A Quick Guide to Starting Your Novel

Every year, we’re lucky to have great sponsors for our nonprofit events. Today, Milanote, a 2019 NaNoWriMo sponsor, has partnered with creative writing coach Angel McCoy to bring you this summary guide on how to start your novel as you prepare for NaNoWriMo:

Writing a novel is the most amazing adventure you may ever undertake. It’s a baring of the soul, no matter how fictional. It requires dedication, attention to detail, imagination, and a burning desire to tell a story. When you sit down to begin your story outline, you’re taking the first step on a journey into the unknown. Fortunately, many novelists have already traveled the path before you, so you don’t have to go into that wilderness without a map. 

Milanote is a wonderful creative writing app where you can organize your research, ideas, characters and outline in one place.

In this article you will learn five critical questions to ask yourself about your novel so that you can begin formulating a vision for it. These questions are practical and inspirational. This is the first step toward writing your novel, so let’s settle in and get started!

Question 1: What is this novel about?

The first question is “What is this novel about?” At this stage, you don’t want to dive too deep. State your answer as a “What if…” question, and limit yourself to twenty words or less. These limitations help to refine your concept. See example below for The Wizard of Oz.

Question 2: What are the stakes?

The next question is “What are the stakes?” If your heroes fail, what will happen? What do the world and your characters have to lose if this story ends in tragedy? 

Question 3: What is the core conflict?

After the stakes, you want to define the core conflict. A great way to express this is with an “X versus Y” statement, where X is your protagonist and Y is the force working against your protagonist. Who or what wants to keep the protagonist from achieving success? Is it an individual, a group, a situation, an internal struggle, or something else?

Question 4: How is the conflict resolved?

Eventually, the Core Conflict must be resolved, but how? When answering this next question, consider whether the protagonist fails or the story ends in success. Describe, in one sentence, how the Core Conflict is resolved.

Question 5: What is ‘the lesson’?

Conflict creates change, whether in the protagonist or the world itself. A novel is the story of change through conflict. In your novel, what needs to change? We call this The Lesson to represent that someone or something is facing a trial that will end in transformation. What is the transformation that occurs through the course of your novel and comes to fruition through the application of the Core Conflict? 

If you answered all these questions, then you’re well on your way to a novel. 

If you found this guide useful you might like to try Milanote’s accompanying story map template to help you start your next great novel.

Angel Leigh McCoy tells tales and builds worlds for a living. Her stories have entertained millions, maybe even you. AngelMcCoy.com