alone setting up a series. Remember that you have to sell your idea to an agent, an editor, a publisher and (hopefully some day) the world. That is, all by itself, a very difficult thing to accomplish. Focus on the first novel and let that be your everything. Worrying about how book six is going to play out before you've written 40 pages of the first one is a waste of time.

There are many ways to actually produce the work... you might be a meticulous planner, world-building ahead of time and fleshing out environments, characters and plot points prior to writing Chapter One. You might be better served just producing, grinding out as much as you can and pushing past stalls or scene-skipping to keep it moving, then returning to edit copy edit copy restructure and redraft. It really depends on what works for you - but keep in mind that paramount to a writer is production. Putting work down on paper. That is the goal.

Try an outline. Figure out how the first book is going to start and end. Forget about the rest. Make sure that first story is solid all by itself. Ask yourself the writer questions... is it interesting? Is it something fresh and notable? Who's the protagonist? What are the conflicts? Does the story move well, or stagnate in the middle? Did I overdo it with that dwarf banter in chapter four? What drives the antagonist? Did I feed the kids today? What day is it?

...you know, the normal stuff.

Write your plot points or the twists and workshop them. Write the scene and seek feedback. Google "how to get published" and read, read, read.
Like this: Getting Published Is Not Enough: Part I | How Publishing Really Works or this: 10 steps to getting published « Writing Tips by Alice Kuipers

Search for novel writing tips, like these:
How to write a novel
How To Write A Novel Using The Snowflake Method
Advice on Novel Writing

Hope something there helps. Best of luck to you and remember that you are only as productive and successful as you allow yourself to be! Cheers

//Sy

If you haven't written anything yet....learn to write first. I know it might sound a bit harsh, but unless you are a writing genius, you will most likely have to do what most writers do and learn how to write. If you like Stephen King, read his book on writing, it's worth the time to read it. You'll see he didn't just start selling books right off the bat. He had to work at it for years before he made a sale.

I have a story that has been in my head since high school...which makes it a couple decades in the thinking. I've yet to do more than add more thought to it. After the number of years it's been waiting to be told, I figure a few more years for me to get good enough to be able to tell it would be better than producing something I'd be embarrassed to have anyone look at.

To put it simply, the work required to properly plot and plan one novel is intimidating. To do nine without having ever written one, is probably unrealistic.

Write some short stories. You don't have to have them published (although it will give you an idea if your writing is good enough to sell). Learn the skills needed to write a good story, and do it first with things that are shorter, more simple. Without that, you can pour out tons of words no one will ever want to read.

A good start to a story is typically a scene with some action that may not make immediate sense, but raises questions in the mind of the reader, resulting in curiosity and the desire to read further.

With that in mind, my advice would be to start not at the "begining," (whatever you think that may be) but right in the middle of something interesting and integral to the story.

All you need to do to get started is to picture a scene, an event, an interaction between characters--whatever--and then write it down. Whether or not it serves as the opening to your story is irrelevant. Once that little section is finished, think of another you'd like to write. Write it. Repeat. With any luck, it will eventually all come together like a jigsaw puzzle, where you need only fit the pieces you already have into the correct places.

By the way, those little "scenes" I mentioned are generally called chapters. A chapter can be a single pararaph or fifty thousand words. It's all up to you, and there is no wrong way.

Also, if you're interested in brutally realistic and tragic fantasy with believable characters and events, George R.R. Martin's "Song of Ice and Fire" series is probably the single best epic fantasy story ever written. And that's coming from a guy who has read over 1000--yes, one thousand--fantasy novels.

Best of luck to you.