17 Practical Novel Prep Tips

Knowing how to prep a novel, novella, or short story for drafting is a handy tool for your writer’s toolbox. 

I put no preparation into my first novel draft, and ran into a dead end several thousands words later. I had to go back to the drawing board because I had written myself into a corner, and let’s not even get started on my stereotypical characters. 

Now, I’m not saying you need to plan your novel to death before you start writing. Many talented and successful writers often rely on situational writing where they let the story unfold as they write. This is a more organic approach—shaping the beginning, middle, and end of the story (sometimes at the same time) as you feel drawn.

Then again, there are writers who plot each and every plot point before they get started. 

My job in this blog post is not to endorse any specific writing style—I believe each has its purpose and place. Instead, I just want to list some ducks you may want to have in a row before you dive deep into the drafting waters. 

 Let’s get to it!

Novel Planning

First on our novel prep agenda is everything involved with planning your novel. I’ll just be going through an overview of topics to give you an idea of what you’ll want to consider before you begin drafting. 

• Who are your characters? I’m all about those characters. You could give me a story with an amazing fantasy world, heavy on the action or romance, and killer plot twists, but if I can’t root for the protagonist, I’m out. Really. I have stopped watching many TV shows for this very problem.
  • On the flipside, I have watched many TV shows with cheesy scripts and predictable storylines solely because I loved the characters. Be aware to create characters that readers can root for. 

• Names. Check your characters’ names online to avoid copying a famous person’s name, another fictional character’s name, or even a company’s name.
  • EXAMPLE: A side character in my current WIP almost ended up with a rather famous character’s name—Michael Myers. Apparently, Michael Myers is a character from some slasher films, and I had no idea until another writer asked me why I decided to name my tech wizard character after him…whoops. I had to comb through my entire novel and change Mike’s last name. You’ve been warned. 

• Plot. How much plotting we decide to do before drafting is up to us. Personally, I’ve found it helpful on a first story to at least know what our major plot points are going to be.
  • What development will turn our characters’ lives on their heads at the beginning? What big event will mark the midpoint of our stories? How might this story end? 
  • We don’t need all the answers, but having an idea about what our story is all about will give us a solid direction in which to start. 
  • Related Reading: “When ‘Situational’ Writing Works Better Than Plotting” by Brandon Cornett on Writers Helping Writers.

• Research. Personally, I don’t like researching my stories. I view it as a necessary evil. Even if we’re writing a fantasy novel, it’s probably a good idea to learn a bit about swordsmanship, archery, or horseback riding.
  • If a reader notices we got a fact dead wrong, it will pull them from our story’s magic.
  • However, we are writing fictional tales. If you must fudge some information because you can’t find a fact, there’s a chance no one will even know or care. 

• Settings. If you’re writing a story with a fictional world, you’ll definitely want to add world building to your novel prep list.
  • If you’re writing about real cities and places, you’ll still want to do a little research, especially if you haven’t been there before. The same goes if you’re writing about a detective in a police precinct, or a hairstylist in a salon. 

• Good to go? Not sure whether your characters are stereotypical or storyline predictable? Ask a friend who knows good stories—preferably a writer or a reader in your genre—what they think of your idea. Maybe they’ll even be willing to help you brainstorm.
  • Side Note: This is optional. I’ve heard of writers who prefer keeping their stories secret (even from their spouses) until the first draft is finished. Others find it extremely helpful to bounce ideas off someone while in the planning stage. This part is up to you. 

As I said above, how much planning you undertake before drafting is up to you, though you may want to at least flesh out your story idea in prose before you start drafting.

From personal experience, it is much easier to write when you know what you are writing about. 

Writing Life

Yes, there is writing life prep we should do before jumping into drafting. 

• Writing session goals. Set approximate word count or time targets to meet in your writing sessions. Now, when you start drafting you may find your goals need to change—that’s okay. Just like writing a story, it’s just easier to start when we have a goal in mind.
  • Related Reading:
    • A Step-by-Step Guide to Plan Writing for Productivity
    • How to Make Attainable Writing Goals Daily and Kill Your Writer’s Guilt

Set progress goals. If you have a deadline for when you want to be finished drafting, mark your calendar with word count milestones to keep you on track. I did this during National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) 2019, and found great success.

• Create your personal writing routine! This part is fun. Decide where you’ll write, what time of day, what habits you can start to get you in your writing mindset, and even set rewards!
  • Related Reading: 4 Quick Steps to Create Your Own Writing Routine (+ FREE workbook)

• Do you love music? Create a playlist themed to your story so you can keep inspired while you write (or when you’re brainstorming)! Entirely optional, but a fun activity.
  • Here are some of my favorite inspiring pieces of music to get the ball rolling: 11 Pieces of Inspiring Music for Writing

• Accountability. Inform your friends and family that you will be writing a novel. Getting your community on board can help keep you accountable to your goals.
  • It also serves as a friendly reminder that you’re not trying to be rude when you shush them while you’re deep in drafting! 

NOTE: If your community is not as supportive of your writing dreams as you wish, you may not want to take this step. If you want to be accountable to someone, shoot me an email—once you tell me I’m rooting for you to finish ; ) 

Author Platform

If you have an online author platform, these tips are for you. If you don’t, feel free to jump ahead. 

• Batching. If you have a blog and/or an email list, you may want to schedule some batching sessions for the months you will be busy drafting your novel.
  • What’s batching? Basically, any blog posts, emails, or social media posts you publish weekly can be created and scheduled at one time.
  • For me, I prep the next month’s content the previous week so I can focus on my fiction writing and author platform building the other three weeks or so.  
  • Batching protects your time and let’s you focus on your bigger projects. 

• Connect. Will you be updating your audience on your drafting progress? If so, mark the days you will check-in with your audience on your calendar. 

• Ideas. Sometimes I can have great ideas for blog posts while I’m supposed to be writing something else. Keep a notebook or create a note in your phone dedicated to content ideas. This way you can jot down the ideas quickly and then return to your drafting. 

Writing Mindset

• Create laser focus. Do you need to abstain from something like Netflix or video games before you start drafting? If there is a recreational activity that eats up a lot of your time without much ROI, maybe swearing off those activities for a month or two is a good idea. 

• Your reward schedule. For each word count milestone or consecutive writing days you tick off, set a reward for yourself. Maybe a week of writing will get you an episode of your favorite TV show, or two weeks buys you a fancy treat at your local bakery. Be creative. 

• Nerd confession: I love choosing a motivational theme song for my day, week, or a certain writing project. During my first novel draft, my theme song was All I Have by NF. Do you have a song? 

Time to Prep Your Novel! 

To prep a novel for drafting does take time and brainstorming, but I sincerely believe it is worth your effort. 

Whether you are a self-proclaimed pantster or plotter, I hope you’re walking away with some ideas on how to prep a killer novel, and rock your writing life. 

Tell your story, 

Sarah 

Related Reading: 5 Writing Mistakes to Avoid on Your First Novel

Storytellers, what do you think? Did I forget to include something you should prep before you begin novel drafting? Tell me below!