Have you ever tried to write a novel?

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I've always wanted to because I enjoy a good book, but I don't know what to write about. I've had a couple of failed attempts, but never know where to take my story.

I wrote one last year called 'Commoner the Vagabond.' It's the biography of a homeless man with undiagnosed Asperger's who gets in trouble with the law very often yet somehow becomes hope to the homeless when his life inspires a popular TV show. I'd like to get it published next year.

I wrote 20 pages for a book I but I lost it. : (

Robin - what's the link to your book again?

Everybody must buy this book. Now.

Hurtloam, ever try NaNoWriMo, it's great for us lesser mortals, and there's a thread on it...somewhere. Perhaps you just need to write, let the story take itself where it needs to go. Not everyone can write to a fully-functioning roadmap. You can fix it on the second draft, that's what it's for!

Last edited by octobertiger on 22 Oct 2013, 5:02 pm, edited 1 time in total.

No not yet.
My wife is currently writing a novel thou

I do however have 2 stories under construction in my head, one post apocalyptic epic following a family bloodline down the generations, and one fantasy/steam punk idea that at this moment only is a world.. however a very living world and I am still searching for the story to tell from it, so far I have many, but none that tie together in a nice way we will see what the future holds.

As was previously mentioned, you could try participating in NaNoWriMo this year. I did it last year, and wrote a whole novel (just for fun, mind you).

They offer a way to keep track of what you're writing, and they track your word count progress over time. It's a good way to just get something done.

Here's the link to my first book, Wetland and Other Stories.

http://www.amazon.com/Wetland-and-Other ... er+stories

Commoner the Vagabond won't be released till next year.

I finished a horror novel about a year ago, in which one of the supporting characters has AS. I thought it was a good vehicle for putting NT readers inside the head of an autistic person, so they could experience firsthand (if vicariously) what things like sensory overloads and shutdowns feel like (of course, none of that had anything to do with the horror aspects of the story). I think it turned out okay, but it was kind of a painstaking process, waiting for my subconscious to sort of gestate each scene, one at a time, like creating a serial - it took four years.

Last edited by Willard on 22 Oct 2013, 7:04 pm, edited 1 time in total.

Very cool.

I'm reading it right now. It's very good! All the characters are so different and interesting - but they all have something in common too (which seems to be the point).

Almost all of us in this thread have been in other posts together. Let's form a club.

A former friend and I had collaborated on an action/adventure novel together years ago. Later, I down played the international angle, and turned it into a criminal conspiracy with many of the same characters, though that sort of petered out. Later, I've been working on and off on a horror novel involving werewolves set in my home of the Spokane/Spokane Valley area where I reside.

The first thing I found with taking a story somewhere is that I write what I like. For the most part that consists of some variation of science-fiction super powered persons doing things. Pretty vague and non-specific. But it's a start. I don't write much at all fantasy but I have.

The second thing I found that helps is that whereever I go, depends on what ideas I come up with. I attempt to write down and keep any ideas that come to me. Some never pan out, some do. Some have been developed into their own stories. Some are merely a means to progress the story. Some are garbage and unworkable at the time, but may be later.

The third thing I found is that If I need inspiration where to go with a story, I do similar things to when I'm stuck doing something else. I stop. I then avoid it for a bit. This could be an hour, or a day, or even longer. But I pay attention to my surroundings. Watching the news, I may see something gives me an idea. Overhearing a coworker say something, seeing a billboard, listening to music, or any other input may trigger something that can give me an idea to take the story further. And when I get the idea, I jump back into developing the story.

Yes, I have since last year. My earlier novels were pathetic. They have no issues. My latest novel is Dark Drama, a novel that is centered on a autistic young woman who is struggling with the world around her. I wrote it last year.

I have five novels waiting their turn at two publishers. A third publisher is putting out three of my novels, the first one any month now. Written World Communications is run by an aspie.
Frankly, if you don't have a story inside you screaming to be let out, I wouldn't bother. There are many, many wonderful things you can do in life that don't involve writing novels. You could write notes of encouragement to people you think could use some. You could go to a nursing home and listen to old people tell you their stories. You could do hundreds of things that would be more rewarding than trying to write a novel when you aren't sure what you want to say.

Robin Ray, I looked up your Wetlands book. Not the kind of stories I like, but the writing is good. I hope people who like your kind of stories find them.