How to Write a Novel

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Literary agents are often one of the main factors in the success of your book. Pictured is a literary agent alone in a conference room working hard on getting your book published — cool corporate lighting

Literary Agents: Steps to Securing Representation

Literary agents serve as the link between writers and the publishing houses that print and market their books. They’re often...

A woman who is pensive and furtive, and her reflection beside her smiling, suggesting the dichotomy of an internal dialogue as perceived by a viewer

Internal Dialogue

Internal dialogue does more than let you know what a character is thinking. It shows you what that character cannot...

See how to write flashbacks in screenplay as a relation to a lack of stricture on temporality. A table at the end of a hallway with many doors that lead into other rooms as a visual metaphor for how flashback functions inside a screenplay and how to write a flashback in screenplay, specifically handling the temporal relation between image and page.

How to Write Flashbacks in a Screenplay

Flashbacks act as a sort of Swiss army knife. You can use them in multiple ways — to foreshadow coming...

Different writing styles featured image from the 1600s, painting by Gabriël Metsu used to depict a very royal feeling to writing

A Look at 5 Different Writing Styles

Just as your characters each have a distinct voice, every writing style carries its own purpose, logic, and effect. Knowing...

Featured image for flash fiction. It's fast, it's fun, and it's meant to go by in a blur. Hopefully the intention and quickness you embrace in the simplicity brings you closer to the writing and it evokes feelings of this image as a writer

Flash Fiction

If you want to become a better writer, flash fiction is a powerful way to strengthen your storytelling muscles. Flash...

A nondescript white woman paints a realistic image of hands for the blog realistic fiction. perhaps the writer reading the article may be able to imagine themselves as a painter making something realistic too

Realistic Fiction

There’s a particular kind of courage in writing about the world as it actually is. Although our imaginations can take...

A woman in a red dress looking pensively to the corner of the frame to dramatize the difficulty of how to plan a novel
Blog
Alan Watt

How to Plan a Novel

Learn how to plan a novel by balancing creative intuition with a structured 90-day schedule, from initial inquiry to finishing your first draft.

Read More »
Blog
Alan Watt

How to Plot a Novel

Balance your character’s wants and needs if you want to learn how to plot a novel by using a central dilemma to turn events into a fleshed out story.

Read More »

Recent posts

A woman in a red dress looking pensively to the corner of the frame to dramatize the difficulty of how to plan a novel

How to Plan a Novel

Learn how to plan a novel by balancing creative intuition with a structured 90-day schedule, from initial inquiry to finishing...

How to Plot a Novel

Balance your character's wants and needs if you want to learn how to plot a novel by using a central...
how to write a novel

How to Write a Novel: Step by Step

“There are three rules for writing a novel. Unfortunately, no one knows what they are.” – W. Somerset Maugham There...

how many words in a novel

“How Many Words in a Novel?”

How many words long should your novel be? The short answer is . . . as long as it needs...

novels vs books

Novels vs Books — What’s the Difference?

The words “book” and “novel” are sometimes used interchangeably. But they actually mean different things. In this article, I’ll describe...

novel outline

How to Outline Your Novel in 5 Steps

Each writer has their own process. Some writers (often called pantsers) believe that outlining their novel limits their creativity, while...

novel structure

The Essential Guide to Novel Structure for Writers

A novel’s story structure is an essential aspect to creating a compelling narrative. While the beginnings of a story emerge...

novel

What is a Novel? Definition, History, and Key Characteristics

We use the word novel casually, as if it simply means “a long story,” but a novel is defined by...

Genres

Novel Genres: Top 9 Fiction Categories

When talking about your writing project with a friend, one of their first questions will likely be “What is the...

12 Maxims of The 90-Day Novel

12 Maxims of The 90-Day Novel

Have you thought about your creative goals for this coming year? If you’re planning to write your novel, here are...

Sell Your Novel to the Movies

Sell Your Novel to the Movies

When I did a book tour for my first novel, someone asked, “Have you sold the film rights?” And when...

Writing Fiction: Letting Go of Our Story

Writing Fiction: Letting Go of Our Story

“Danger lies in the writer becoming the victim of his own exaggeration, losing the exact notion of sincerity, and in...