EXCERPT and GIVEAWAY
How to Write a Book
(even if you never have)
(even if you never have)
by Bridget McNulty
How to Write a Book is currently on tour with Enchanted Book Promotions. The tour stops here today for an excerpt and a giveaway. Please be sure to visit the other tour stops as well.
Description
How to Write a Book (even if you never have) is the brainchild of Now Novel co-founder Bridget McNulty – a culmination of all the advice and tips she's been sharing with the Now Novel writing community over the last year. It’s a fantastically helpful resource for anyone wanting to write their first book, a guide for all those who love writing and want to tackle the Mount Everest of writing projects (a novel) and a reference for writers at any stage of their careers who need reminding of the building blocks of novel-writing: ideas, mood, theme, plot, setting and characters. It’s also, quite simply, a great read.
Excerpt
"So, how do you write a novel?"
It’s the million dollar question – and the one that started Now Novel, our online novel writing website. A surprising number of people asked me about writing a novel: those I met through publishing my novel in South Africa and the USA, friends of friends at dinner parties, and readers over email and chance encounters. I wanted to be able to give a real answer to the question. Not just some thoughts on the art of writing, but actual, concrete advice and tips that would help aspiring writers finish their novel.
I wanted to be able to tell people how to write a book, even if you never have.
So, together with a small team, I created a website that offers a structured method designed with one goal in mind: to help you finish your novel. It’s an organized process that’s easy to use, with helpful mentorship and consistent motivation all helping you take one step further to that goal of finishing your novel.
When we looked at what was available for aspiring novel writers, it was all stuffy and dull (and didn’t motivate us at all). We wanted something fresh and unique – an online novel-writing process that was easy, structured and inspiring. So we created www.nownovel.com
But we also recognize that if there’s one thing writers love to do it’s read – especially about writing! And there is such a wealth of advice we have to offer about every aspect of the writing life that it seemed a waste not to put it all in one book: this book that you’re reading right now. How To Write A Novel (even if you never have) is the culmination of months of research and careful thinking about the essential elements necessary to write a book.
So who is it for?
Well, as the title suggests, we wrote the book for first time writers. But it’s also for all those who are already established writers but now want to tackle the Holy Grail of Writing: a novel. Writing a novel isn’t like writing a short story or a magazine article or a blog. It’s a commitment – to a goal that will be with you for many months. A goal that you can achieve, with the right help.
Excerpt 2
Character matters, and this does not just mean creating a strong and
believable protagonist. Your other characters need to be vivid as well, and
that includes your villains.
Your characters must be well-developed because it's your characters that
will make readers care about what happens in your book. Your characters should
be people that your readers fall in love with or despise or weep with or worry
about. You want your readers to cheer when they get what they deserve whether
it's their comeuppance or their rewards and to despair when they do not.
The plot may keep readers turning pages, but it's the characters they
will remember long after they've put the book down.
Knowing your characters inside and out and being able to convey a strong
sense of who they are to the readers will make those characters come alive.
With descriptions of how your characters look, sound and move and an
understanding of their motivations, backstory, fears and desires, you can
create characters that feel as real to readers as the people they interact with
every day.
In this chapter, you'll learn how to create vivid, believable and
memorable characters of all types that will resonate with your readers.
Praise for the Book
"Bridget McNulty has gathered excellent content from from her site Now Novel and created a detailed system to enlighten and encourage anyone who desires to share a story in written form. This book is so complete it could be used as a syllabus for a college level course - including examples and exercises that will give a writer confidence." ~ DogsMom
"How to Write a Book (even if you never have) is, like the title suggests, a book about writing books. It’s actually a very thorough book, focusing on different aspects of writing, finding various strategies to come up with ideas, to develop a plot, work on your characters, find a theme/genre for your book, making sure your book isn’t a cliché, and so on. [...] If you’re a newbie writer or a veteran, you’ll find something useful within the pages of this book, I guarantee it. The writing style is fluent and to the point, and it makes an engaging read." ~ Majanka
About the Author
Bridget McNulty is a writer and editor with a passion for helping people write novels (even if they never have). She studied Creative Writing at Franklin & Marshall College in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, and went on to publish her first novel, Strange Nervous Laughter, in South Africa with Struik Publishers and in the USA with St Martin’s Press.
Since then, she has co-founded an online novel-writing process, NowNovel.com, that helps aspiring writers start – and finish! - their books, and founded a diabetes lifestyle magazine, Sweet Life, that focuses on the positive side of the condition. She lives in Cape Town, South Africa, with her husband and son, and spends her days reading, writing, and drinking tea.
Giveaway
Enter the giveaway for a chance to win an ebook copy (pdf) of How to Write a Book by Bridget McNulty.
Links
