Writing a book, an article, a novel, or a poem, is not an easy job. Writing is really an art and a technical job. If you understand the technicality, you can write multiple articles in a week and can make a grip on your audience. Whereas, for that, the first thing you have to do is ‘writing’. The famous saying of Vladimir Nabokov is “The pages are still blank, but there is a miraculous feeling of the words being there, written in invisible ink and clamoring to become visible.” In this article, 12 principles (as well as you may also call them as steps), you can follow these principles by making the first draft from blank of mind to publication of your first novel. The 12 principles are as below:

1. Make a plan
2. Refine your title
3. Build a list of characters
4. Make a structure tree/ mind map
5. Make a list of ingredients
6. Work on main character
7. Do research
8. Make a checklist
9. Start writing
10. Create some dilogues
11. Review
12. Publish

To illustrate the above principles, let’s discuss them one by one in detail.

1. Make a plan for writing a novel:

– Choose a genre for your novel: is it thriller, mystery, horror, romance, or historical, etc.

– Make a writing plan, including time table of days, weeks, and times in which you have to write.

2. Refine your title:

– Your title is the first thing, the readers read, it must be impressive, and clear, and concise. Difficult words or a long title is not recommended. So, try to search, apply your own mind, besides this, talk to your friends to suggest you, refine your title again and again, until it will be a great one.

3. Build a list of characters:

– As soon as, it is necessary to work on this principle. Characters are the key players in your story, so draw them up on your notepad or whatever tool you are using. Also, make their relationships with each other, and what roles they are playing, their personality, each and everything you should write in your diary, writing pad, or whatever tool you are using.

4. Make a structure tree/ mind map:

– A mind map is a great thing to remember, it is recommended to use it for your novel. Similarly, you can draw it on your notes, and apply it when it needs in your novel, it is obviously necessary.

5. Novel ingredients:

– So, make a list of ingredients such as the season/weather, the scene’s situation, area/region, time (the stone age, the modern age, the morning time, the evening time, and night), etc.

6. Work on the main character:

– Consequently as ingredients, your main character is the lead player in your story. He/She must be a role model for the readers. His/Her habits, character, movements, and manners, everything must be impressive, and interesting.

7. Do Research:

– read related articles, papers, books, and watch podcasts

8. Make a checklist:

– In addition, the checklist is very useful, you have to prepare it at the time of planning your novel and now check it, either you did all your tasks, or is it something missing, if it is missing, go and do it, then come back again and move forward.

9. Start Writing:

– Now, it is time to start your writing, whatever comes to your mind, just write it as it is, then you have time to check it, read it again and again, see your pre-work, what you wanted to include in your novel, ask a question to yourself, that did you include everything as you planned?

10. Dialogue:

– Create some dialogues and try to insert them into your draft. Your dialogues are the sounds that will be one of the symbols of your novel. As Jerome Stern said that “Dialogue is not just quotation. It is grimaces pauses, adjustments of blouse buttons, doodles on a napkin, and crossings of legs.”

11. Review:

– Review is the key to improve your article, your novel, and your every writeup for the smooth readings of the audience.

12. Publish:

– Finally, you drafted your novel, you reviewed it, now it is time to publish it.

After publication, don’t forget to celebrate your work. You are the owner of your own success.

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Mir Shahzad

Editor-in-Chief at Capital Writer

An Information Security graduate and a Writer

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