How much do I write?

[OnSilverStars]

I've always wanted to write and I've finally started it. I've done rough outlines and characters. I've written the first chapter. I'm enjoying doing it and I will carry on, but I was wondering at what point to authors get others involved?

An editor, submissions to agents? Do most just write the first three chapters and submit to an agent to see if there'll be any interest or is the whole thing written and they send off the first three chapters of it.

Also a side question- has anyone used the fortelling app for writing a novel? I'm enjoying it but is it realistic to write a novel on?

Hi, I've been writing as a hobby for almost a decade and I have submitted things to agents in the past.

My advice would be--finish your project before you consider getting anyone else involved. If you are interested in trad publishing, agents will only consider finished, polished manuscripts, unless you are writing non fiction.

If you're writing for fun right now, give yourself time to enjoy it just for you, as submitting to agents is a bit of a slog and can take all the fun out of it.

I found it very helpful to join a writing group. Mine is online, and I found it tangentially though reddit. It's really helpful to have a group of trusted people who can critique your work, and just chat about writing in general.

Thank you so much for your response. That's helpful to know. I've very much enjoying it. I'm learning so much. I will join a few groups. I've started listening to a podcast as well that's been full of helpful information. It's a whole new world I'm so excited to begin!

No, finish the entire novel, and revise it thoroughly, getting it absolutely as good as you possibly can, before you query agents. Querying with the first three chapters is usual, though not universal (individual agents may vary), but you will also need to provide a synopsis of the entire novel in your cover letter (and you may deviate from your plan), and, more importantly, an interested agent will request a full MS., which should be ready to go. You don’t want to say ‘Sorry, haven’t written it yet’, look unprofessional, and lose their interest.

Thank you for that! A cover letter and a synopsis isn't something I've thought much about. I'll start thinking about that

Again, that's not something you should be thinking about before you've written the full novel, which will almost certainly change considerably in the writing.

There are some great life long learning courses etc for creative writing that are really helpful. I did one last year through our local Uni and currently doing another about publisher expectations which is great.

Haven't submitted anything yet but it's giving me some great insight into a whole new thing for me.

Good luck