How to Get Published

by John Bowers

One of the hardest things I face when writing a novel is keeping the story consistent. Writing a book-length story may take from a few weeks to a few months, and you put the story down a few hundred words at a time. Over a period of several weeks, it’s sometimes hard to keep track of what happened earlier, and consistency can suffer.

If you’re writing from a detailed outline it may be easier, but if you’re like me, outlines are too restrictive. When I start a novel I usually have a general idea of what the book is about, three or four high points I want to hit, and a couple of characters. From that starting point, the adventure begins, and I usually don’t end up where I thought I might. But the journey is fantastic-I discover the story as I go, just as the reader does later on.

The problem with writing that way is that things will often happen that I didn’t anticipate. Characters may make decisions on their own (don’ t laugh, this actually happens), and I find myself on a side road heading for a different horizon than the one I had aimed for.

That isn’t always a problem, but when you get into the details, consistency can get lost. (more…)