Kurt Vonnegut said that one’s soul grows as he practices an art, no matter how well or badly. If this is true, novelists must have the most mature souls because the art of writing requires patience and persistence. The following are some points that will help you stay on course when writing a novel.

1. Think about the plot

It is a messy undertaking to write a novel. You will have a much easier time editing the novel if you devoted time to developing the plot. For some writers, using an outline to plan the story is adequate; others use index cards to plan their scenes. Authors who don’t put a lot of emphasis on planning also do some form of planning. For instance, some authors come up with the main idea for a conflict and figure out what type of ending they want before they start writing. If you have written novels before, you know how your brain works and know which type of structure you need to complete your novels. If you are a new author, it will be an interesting learning process and should help you.

2. Write a first draft

When you have an idea for a book, you should test it out on other writers to find out if it is viable. Do not solicit their ideas on the writing process itself. Your main focus should be to write a complete story. Some writers prefer to have a regular writing schedule so that they can write novels over a longer period. Others like the pressure of looming deadlines and sign up for novel classes where they are given weekly deadlines.

3. Be ready to revise

Any novelist should be aware that there is a lot of work between writing the first draft and publishing a book. This is the case for both new and experienced writers. No matter how inspired you feel when writing a first draft, you can be sure that it will be disorganized, confusing, and clunky. The dialogue will be unconvincing and whole chapters will drag. As a writer you must be ready to rewrite the entire book when necessary.

4. Solicit feedback

When you have a completed manuscript, you should ask for feedback from your fellow authors before you start contacting agents. You should be ready to start writing another draft because it happens more often than you think. The first problems to address are serious structural problems. You should then revise the book on a scene-by-scene basis. If you question anything you write, stop and figure out how to solve the problem. You should always revise your book thinking about the most intelligent reader.

5. Set it aside

If you are frequently troubled by the same problems when writing a draft, maybe it’s time you worked on something else to set yourself straight. If you think this is a bad idea, remember Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen. She published the bestselling book an unbelievable 16 years after writing the first draft!