How to write a novel?

A few weeks ago I received an email from a reader in which he told me that he always comes up with ideas for short stories but, when trying to write a novel, he could not make the story long enough and was halfway between the novel and the story.

As I found it an interesting topic, I have thought about sharing with you the tricks that I gave him, hoping that they will help you if you find yourself in a similar situation. Let's see what you think:

Define the characters

Prepare some good files on the main characters (their biographies, their lives, characters they relate to, work, etc.). Build the universe and the environment in which they move. The more complex it is, the easier it will be to find other interesting things to tell about them, also adding greater depth to the plot.

Develop subplots

In the short story there is usually a single plot, a single main event. In the novel, however, there is a main plot and other secondary ones that can serve to reinforce or complicate the first; but also to influence the general idea of ​​the novel or to help characterize characters.

Look for subplots that help you build a more complete fictional universe. Where to find them? For example, rummaging through the character sheets and thinking about which subplots would help you complement the main one.


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Plan the work

It is what I usually advise all those who are new to novel writing. Short stories allow greater flexibility, but the novel is a job that usually takes months and it doesn't hurt to have a roadmap that helps you not get lost along the way.

It is not that everything is very prepared before writing it. If you want, you can leave some room for improvisation, like creating several alternative endings to keep surprising you as you develop. But, as a general rule, the more you plan your novel in advance, the easier it will be to finish it.

In case you are interested, the steps that I use for planning are the following:

1. Main idea. I try to define in one or two sentences what I would like to tell with that story. This may change later, but it helps me as a starting point.

2. Brief summary of the idea.

3. Summary of characteristics. For example, the time in which it occurs, the tone, the place where it takes place, etc. At this point I begin to realize how much research I will need for the play.

4. Longer summary of the main plot. This may take me at least a couple of weeks, but I dedicate myself to developing the main plot in what turns out to be a sheet or two. I make a list with all the steps that will have to go through to get from the beginning to the possible endings (having several alternative endings, in addition to keeping us intrigued while we write it, helps us to make the end not predictable for the reader) and then I am creating the summary.

5. Characters and subplots. From point four, I create the character files, document myself if necessary, create the subplots and their summaries, etc.

6. Documentation. Once the story is roughly built , the strong phase of documentation or research begins (although you may have already had to resort to it in some of the previous points).

Obviously, this pre-writing phase can cause us to discover new things that affect the plot and the characters, so it is possible that some of the elements already created will have to be remade. But that's the interesting part of building a work of fiction. You know how you start, but you never know how you end.

7. Structure. When I have the definitive story, I move on to the next phase and write a step-by-step list of the chapters or scenes that the story will have, summarizing what happens in each of them with about two or three sentences. Nothing very extensive, but it is time to decide which parts to leave in and which parts to stay out.

Although it sounds very close, it is not at all. I know that during the writing I will have to alter some of these scenes because they do not work as I thought or because there is a better way to think about it. This structure is just a rough draft, a starting point to guide me.

8. First draft. With all the material in hand, when I feel convinced and believe that it works, I embark on the adventure of the first draft. What happens from there depends on each writer and each story.

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