In an article for Writer’s Digest, Diana Abu-Jabermar suggests four ways to start writing your novel. They include:
- Mise En Place. “The writer’s mise en place is in fact a place,” Abu-Jabermar says. “Do you have a place where you can think, where you can dream and explore? A private office is wonderful, but it isn’t essential. There needs only to be a tacit understanding that this is your creative retreat.”
- Make the Marble. Michelangelo reputedly said, “I saw the angel in the marble and carved until I set him free.” In this case, your marble is the material you need to write your book, including your research.
- Strategize. “Make a writing plan and stick to it,” Abu-Jabermar writes. “Do this at the beginning of the day, every day.”
- Start small. “You don’t try to write the thing in a few massive sessions, you do it in small, manageable pieces,” Abu-Jabermar notes. “People have all sorts of inventive methods for breaking down their novels and plot structures, like using index cards to create a storyboard, or writing short stories that can be turned into chapters.”
