"Literary Marathon" - a book for those who want to write a novel in a month

2024 Author: Malcolm Clapton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:44

Literary Marathon is an easy, enjoyable and inspiring book that will get rid of procrastination and help you prepare a working draft of the novel in a month. The life hacker posts an excerpt on how to get through planning quickly.

Nice Side Effects of Time-bound Scheduling

I know that a month seems like a very short time to plan an entire novel, but trust me: this is exactly what it takes. Thirty plus or minus a few days is enough time to put some great ideas on paper, but you don't run the risk of over-planning, which is dangerous for three reasons.

1. If you spend too much time planning, you may have a brilliant idea for a novel

But this is what you need least of all. Every year during National Writing Month, I receive numerous emails in which the authors gleefully inform us that we are withdrawing from the competition because we have found such a wonderful story that we intend to work on it long and hard to get the best results possible.

When, six months later, I ask these people how the work is going, it always turns out that they have stopped writing the novel altogether. Why? Because they were afraid that they would ruin their book by working on it.

The first draft of a novel is like a dough: in order for it to rise, you need to beat it well. When you stumble upon a fantastic, one-of-a-kind book idea, you find it difficult to treat your brainchild with the degree of disdain it takes to turn a magical dream into a rough draft. By limiting the time to work on an idea to one month, you cannot fight too hard for it. Thus, you will have a much better chance of bringing it to life.

2. At a certain point, work planning becomes just an excuse to postpone it

You will never feel ready enough to move on to writing a book. The more time you spend planning, the more chances you will hesitate to continue working on a masterpiece that will justify such a long preparation. Get rid of the pressure and feel free to dive into the romance.

3. Preparing to write a novel, especially if you do it well, takes some of the fun out of the writing process

It’s very boring to put on paper for thirty days in a row what you had already carefully planned a few months before. If there was little time for planning, then you still have a lot of unresolved issues at the beginning of work. And that's great. Thanks to this, the process of writing becomes a time of continuous discovery, and you, as an author, retain the opportunity to wonder and rejoice at what comes to mind.

Therefore, as you study the lists of questions about characters, plot, time, location and language that are given in this chapter, do not forget that this is not a document that needs to be filled out by all means. This is just an unobtrusive way to help you understand what you love about novels and what you would like to bring to yours.

Two Magna Carta

Let's start our discussion of your book with a small assignment. Take the notebook and pen of your dreams and answer the following question: What is a good novel for you?

This is an incredibly broad topic, but try it. You can answer vaguely, but you can answer in great detail. It is permissible to include anything in this list of characteristics - ultra-short chapters, scenes of unbridled sex, massive invasions of evil elves. Anything that sets your literary boat in motion must enter it.

As an example, I will give my list:

• first-person narration;
• strange characters;
• true love;
• found items;
• disappointment;
• music;
• catharsis;
• absurd old men and women;
• strong, charismatic protagonists;
• incredible love affairs;
• modest, unpretentious style;
• the plot takes place in the city;
• open endings of chapters;
• heroes at turning points in life;
• the action takes place in the workplace;
• happy ends.

Now make your list. Don't be shy: keep it as long as possible. When finished, frame it. This will be your Magna Carta for next month. She will help you channel your great writing skills for the good of people.

Why is this list so useful?

The point is, if something is your reading preference, then you can probably do well as a writer. These language, color and style choices resonate the most with you for some reason. These are the things that you understand. And when you plan your novel next week, try to incorporate as many elements of your charter into it as possible. If you like it when chapters start with epigraphs, start collecting them for your novel. Do you enjoy reading stories about growing up? Consider making summer camp the setting for the novel. Chances are that if a certain mood, motive, or plot structure attracts you as a reader, then you can handle them as an author.

So this was the first list. And now we turn to the second, no less important … In it, write in everything that, when reading, makes you bored. Here, too, you can express thoughts both concretely and descriptively. But the main thing is to be honest. If you don't like books where the ratio of words to pictures is too leaning towards the text, write it down. We are not here to judge, but simply to understand you better.

You will find the following on my list:

• incorrigible protagonists;
• the book is set on a farm;
• the main characters with mental disabilities;
• food or eating it is the main topic;
• ghosts;
• dramas based on the problems of siblings;
• books consisting mainly of characters' thoughts;
• excessive moralizing;
• books set in the 19th century;
• unhappy end.

Now it's your turn. Write down absolutely everything that tires and disappoints you in the books. Get down to business!

When finished, frame this list as well. Let's call it Magna Carta - 2, which is the opposite of Magna Carta - 1.

As you spend the next week pondering your upcoming novel, keep the second list handy so the points don't accidentally migrate into your book. I understand that this may seem stupid (why remind yourself of what you don’t love if you don’t love it anyway?), But be careful: the items on the second list are cunning creatures that are ready to slip into your novel.

Why they do this has to do with the same self-improvement principle that compels us to bring abstruse volumes from the bookstore. And we understand very well: these books will go straight to the bookshelf, from which no one will take them down again. Unless, along with all the belongings, the children will send them with us to the nursing home.

We buy these hard-to-read books because we believe they will benefit us in some way. Before us is a literary version of bran: everything that tastes unpleasant should be useful. This way of thinking carries over to creativity. If we are worried about the frivolity of the story, then the first thing most turn to the writer's bran from Charter-2.

I haven't convinced you? Then I'll give you a concrete example. As I pondered my second month-long romance, I decided that my previous book (the story of an American music fan who was secretly in love with his Scottish wife, who came to the United States on a residence permit) was too frivolous, lacking in seriousness.

I was right. Therefore, for the second time I devoted myself to creating a serious book. Since I had no relevant ideas, I attributed the main character (whom everyone would have admired otherwise) a bunch of psychological problems, created suicidal relatives for her, invented some ghosts, while deftly suppressing the spirit of the character with heavy remorse and moral questions …

Trying to write what was supposed to remain for centuries, I contrived to write a novel that did not last even three days.

Having skipped almost all the elements of Charter-2 into the draft, after 5,000 words, I completely lost interest in my heroine and her hard life. Only stubbornness, willpower and lack of other ideas for the novel helped me finish the book to its logical (sad) end.

The moral of this fable is this: if you don't like something about the books you read, then you will not get pleasure from describing something like that in your novel. If you are really interested in the situation of the mentally ill in the country, the process of politicizing the religious sects of Saudi Arabia, or if you think that construction projects in the city center are a suitable metaphor for racial discrimination and modernization mistakes, you have every right to devote your book to it. But if, deep down, you want to write about koala superheroes who show off the wonders of kung fu and run around the city in pink cloaks and miniature maps, then know: this is also a worthy topic for a novel.

When planning your work, remember that your romance is not part of a self-help campaign. A novel is a jubilant party where your favorite music is played, a thirty-day trip to a candy store, where everything is free and you don't get fat from anything. When considering what else to include in your book, prioritize forbidden pleasures over boring bran. Write for joy - and you will be heard.