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Tag Archive novel writing

Novel writing is like taking a good photograph

By Anthony S. Policastro, Publisher When writing a novel it is a bit like taking that award-winning photograph. Don’t worry, you don’t have to take great photographs to be a great novelist.

In today’s world with dozens of media channels bombarding us every minute of the day, your book has to stand out from all the noise.

Here are elements that should be included in your novel and help to make your book stand out. You can pick and choose a few or include all, but you should have at least one.

  1. Entertainment – in our complex, high-tech society escaping into a good novel is rest and relaxation for many people. Your novel should be entertaining. The level of entertainment included in your book depends on your genre and subject matter.
  2. Emotional – a good novel generates an emotional response whether it is joy, happiness, anger, fear, revelations, insights, disgust or all of the above.
  3. Informational – anytime your words teach something or help people improve their lives, you have given your readers a gift. However, if you over do the information, you might as well write a non-fiction book. It’s a delicate balance, but you can promo information if it is mixed with entertainment and emotions.

Now here is how writing is like photography. Look at the photo below. Pretend it’s your realty – what you perceive through your senses. Now write a story about that photograph. You would describe the scenery, the asphalt path, the fallen leaves and twigs…overall what you wrote is pretty boring and a nondescript story unless those elements play a part in your plot.  

Neuse River Greenway trail, Raleigh, NC

Neuse River Greenway trail, Raleigh, NC

  If you look closely or view the scene from a different angle or perspective there is a better story there. Neuse River Greenway trail, Raleigh, NC The story reveals itself upon a closer look – a nice person found the pink sunglasses on the trail and was considerate enough to place them on the milepost, hoping the person would pass this way again and find the sunglasses. Out of the reality emerges a story. Neuse River Greenway trail, Raleigh, NC The photographer views and analyzes the light, shadows, colors, shapes and how they play against each other and then picks an angle or position for the shot. Writing is the same.  A good book is like taking a snapshot of reality, analyzing that realty, digging deeper until the hidden story is found in plain sight and then putting it to words. Tell us what you think. We would love to hear your thoughts.

 

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