Want to write a Novel

[lavender1]

Anyone want to, have done for years but can't get started.

Me!!!, When I first came to England I had to wait 6m for my working permit, had nothing to do and was living in a tiny village in the middle of nowhere so I got a couple of books and started writing... Two chapters later I started working, continue studying, had a baby, an MA to finish and those two chapters are still laying there, from time to time I come back to them and still surprises me that after all these years I still find them good... I'll continue when I retire...

It's a pity my English is not good enough for creative writing, it would have been great to start a writing club with other mumsneters... mmmhh... well, if anybody is interested I could post a week assignment in a thread and we can post our writings one week later and comment on them. Do you think somebody would be interested?

That's great that you've actually put pen to paper, more than I have done...Lots of mumsnets would be interested in a writing club...My dream is to write a novel or two and often look at the creative writing courses at local colleges and skip them because feel not the right thing for me..You sound more than keen!..Please continue this thread as I'd be very interested to have writing club..what sort of books do you want to write and how long have you been writing?

I started writing fiction when I was 15, continued writing at university, back at it at my first MA but now I hardly have time and have nobody to read and criticise what I write. I signed up for some on-line courses in Barcelona some years ago, and it was great to have the feedback from other classmates, it was a lot of work and at the time I didn't have much time to do it, so I left it.... probably I should try again at night...

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I wrote one this year!

Okay, it's terrible, it'll never get published and I wrote the entire lot in one month, but hey... that's 50,000 words that wasn't written previously, right?

I can really recommend National Novel Writing Month - a novel writing project held every November to give you the incentive to actually sit down and do it. Was hell on earth for that month I have to admit, but it's so satisfying having something at the end to show for it.

Next year I hope to aim for something that could potentially be edited properly and submitted... probably won't get published, but if I don't try I can never succeed and all that...

Well done GeorginaA - I'm mightily impressed whether it gets published or not. That's quite an achievement.

I also harbour a dream to be a novelist. I'm told I write in a compelling and interesting way (although you would never guess from my posts!)...however big minus is I don't seem to have one single original idea which merits a book.

To be honest, hmc, I didn't think I had an idea either. What I found helped was to generate some characters (there's some great free resources around on the web to give you ideas how to create some characters) threw them all together and waited to see what happened. The technical term is "character driven plot" if you want to feel clever writing that way but it really does make life easier for jump starting ideas...

I am a member of this site . You can write stories, poems etc and post it publicly and then get others to rate it.

There are several books about on how to write a bestseller. They are pretty good. I think Sally Beauman (who wrote Pearls etc) has written one.
The difference between a novelist and a non-novelist is that the novelist actually sat down and wrote a book - that's it! It really is primarily a matter of just doing it. I have two friends who are successful novelists, one writes around her baby and the other wrote her first novel while in a demanding fulltime job (she wrote from 6am to 8am and 8pm until 10-11pm everyday) she now has a baby and another on the way and has written every day in an office from 9 to 5 - self discipline is a hell of a lot more important than waiting for 'inspiration'. I have no desire to write a novel myself - it's hard work.

i write a bit......

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no twinkie......
erm....just somehting I do when I get a chance (now that I have discovered mumsnet that chance is nil!!!)

aloha - the books on how to write a novel are pretty poor....i teach my 11 year olds at school how to do it better......
modest arent i???!!!

well..the ones i have seen anyway - that is the books on how to write books....

I've ALWAYS wanted to get something published. My scribbles aren't worth looking at yet, however!

I've just bought myself (as a 'well done' for passing my driving theory test - any excuse!) a CD-ROM called 'Start Writing your Novel'. I've not opened it yet but it looks promising. I think it's basically a writing coach plus a framework to keep your character and plot ideas in some kind of logical order so you can build up a coherent story. It's my NY's resolution to try and do some writing each week (along with passing my driving practical test...)

I'd be REALLY interested in an assignment thread, Chandra

My novel is in bits and I'm too lazy to take it further. I make lots of excuses - babies, work, Buffy the Vampire Slayer to watch - but really, I know it's laziness. Writing is very hard work.

OTOH maybe this year....

I always wonder why I've never heard of the authors of those "how to be a successful novelist" books...

Mine will appear one day. Spend more time thinking up my pen name than thinking of a plot though!

i have several plots on the go and seveeral short stories and poems written
for me though, it is quite private thing taht i do to amuse myself...the thoght of anyone reading them makes me feel nauseous

I know what you mean: I have several bits of stories and poems written ages ago. A friend once borrowed them (he had the notebook in his bag before I could say no) and that felt very very strange.

So you wouldn't be up for an "I'll show you mine if you show me yours" thing then?

ermmm, not sure sp!!!
there is one poem that i wrote that i read at my son's naming ceremony...it wasnt nerves that made me dread doing it but the fact that it was 'my; poem. I would have happily read another poem....
i gues sthat one is kind of public...the registery office asked for a copy for other people to use at naming ceremonies....

wow! I hope you said yes! (to giving them the poem). Can't write poetry anymore - mine is of the self-obsessed depressive variety that can only be written effectively while a teenager. Maybe I should try again though. And write something happy.

i was mortified that hey asked...very embarrasessed (the naming ceremony was also my wedding day!!)
i has still to send them it - partly due to anxiety about it and partly due to disorganisation!!

Hello ladies, have just read this thread with interest...my life's dream is to be a published novelist and poet, but as I'm sure you know, with children, especially under 5s, it is most difficult to do anything about it.

Not only is time hard to find, but the kind of time needed is quiet time when thoughts may be ordered.

However, as has been said here, the difference between novelists and non-novelists is that the novelists sit down and write. So I am going to make a big effort this year to do something about it.

I have plots worked out and a few years ago I wrote about a quarter of a novel, but I changed my mind about finishing it. I thought it was good enough, but decided that it wasn't the kind of think I wanted to be known for, so now I don't plan to finish it.

But neither have I got anywhere with another project dear to my heart. I need to seriously kick myself up the bum with this!

I am very interested in chatting with you all on this subject as I think a support group will help to spur us all on.

If it is any help I have attended classes with the same tutor for about 15 years and he thinks I should be a tutor myself. I informally edited my friend's childrens' book recently and that has been accepted for publication by Puffin. So if anyone would like my help to assess their work I would be happy to give advice.

Sorry, need to change my name again. Haven't been posting lately.

I think 2004 will have to be the year when I get published. I am more interested in non fiction, though. But I'd be up for getting some good old MN support - we could push each other to get on with it!