Ask the Author: Jack Page
Answered Questions (4)
Jack Page
I believe those novels get one very tricky thing right, namely to hit a nerve of the particular time. They represent a particular genre or zeitgeist more than any other book and become the go-to example. They must not necessarily be the best novel in that genre, but they are the first to capture a social desire or fear. Just take a look at Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, which spoke to so many people because it reflected their concern about scientific progress. In this regard I see them primarily as a cultural artefact.
Jack Page
Stick with it. Like with most tasks, whether you are successful as a writer is decided over the long haul. The famous business author Malcom Gladwell talks about the 10,000 hours rule. Before you have not invested that amount of time in a skill, chances are you will not be truly good at it. Now you can do the math. Don't give up after a year, or two, or even five. Honing your craft and your storytelling technique is something every author must do excessively .
Jack Page
Our daily lives have become so complex that there is hardly any larger endeavor that we can handle alone; everything is a team effort. Writing novels, on the other hand, allows you to create so many different characters, with an entire life story for each of them. The storyline, the conflicts, the dialogues, the way how your protagonists act and feel - everything flows from your pen only. Nothing is that exhilarating. While there are definitively people who support you along the way such as early reviewers or graphic designers, you are in absolute control of the story and don't have to fob your readers off with comproises.
Jack Page
Writer's block is feared by most authors, but actually this is often the easiest obstacle to overcome. Two things are important:
1) Have a plan where you are going. You must sketch out your entire novel with regards to the story before you start writing - acts, chapters, and scenes. This is the most crucial stage of writing and determines the quality of the novel more than anything else. Most authors immediately jump into the writing process, which makes trouble invevitable later one.
2) If you nevertheless do encounter a wall and the words just won't spill out of your head and onto the paper - or your Word-processor - it helps to work on another chapter or scene. That does not have to be in a chronoligical order. Just write what at the moment comes easiest to you, Later on return to the troubling scene. It then might be less frightening.
1) Have a plan where you are going. You must sketch out your entire novel with regards to the story before you start writing - acts, chapters, and scenes. This is the most crucial stage of writing and determines the quality of the novel more than anything else. Most authors immediately jump into the writing process, which makes trouble invevitable later one.
2) If you nevertheless do encounter a wall and the words just won't spill out of your head and onto the paper - or your Word-processor - it helps to work on another chapter or scene. That does not have to be in a chronoligical order. Just write what at the moment comes easiest to you, Later on return to the troubling scene. It then might be less frightening.
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