I want to write a novel. Help?
The actual writing part of writing a book is very hard for some people. Myself included, I'm putting off writing at this very moment! It sounds like you really like the idea of having written a book, but are having a hard time getting started and getting excited about the actual writing part. That's okay, you just have to find ways of getting going that work for you, otherwise that story in your head will never find its way on paper, and then it can never be a movie! I suggest sitting down everyday and starting by writing one paragraph. Just one, four sentences, that's all. It's not so much that you'll feel overwhelmed, but n a week, you'll have at least a page, which is a whole page more than you have now. And once you get your foot in the door, it gets easier. Another trick, since it sounds like a lot of your ideas are happiest in your head rather than on paper, if to get a recorder and start narrating your story out loud. It comes a lot easier sometimes, and you can go back and type up what you said later. But if nothing really seems to work, maybe writing books isn't quite your thing. Since you like the idea of having movies made about your work, you could also try to write a script for your idea as a movie, instead of starting out with a book. Try the website http://www.scriptfrenzy.org/, this is a great place to learn how to write scripts and to bounce your ideas off of other writers, and get help whenever you're stuck.
What do you think about two people writing the same novel?
It sounds like a great idea to me! When you have finished, you need to revise the whole thing to make sure it has a 'continuous' feel to it. For example, if there is a character who uses a certain way of talking, you'll want to check that they don't suddenly go from being relaxed to pompous in two paragraphs where the other writer took over, and make sure a character doesn't have brown eyes at the beginning and blue eyes in the middle! You also need to make sure the point of view is the same all the way through, and look at the overall construction of the story in terms of tension - is it all exciting scenes, or are there quieter moments? Ideally the excitement should build up in a series of ever-increasing peaks to the greatest point at the end. If there are several funny scenes or romantic scenes, they would normally need to be spread through the book and not all clumped at one end. Publishing under two names is simple, but you would have to agree what share of the book is yours: presumably 50% each. Once you get as far as page 99, you can get honest feedback on your work on the Page99test website. Check it out - it's great!
What's so bad about a teen writing a novel?
There's nothing wrong as such with a teenager writing a novel. I wrote one myself when I was 15. What's wrong, or at least annoying to those of us who have some clue what we're doing, is teenagers who think they're writing the next Harry Potter or Twilight or (God help us) Eragon. Most of what makes a good writer is practice with which language you're writing, and experience of what it is to be human. Very few teenagers have enough of either to be considered in any way good writers. If you want to write novels, then on average, you need to write about a million words of fiction for practice before you're capable of writing something that someone who doesn't already know you will pay to read. That novel I wrote when I was 15? Unreadable crap. So you'll have to forgive me if I assume that you're one of the (approximately) 9,999 out of 10,000 who aren't an exception to the rule that teens can't write anything worth paying for. And if you *are* that 1 in 10,000, you'll know that the other thing that makes a good writer is persistence in the face of rejection. You won't be deterred when miserable cynics like me tell you that you're almost certainly wasting your time writing. You won't care that most novels are never finished, and most that are finished are never published. You'll keep plugging away at it, gradually getting better at writing, until eventually someone says yes. And yes, there are successful authors who were first published before they were old enough to vote... but saying you want to be one of them is rather like saying you want to be an astronaut. Actually, more people have been into space than have been paid to write novels while they were still teenagers, which should give you some idea of the odds you're up against. EDIT: Every single frakking time a question like this comes up, someone mentions S E Hinton. She's sixty-one this year! Old enough to be your grandmother! And Mary Shelley? I hate to break this to you, but she's been dead for over a century and a half. Frankenstein was published nearly two hundred years ago. That just proves the point about how rare it is for a teenager to get a book published. Christopher Paolini is a perfect example of why most teenagers shouldn't be published. He was very good at the "persistence in the face of rejection" part, but not so great at the "practice with the language" and "experience of being human" parts.
How many words are in the average novel? If you've written a novel, how many words was it in length?
Generally speaking, for a first time author you want to be in the 80,000 -120,000 range, depending on the subject. Most agents and publishers would hesitate to publish a new author with a higher word count because of the risk involved with a new author. The cost of publishing a 80,000 word novel is far less than publishing a 250,000 word novel. Since you have more than one novel, you might try self publishing one first and really work to gain exposure and loyal readers. If you can show a prospective agent/publisher you have a track record and a platform with a strong reader following, you are more likely to be published. I have written two novels. The one I am now seeking publication on is 92,000 words. The other is right at 50,000 words because I had to cut a lot out during my re-write, but I am expecting it to be around 85,000 - 90,000 as well. Less than 8 out of 10 books purchased today are read all the way through to the end. I want people to finish my book and then go pick up my next book. To build your platform and get to know other writers you can join Associated Content (AC), which is what I did. Here you can meet new authors, publish smaller pieces (articles) and make a little extra cash while you are working on the all American Novel. I have met some great people through AC. Here is the link: http://www.associatedcontent.com/join.html?refer=21342 The other great place is through National Novel Writing Month (which just ended November 30th). Make sure you sign up for next year. People swap novels, ideas, stories, characters, etc! I love it! www.nanowrimo.org Good Luck!!
I am dramatic person that has the potential to spew out a best selling fiction novel-how do i do it?
One of my goals in life is to write a book.I believe that I would be a great writer and people would be interested. I have many life experiences, other's experiences, and a twisted and dramatic imagination at times. How do I start such a gigormous project of writing a book. I would like to write one fiction and one non-fiction masterpiece. My problem is I have so many ideas that I kind of get lost in them and kind of forget about them.
How to get my writing out there?
I have always suffered with anxiety, stress and panic attacks. I really enjoy writing and figured I could use my knowledge on anxiety to write a helpful tips and tricks book. If I did continue with this idea how do I go about getting my writing out there to get it published??