5 Steps to Writing a Novel


Some time ago, I made this little video. It has been shared by many people, on Twitter and elsewhere, and caused much hilarity. It is not, however, the most optimistic perspective if you are just starting out on your journey as a writer.


To balance it up a little, I've written '5 Steps to Writing a Novel' for Groupon's blog. Have a look at both (don't forget to 'like' it on Groupon's blog. Love to see those numbers go up), then come back here, and post your thoughts below.

Once you have your book, of course, you need to market it. For that, you must put together a book marketing funnel. Pick up this month's Writing Magazine (April Issue) while it's still available. The new one comes in on 6th April, so scurry out and grab this one as soon as you can. I've written a step-by-step guide to marketing your book for you. Laminate it.

Don't forget ... my Book Launch Week is 31st March until 6th April! UPDATE: IT'S OUT! CLICK HERE.

Best wishes,

8 comments:

patti bright said...

I haven't seen this before. It's hilarious.

I love No 8.

My writing Coach taught me two Ernest Hemmingway quotes
that I always keep in mind:

1. The first draft of anything is shit.

and

2. There is nothing to writing. All you do is sit down at the typewriter and bleed.

It's such a long, hard slog getting anywhere in the writing world and sometimes I wish I didn't have this need to be a writer. Writing is not a hobby, it's an addiction for which there is no cure.

Rebecca Woodhead said...

I like Walter Wellesley "Red" Smith's take on it: 'There's nothing to writing. All you do is sit down at a typewriter and open a vein.'

The struggle's part of the process. If has to be hard, so that only the really passionate people make it through.

Rebecca Woodhead said...

Hmmm. I see the peril of linking away from the blog. Temptation to shout 'DUDES!!!' is worryingly great, but I'll resist. Please come back here after you've snuck away to read my Groupon blog. I like to keep comments here, as it helps other writers. If you snoop through the blog, you'll see how useful it is. Special bonus hugs to all who hear my call. :)

Christine Bridson-Jones said...

Loved it!

Rebecca Woodhead said...

I'm glad, Christine.

Tahlia said...

Do you know about Goodreads? I can't find your book there and I think it's a good place to have your work. I check out all the books I'm thinking of reading there before buying and I think a lot of people do.

http://www.goodreads.com/

Rebecca Woodhead said...

Hi Tahlia,

Yes, I'm on Goodreads. I don't hang out there though. I'm not looking for passing traffic for this first launch. My network has over 6 million people in it, so I'm curious to see how many sales I can make just through my network in the first instance. It's a bit of an experiment. I'll branch out after that. :)

Rebecca Woodhead said...

Just snuck back over there to see when I joined. Been a member for a couple of years. I'll definitely do more over there once my book is out, but I don't want to dabble too much. Networks can be so time consuming. I want to give it special time later. At the moment, I wouldn't be much use to the community. I haven't time to read! Once the book's out, and I've got time to read some of the books I'm desperate to get my paws on (like Nikesh Shukla's Coconut Unlimited) I'll put in some quality time on Goodreads.

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