If you are an author and have decided to wade in the murky waters of fiction writing, you might often feel out of place. However, there are certain guidelines that can help you to stay focused and to keep the book engaging. The following are some guidelines for new fiction authors.
Understand your audience: People who are just starting to write fiction are usually tempted to write for the widest possible audience. This often makes their story go in too many directions which turns it into a mess. It is important for any author to know that he/she cannot please everyone. Therefore, an author has to choose the audience that will appreciate his work more.
If you have written a book with a specific audience in mind, read through it to make sure that you have kept your focus consistent. You should edit out any part that might not appeal to your audience unless you put it there intentionally.
Know your genre: Just as it is important to know your audience, you must also know your book’s genre. Fans of a genre expect certain key elements when they are reading your work. There are also sub-genres which are intended to have very specific plot lines. You should be consistent with whichever genre you use. Although you can write a cross-genre story, it is a good idea to avoid mixing it up too much.
Create real characters: Your characters should come to life in the imagination of your readers. They should have features such as hidden secrets, phobias, serious flaws, bad habits, and anything else that makes them seem more human and believable. Readers should be able to feel strongly about the best characters in a book. Avoid making characters too perfect because readers will not feel as big a connection as they would with flawed characters.
An author should also know that what is happening in the story should affect the characters. No character should remain the same after something major happens in the storyline. Just like major life events change us, the characters in the book should also be affected by the things they are facing.
Don’t tell what is happening, show it: Many new writers make the mistake of telling readers about what is happening in a scene. However, they should write the story in a way that readers will visualize the scene as it unfolds. When an author tells about what is happening it is like having a friend describe a film to you. It is not as authentic as watching the film yourself.
Stick to the plot: Writers can have several subplots in their novels. Beginners usually get so caught up in these subplots that they neglect moving the main plot along. It is not wrong to use subplots; however, they should be used only if they relate to the main plot and help to move it forward.
Give scenes a natural pace: You should never make the mistake of trying to end scenes too quickly. Every scene should be allowed to play out naturally. Things in real life happen at a certain pace and it might be odd to make them happen too quickly in a book.
