I am new to the forums as well as writing. I would like to get started writing. I have an idea and I have started my first paragraph, which was suppose to introduce the storyline and plot. When I read it, the time frame seems to be in the mid point of the story line. My question is, can you start to write a novel in the middle and then fill in the start and ending of the novel?
Yes. Some people has to write their story from first word to the last, but a lot of people jump around or do it their own way. To me the most important thing is to actually write. You're new, you have to find what works for you, but until then it's better if you write than end upp worrying!
The first scene that comes to me in any story is very, very rarely the actual, chronological first scene. I am certainly not a "Chapter One to Chapter Done" writer.
Absolutely. The end product is what matters. Each writer may find a different approach that works for her, and it may even vary from novel to novel. You can write the novel backwards standing in a bucket of ferrets if that works for you and produces an end product that you're satisfied with.
Thank you all for your responses and help. The only error I would be making is to not write at all, that is very good advice.
Yup, my Drafts usually start as a a variety of scenes, which are then meshed together in "Order" or possible "Order".
I second this. The first scene that came to me for my WIP is actually now in the last third of the book. So yes, it's very possible to not write the beginning and end right away. Writing the middle may even help you gain some insight on how you think the story would best start and end, rather then fumbling right at the beginning with a first chapter that doesn't feel right.
I agree with what others have said. Press onward. Finish the first draft and then go back and see if you started in the right place in the story. Your first draft will not be perfect. Don't expect it to be. You will revise and edit it a number of times before it's ready to seek it's place in the world (find a publisher or self-publish) if that's your ultimate goal for the project.
Of course you can. And it may turn out to be a better start because new writers usually tend to begin way too early. Maybe that's where your story really starts. For example, Harry Potter is a story about an orphan who grows up with relatives and then one day he discovers he has magic powers. It appears that his story begins when he's orphaned, but the book put the start at a much later, at that interesting point where Harry realises he's magic. So, maybe you don't even need to include much of what happened earlier. Write whatever inspires you, then see what more needs to be included and what can be omitted.
The order in which I think of things is rarely the order in which they make most sense. I often rearrange the order of scenes, paragraphs and even sentences within paragraphs. A novel is hundreds of pages long (80,000 words ish) when you have an idea of an extra few lines to insert or want to make a major rearrangement, finding a particular place can be a issue. I find it helps to include titles and subtitles to the sections (which are deleted in the final version). Your word processor should have the capability to automatically make a contents table of these which helps with planning. I plan and edit as I write.
Someone mentioned not writing in chronological order to me and I'm trying that with my novel. I'm writing out important scenes then I'll go back to link everything together along with flesh everything out. I think you should write how you're comfortable.
I don't know about anyone else, but my first paragraph rarely makes it through a first edit without a cut and complete rewrite. Get a good amount down, and then you will be able to see better if it fits and if you think it's right.
For me, it depends on the genre. It's almost impossible to write a detective story "chapter one to chapter done", but for an adventure story this approach works pretty well - I just relax and enjoy the adventures, chapter by chapter. But what I always do at the start is writing 1-2 paragraphs that nail down the MOOD. Normally, that'd be the very first paragraphs of the novel-to-be, but not necessarily. After the mood is set, I move on to planning the plot and write it whatever works better way: from beginning to the end, from the end to the start, in circles, in spirals... But I always have these paragraphs in front of me as a reference to check if I'm still writing the book I was going to So yeah, write whatever it goes, just a small advice: don't drop a scene in the middle before switching to the other one. Make sure you finish your thought. This is a good advice for daily writing as well: don't aim for words, aim for episodes, finished thoughts.
Many great novels have flashbacks. Some even have flash forwards, depending on the genre. That is not unusual or undesirable. If you are uncomfortable with doing that but your story needs that, it can help to sketch out the timeline arc for your novel on some butcher paper (or use a modern version of that on a computer). I did that the other day and it crystalised for me where I needed to put in more effort.
My main WIP I started with a scene very near the end. Actually my very rough draft it was the end of the book. It was the only thing I had in my mind. Next, I started work on getting my characters there. I should pass 70K words tomorrow.
This is all good advice. Especially the JUST KEEP WRITING stuff. Wholeheartedly agree with that. Though I'm also a big believer in planning. If you start a novel from scratch now without knowing where it goes you will almost certainly fail (okay, there's a few exceptions). A whole novel holds together so many characters, ideas, sequences and plot lines, you can't keep them all in your head. I'd recommend you to sit down and brainstorm for twenty minutes or so what the nuclear of your story is. Who's the most interesting character and why. And what's your reason to tell this story? Make it personal. I always do this and whenever I get stuck, I read through it again. For me it's really helpful to understand my own motivation to write on something. Edit: I made a blog post about the Hero's Journey this morning! The post is more about how to apply writing to psychology and understanding one's self better, but I also go into the steps of the Hero's Journey a bit. I think you might benefit from that in thinking about where your story Is headed, so I'm including it : https://writingnooked.wordpress.com/2018/04/01/the-call-to-adventure/
It's an old-ish thread, but I'm wondering how the OP, @Christina58 , is getting on with her novel? Hope you're into the swing of writing it now.
