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Beyond the Word Count: A Book Editor's Guide to Writing a First Draft
Every year, we’re lucky to have great sponsors for our nonprofit events. First Draft Pro, a 2023 NaNoWriMo sponsor, is a beautifully designed writing app for fiction writers. Today, they've partnered with Kelly Norwood-Young, former book editor for Pan Macmillan and Penguin Random House, to bring you some pro tips on writing your first draft:
In my career as a book editor, I’ve reviewed hundreds of manuscripts. I've seen the joy of authors creating compelling tales, but also how disheartening it can be to rewrite a disjointed story. I’m here to give you some strategies to address common pitfalls so that you not only reach your NaNoWriMo goal, but also lay the groundwork for a manuscript that truly deserves to be called a gripping novel.
1. Have a plan.
Even if you’re more of a ‘pantser’ than a ‘planner’, it's really helpful to have an outline. I have two favourite approaches for this: the structure-first approach, and what I call the ‘Phoebe Waller-Bridge approach’.
The structure-first approach
There are a lot of narrative frameworks for story structure, but the most foundational in Western fiction is the three-act structure. Here’s a handy guide that breaks each of the classical three acts into a day-by-day guide to NaNoWriMo:
8-day guide to Act 1
14-day guide to Act 2
8-day guide to Act 3
The Phoebe Waller-Bridge approach
I love this quote from Phoebe Waller-Bridge: ‘I’ve never thought structure first. I’ve always thought material first, jokes first, character first ... But knowing the end really helps. Then you just go as far away from the end emotionally as you possibly can.’
Sketch out your major story arcs, your character’s desires and conflicts, and the world they inhabit. The more you know your story's world and inhabitants, the less you'll stray into scenes that lack purpose or create plot and character inconsistencies.
2. Keep the story moving.
Each word needs to propel your story forward. Superfluous details or tangents that don’t serve the narrative stall the momentum you’re trying to generate for your reader.
There’s a trick you can use to move your story forward, called the question of reversibility. Ask yourself: How difficult would it be for my character to reverse their decision? The harder it would be for them to turn back, the more you’ve moved the plot forward.
3. Plant clues carefully.
Plant important elements early and make sure every element, however subtle, serves a purpose (i.e. Chekhov’s Gun).
Be sure to set up necessary components for your climax so that you can steer clear of Deus ex Machina (having that strong outline will help you here), and avoid red herrings unless they serve a clear, meaningful purpose (e.g. you’re writing a mystery and your readers expect some false leads). Misleading your readers without a payoff can erode their trust.
4. Write for the reader, not yourself.
‘There is only one thing you write for yourself, and that is a shopping list,’ insists Umberto Eco in On Literature. Even if writing, for you, is a therapeutic outlet, a form of self-expression, or a way to leave a legacy, you’re still writing to say something to someone else. Your story simply won’t be as strong if you forget your reader’s perspective.
5. Keep daily editorial notes for your future self.
While editing should wait until at least December, end each day with a brief reflection, noting any off-course deviations, potential inconsistencies, areas to research further, or moments of inspiration to revisit when you start editing.
These daily notes will be invaluable during the editing process, helping you to remember insights that are no longer fresh when you come back to the manuscript later.
6. Embrace the first-draft mentality.
There’s a lot you can do to ensure that your first draft is the best it can be before the end of November—but just as important is to understand that all first drafts have flaws.
As a book editor, I've witnessed manuscripts transform, sometimes unrecognizably, from their first drafts. Embrace the uncertainty and creative detours—because it's from this beautiful chaos that your story will find its true voice.
Kelly Norwood-Young is a seasoned book editor and proofreader with comprehensive experience across various facets of manuscript editing. Her background includes roles at Pan Macmillan and Penguin Books, extending into a successful freelance career working with award-winning authors. Kelly's work, known for its precision and sensitivity to the author's voice, has been integral to the success of both new and established writers globally.
Try out First Draft Pro: All NaNoWriMo participants can use the discount code NANOWRIMO2023 for 20% off a premium subscription to First Draft Pro! Offer expires January 31, 2024.
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1. Use the time of a total stranger in such a way that he or she will not feel the time was wasted.
2. Give the reader at least one character he or she can root for.
3. Every character should want something, even if it is only a glass of water.
4. Every sentence must do one of two things—reveal character or advance the action.
5. Start as close to the end as possible.
6. Be a Sadist. No matter how sweet and innocent your leading characters, make awful things happen to them – in order that the reader may see what they are made of.
7. Write to please just one person. If you open a window and make love to the world, so to speak, your story will get pneumonia.
8. Give your readers as much information as possible as soon as possible. To hell with suspense. Readers should have such complete understanding of what is going on, where and why, that they could finish the story themselves, should cockroaches eat the last few pages.
An extraordinary collection of fine and rare miniature books, published from the mid-17th-century to the modern day. It includes books printed in France, the Netherlands, England, Italy and Germany, on a diversity of themes ranging from histories to works of scripture, devotion, literature, almanacs, and natural history. The collection boasts three 17th-century works, with the earliest being a Dutch song book from 1650 preserved in a charming contemporary vellum wallet binding, as well as a French book of hours from 1684 and an English bible in contemporary morocco from 1693. Many of the books are attractively bound in contemporary gilt morocco, others in gilt and blindstamped calf, decorative paper wrappers, silver cases, while some are contained within miniature wooden boxes as part of a child’s sewing kit. Some books are housed in cases with their own miniature magnifying glasses, and others are arranged on miniature shelves or cabinets, including a miniature revolving bookcase constructed by Julian Stanley of High Wycombe, commissioned by Lord Wardington and presented by him to Nanni Israel.
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I want Aziraphale and Crowley to hash out all the emotional shit the first fucking episode of S3 and the rest of the season is them toddling around as they always have, trying to save the world but like... kissing about it.
Did you know Studio Ghibli made a film in 2006 based on the young Howl? Many Japanese people believe this character is based on Howl as a youth as seen when Sophie travels through time. The film is called “the Day i bought a star” (Hoshi O Katta Hi) and as we know Howl has had childhood experiences with stars, also being known as ‘the boy who swallowed a star’.
The short film 16 minutes in length was written and directed by Miyazaki and is shown exclusively in Tokyo’s Ghibli Museum and the new Ghibli Park in Aichi prefecture but the story is a partial adaption of book by the same name by Naohisa Inoue (you might recognise art style visuals from the fantasy sequences of Whisper of the Heart also drawn by Inoue).
As you can see from the images above the film also features a magical woman older than Howl (could that be a certain mentor witch? 🤣) and a boy who looks very like Howl who lives on his own in the country side. The film was also Miyazaki’s first project directly after the release of Howl’s Moving Castle in 2004.
I’ll not go into the story except to say it’s a beautiful and mystical ethereal tale that leaves you with a lot of unanswered questions and i hope you all get to see it in the Museum or Park some day! But for any of you reading who are lucky enough to have seen it please comment your thoughts 🥳
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So now that we have all the pieces of Project Voltage art, which one is your favorite? They're all really good, but I'm partial to the Flygon one personally!
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