Do you want to write a romance novel that allows you to call yourself a true writer or just to have fun? Writing novels of this literary genre is not easy at all, but it is fun! While there is no exact formula for writing one, in this article you will find some guidelines that you can follow.
Steps
Method 1 of 1: Write Your Love Romance
Step 1. Before you start writing your novel, decide what you will do with it once it is finished:
will you want to sell your book online or send it to a publisher to have a better chance of seeing it on bookstore shelves?
Step 2. If you make the decision to send it to a publisher, get in touch with a literary agent who will take care of promoting your book to publishers
Get the contact information of the agent you would like to have by your side. Write them down in a safe place so that you don't have to search for them again if necessary. If your intention is to sell on the web, you must still follow certain steps carefully. But don't publish the book for free or non-copyrighted if you want to get a lucrative advantage.
Step 3. Think about the characters, especially the two protagonists, who will appear throughout the novel
Imagine the past events of their lives, and which have marked them. What are their strengths and weaknesses? Have they experienced love affairs in the past? Get to know your characters.
- Characters make up a considerable part of a novel. In order to make the book look realistic (if that's what you're looking for), you need to blame them for flaws. Nobody is perfect, so why on earth should your characters be? However, making them perfect for each other is absolutely doable, as long as they have their own weaknesses, too.
- Don't let your main characters be obsessed with just one thing or one person. The reader should be able to know them beyond their romantic interests.
Step 4. Choose their ages
Based on the type of reader you are writing this novel for, select the ages of your characters. Audiences should reflect and review themselves in their experiences, so writing an adult romance novel centered around a group of 15-year-olds won't allow you to write a best seller. Conversely, if you are writing a teenage novel, try not to create characters that look like they are in their forties or thirties, as these are the ages of the parents of the kids who will read your book. Pre-teens and teenagers devour more romance novels, so it would be best if your characters were between the ages of 18 and 24. In short, set the ages of your characters based on the age of the target group of people you want to read your story.
Step 5. Choose the setting
If history unfolds in the future, the world will probably not be the same as it is today. If you're writing a paranormal novel, try making up your own world. Base the setting on the sub-genre of your novel. You don't have to be particularly meticulous if that's not what you want, but it will be easier for your readers to view the story if they can imagine a background. Furthermore, the setting can help you in the development of your characters: if the sun always shines in the place where they live, maybe one of them in the future would like to live in a rainy place, etc.
Step 6. Think about the events that make your story a true novel
Include events that actually have to do with this narrative style, such as dating and broken hearts. Think of interesting ideas, not the same ones used and reused by countless other stories. Maybe one of your protagonist's exes is jealous of her new relationship and is trying to win her back, or her parents might not approve of her ex and choose a different partner for her. Don't forget to include other characters in your book as well, such as ex-boyfriends, parents (especially when it comes to teenagers) and friends.
- Do not make sure that these events are always "a picnic in the park with butterflies flying everywhere" and do not follow the usual typical fictional patterns, with events such as "marriage, divorce, date, marriage, divorce, date, betrayal, breakup". You certainly want your novel to stand out among all the others, so season the indispensable factors of a typical sentimental novel with something original.
- Make the couple have their fair share of problems along the way. The usual story "two boys meet, fall in love and live happily ever after" is too inflated. It must be interesting, for example it could tell of "two guys meet and hate each other until one of them meets the other drunk and uninhibited at a party and takes him out on a date just because he feels sorry for him and the other discovers the true motivation behind his invitation, etc. ". Sure, it looks like a long way to get to the happy ending, but it puts you in front of much more complex alternatives. Depending on the type of novel you are writing, it creates different problems for your characters, for example one is a ghost, the other is 10 years older than the protagonist and his family does not approve, one is disabled, another is from from the future …
Step 7. Write credible dialogues
“Um, I'm Carlotta. I know you?" sounds believable. You have the total freedom to insert cloying dialogue, such as "You have the most beautiful eyes I've ever seen". However, don't fill the entire book with compliments that are sweet enough to make you nauseous. Novels need to be full of passion! Fill your book with emotions!
Include descriptive words. "Cute" or "nice" are not the best of professionalism and tend to discourage readers
Step 8. Start writing your book by hand or on your computer
Think of a beginning that you are passionate about, for example one of your characters flirts with another person he likes, not the one he is in love with, or, if it is a novel based on the paranormal, the story could start in one place. magical. You don't have to strictly follow the sketch, but you should stick to it. Also, think of a good ending. In most of the conclusions, the two characters live happily ever after, but why not try something different? The epilogue should be remembered, so you may want to create one with a strong impact.
Step 9. Finish the novel great
As much as you write a surprising novel, if the ending does not satisfy, the whole book will be remembered as "good" or "acceptable", precisely because the conclusion did not meet the expectations! Don't rush to the conclusion because you're tired of trudging through chapter after chapter. It's best to end the novel positively, meaning the two get together. This will make the readers happy, because they want the two protagonists to form a couple! In any case, you are not obliged to conclude the novel by making the two characters live happily ever after: think of “Romeo and Juliet”!
Step 10. Use grammar, spelling and punctuation properly
Nobody wants to read a novel with badly phrased expressions and that has not been corrected, full of phrases like “and she will only want to go to the bathroom and she never came back then and everyone was very sad. THE END, thanks for reading my book, here's my email, let everyone read it, HELLO !!! (this is an extreme example, of course). It is quite likely that no one will buy it. If you send it to a literary agent, the latter will keep you changing the novel until you stop making mistakes and it is free of typos. When you need to correct parts of the text, don't change the story! The agent would have rejected it if it was really bad, so if it hasn't done so so far, don't change a comma (if not correct the errors the publisher wants to eliminate)!
Step 11. Ask your friends to read the novel
Ask them for criticism, otherwise you will never get better. If they honestly like it, your story will probably be successful, so try to get it published!
Advice
- Always check your language, spelling, grammar and punctuation!
- Don't rush to finish your novel. A book takes a lot of effort, so take your time and do your best.
- An outline will help keep you organized and give you a basic understanding of your novel and what to include in it. If you need help, read this article.
- Microsoft Office Word is a very useful program for writing a novel. Besides, you don't always have to pay to use it! Before you buy it, try the free version and see if you like it. But, if you are going to write a very long book or write several books, you should buy the software before the trial time runs out (you will have about 180 days before this happens). A good free alternative is Open Office Writer, which allows you to save the file directly in PDF format, the one used for printing.
- Don't expect instant success! Your first book may not be published and you will probably need to send it to more than one publisher before it is accepted. Just remember that some of the most prestigious names in literature, such as J. K. Rowling or Charles Dickens, they were rejected for a long time before being consecrated.
Warnings
- If you think your book is really good but a particularly critical friend tells you it "sucks", don't believe him! If all the other people of average tastes really like it, then it's possible that your novel is of quality and you could sell tons of copies.
- Do not publish your novels online if you first intend to distribute them through a real publisher. Self-publishing is increasingly widespread and many novel writers self-publish their old books (those previously published in the traditional way) in the form of ebooks. This tactic has allowed them to earn a larger reader base and higher income. For some aspiring novel authors (or romance writers who weren't accepted by classic publishers), self-publishing for e-readers has helped them gain an audience and increase their profits. In the age of digital books, overcoming the hurdle of conventional publishing houses can be lucrative, but you need to be prepared to manage your personal business and persistently promote yourself. This means taking into account the time you will be taking away from your novel writing.
- Beware of those publishing houses that ask you to pay for them to read, correct and sell your book: it is likely to be a scam! Similarly, beware of online publishing houses, they too could cheat you.
