Whenever I'm talking (in person or on social media) to other writers, they often tell me that they think that writing a book is too hard, so they don't even start. And that's sad because writing (and finishing) a book manuscript not only gives you an enormous sense of personal achievement, but it's also a great way to earn passive income from writing, if you publish it.
I sometimes think that the reason they think it's hard, and why they never begin, is because they don't know where to start. I mean, how do you come up with an idea for a whole book?
The answer is that you don't. All you need is an idea and then you grow it from there. It doesn't need to be a big idea either, just the germ of one.
If you want to write fiction, it's best to stick to the genres you like to read. This is for several reasons including that you already know what these stories need to contain because you've already read so many of them, and also because writing has to be fun so you need to write what interests and entertains you.
Then you just need an idea of what you want to write about. For instance (and I'm making this up on the fly as I'm writing), say you like reading romance novels, so you want to write a romance book.
But what would make a great story?
How about if it was about a guy who was really shy and a woman who liked him, but because he was so shy she thought he only liked her as a friend because she mistook his shyness for disinterest.
And then how about if someone else, another woman, comes into the picture and she's really domineering and talks the shy guy into dating her, and at the same time, another guy asks the first woman out and she goes but only because she thinks the shy guy isn't interested in a romantic relationship with her. Or the second woman can be already known to the first woman and it's someone she already dislikes.
Now you can expand this even further and have a huge rivalry and hatred between the two woman and it spills over into their relationships with the guys and it all climaxes in a physical altercation between the two women.
And then the backlash from that could be that the first woman ends up being arrested and the other trashes her belongings while she's gone, and eventually the shy guy steps in to put a stop to it all and that's when the first woman realises that he really does care about her and they end up together after all.
I know that you're thinking that it's not the greatest of plots, but it's a quick idea I just came up with (feel free to use it if you want to though) and it can be played around with and changed until it's a fantastic story with a few crisis and subplots that all culminates in the girl finally getting her man. Tada! A happily ever after if I ever heard one. Although all romance books end that way.
But can you see how easily, in just a few minutes, I went from the idea or writing a romance novel to coming up with characters, crisis and plot? It wasn't the best but if I'd had more time I would do better.
So don't give up on writing a book. Think about what you want to write and then come up with an idea that you can flesh out until it's a useable story with a great plot. Or for nonfiction, think of a subject you want to write about, one that holds a lot of interest for you or that you know a lot about, and then expand that idea into topics you'd want to cover in your book.
And you can read more about how to go from idea, to outline to blueprint to finished manuscript in my latest article at https://ruthiswriting.com/articles/2021/write-a-book.html.
It's called, 'This is How to Write a Book.'
Enjoy
The One Month Author
How to Write a Book Faster & Better
