I Write…

This week’s “I Write” blog article is all about writing fiction. We are doing a series of articles examining the way fiction writers, well, write! We will look at how to start your book, how to create your characters, how to work your chapters and how to give your character’s obstacles that can be either devastating or overcome. This week will all be about the building blocks of a book.

Keep Tense

Time and time again you’ll hear fiction writers and instructors telling you that you have to start with action! I think it’s better to start with a nice big healthy dose of tension, like a character falling short on a goal that causes the story to continue— a character who can’t save his father from falling off the side of the cliff. A character who can’t walk but tries desperately to do so. Add tension—add excitement.

Know Your Characters

Interesting stories come from characters who want something. Lovers want each other. Writing a fiction book requires that you have interesting characters, and characters who have strong wants and desires are the most compelling kind there are.

Chapters Ending on a Cliff

End each chapter with a question that needs to be answered. You don’t have to tie up the book with each question answered, and even if you do, there’s nothing stopping you from asking more questions. Fiction is built on the interest of the reader. If you don’t get them interested early on—why should they bother finishing the book? Why would they read a possible sequel?

Obstacles to Overcome

The obstacles can be as difficult as you want (and should be pretty darn difficult to help spice up the story). But the key here is that they have to be able to overcome the obstacle no matter what it is—drug addiction, in love with a person who’s on the antagonist’s side, etc. Fictional writing is strongest when characters face tough odds and still come through in the end.

The Audience and Your Understanding

What are you writing? A fantasy novel? Erotica? What is this book you seek to write? All of them are written in different ways. Each audience has a different expectation. If you’re writing crime fiction you have to give readers a crime and then give them a story where they are solving the crime, see? You have to give the audience what they want.

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