In late February, I stumbled upon a novel writing competition. You needed the first 5,000 words of a novel in progress by the end of March to win up to $50,000. The timing wasn’t great—I was knee-deep in writing my own next book—but it was a useful distraction. I want to eventually write novels anyway, so I figured I’d give it a shot.
I didn’t know how long it would take me, but I just started. I grabbed an old idea from a notebook. It was nothing more than a concept. There was no plot. I didn’t have any characters. Not even a name for the book or the protagonist. Only a silly little concept.
As soon as I started typing, I realized I was out of my depth. I had written a few short stories before, but those usually came to me as pretty fleshed out scenes. Writing them felt more like describing an existing idea. Or maybe I was simply more inspired or in better writing shape. In any case, I quickly realized the novel couldn’t go very far if I didn’t know the main character’s destination!
I went back to the drawing board and passed a few mornings coming up with ideas and structuring the story. I’d done this before, and it helped. By no means did it answer all my questions, but it was enough to get going.
Once I began narrating the first scene in the first chapter, yet again, I found myself out of my depth. “How much do I describe vs. handle via dialogue? When and how do I introduce new characters? What about dialects and accents? Is there a whole in this part of the plot already?” One by one, I found answers to these questions.
I went back to the classics and some of my favorites. How much dialogue vs. narration is in Harry Potter? How about Lord of the Rings? I researched a ton. I weighed realistic depictions against what I could get away with in fiction. I wrote character introductions and saw how they felt. Then, I adjusted them.
The more challenges I solved, the faster I made progress in every next session. Eventually, I got into a decent rhythm. Near the end of March, I had seven chapters—and almost 6,000 words. I had to edit my words down, not come up with more.
I’ve edited a lot of nonfiction writing for the flow of its logic but never fiction. This time, I had to pay attention not just to grammar and style but also events that felt unnatural. Once again, out of depth. One day before the deadline, as I was putting the finishing touches on the draft, I spotted a massive plot hole. The means of a crucial escape for my main character was flawed. It’d never work in reality. I researched options for an alternative and, in a good twist of fate, found one that worked better than the original device. It even blended in with some of the other little details I had already included. Hooray!
I finished the work and shipped it. Now that I’ve pushed the button, I’m waiting. The competition had 15,000 entries, so I’m not holding my breath. I already had a great experience! I learned a lot and am excited to keep writing on this novel. But for now, it’s time to return to my other book and finish that.
Every now and then, it’s nice to be out of your depth. Just a little. Enough to make you stretch but not falter. If you’re used to diving 10 meters, try 12. The skills you need to grab your next star might lie just beyond where you’re usually reaching.
