5 Writing Mistakes to Avoid on Your First Novel

How to Avoid the Writing Mistakes I Made

I wish I had had a mentor to guide me through my first novel, and point out writing mistakes to avoid. 

Instead, it was just me and a blank yellow notebook with high hopes of writing a killer novel—utterly unprepared for what lay ahead. 

I made SOOO many writing mistakes. A little guidance back then would have gone a long way. Regardless, I learned—albeit the hard way—about common novel writing mistakes and misconceptions to avoid concerning the art of storytelling. 

Today, I’m sharing five writing mistakes beginning novelists should avoid which I wish someone had told me. 

These points to avoid are not so much writing technique mistakes as they are recommendations to someone starting their first novel. 

I hope you find them helpful. 

1. Read Some Craft Books

I wish someone had given me a stack of bomb writing craft books when I started drafting my first novel. 

I began my novel with only high school English and a treasure trove of consumed stories to guide my way, but ended up writing myself into a corner after the first 15,000 words or so. 

Needless to say, I ended up scraping that attempt and starting fresh. 

On my second first draft attempt, I began learning to write through blog posts I found on Pinterest, and they were a tremendous help. But while small snippets of writing advice are helpful, books on writing provide a richer pool of knowledge. 

I know that seems weird reading on a blog dedicated to teaching how to start and finish stories, but there it is. I am not reducing the value of blogs at all, but simply restating the importance of absorbing good writing craft books. 

So once you’ve finished this blog post, check out these titles of my top three favorite books on writing: 

1. The Elements of Style by Strunk and White
2. On Writing by Stephen King
3. Story Trumps Structure: How to Write Unforgettable Fiction by Breaking the Rules by Steven James

The links to these books are affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. This costs you nothing, but it helps keep my blog running.

2. Understand Story Mechanics

Being a firm believer of action rather than studious inaction, I do not want you to think you must read all the writing craft books or blog posts before you can begin writing your story. 

100% not what I mean. 

Practicing story writing is just as important as learning how to write. It takes a large word count to get from writing something okay to writing something great, so get started ASAP. 

However, I wish I had learned about the foundational basics of storytelling sooner than I did. 

For years I had known only the surface of writing—plot points, the existence of story structure, story arcs, character sketches, internal and external conflict, and so forth. I knew how to sketch a character and plunk my story into a preestablished plot diagram just fine.

But I didn’t learn the cornerstone knowledge of how to drive your story forward with tension. I didn’t learn that defining plot points before drafting was all well and good, but that there were risks in writing an inauthentic story that way. 

When we understand the mechanics of storytelling—what makes a reader’s heart race—we don’t need to rely on the predetermined plot structures. We can create our own, and tell a truly tantalizing story. 

Learning about the foundation of the story earlier would probably have saved me a lot of time and heartache. 

(A great book to start with is Story Trumps Structure by Steven James.)

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3. You’ll Need to Edit This…

There are countless writing quotes about dumping your first draft onto the page so you can shape it into the masterpiece you envision during the editing process. 

When I read these quotes it gave me encouragement to draft without editing, and worry-free for the tangle of words I threw down. 

So yes, I agree with the quotes—to an extent. (I know, I am walking on thin ice, but hear me out.)

If we are having trouble getting the words out at all—which can be especially true on our first books—then forgoing all thought of quality simply dumping all the words is acceptable. 

But I have a word of caution: remember, you will have to edit this. 

Don’t let this free ticket to write anything become an excuse for sloppy writing. 

After I had finished my first draft and came back to read my work (expectations hopeful), I was hit hard. Reading the draft induced disappointment for the lack of finesse and looming workload. 

In fact, I’ve had to rewrite the first draft twice just to get it to the stage where I could polish it up.  

So do I think we need to make every scene perfect before we can draft the next? Absolutely not.

But I would suggest we put our best effort forward in writing the first draft, and if that means a little editing, who am I to say that is wrong? Everyone’s creative process is different. 

4. Great Writing Takes Time

I did learn about this next writing misconception when I started my first novel, but I didn’t believe it would be totally true for me. If someone who knew me had told me, maybe I would have listened and been a little more kind to myself. 

In a blog post the author wrote—if I remember correctly—that it takes a couple of years to break through the bad writing before you can write something good. 

Years? I don’t think so. I didn’t want to wait years, and with my athletic work ethic I thought I could cut that time down. 

Maybe less time would be true for some, but it wasn’t for me. It took me two years—longer actually—to write through the crappy parts of my skills. I would feel disappointed and frustrated with my writing, and wonder if I would ever write a presentable novel. 

Now with a combination of reading craft books, seeking writing feedback, intentional writing, and a high word-count under my belt, I can now write a scene I’m a kind of proud to share. 

Rereading the polished scenes in my current work-in-progress, I can’t believe I wrote parts of it, because it’s actually good. 

My intention is not to brag or discourage you if you’re just beginning to write your story. Instead, I want to encourage you that if you are disappointed in your writing now, know your breakthrough is ahead. 

My first attempts at writing were cringeworthy, but they didn’t stay there. 

With learning and practice, I’m sure we will all be great writers yet. 

5. Bad Writing Advice

Some of the mainstream writing advice going around is wrong, or only partly right. 

Remember the saying treat the cause, not the symptom (or something of the like)? I believe some of that goes around in the writing circles. 

For example, plugging your story into a plot outline you found online may be putting a band-aid over a wound needing stitches. 

No amount of character questionnaires or predetermined plot structures will magically make your characters believable or story filled with tension. 

Bolster yourself with the fundamentals of writing from bullet-proof sources. Again, understand why plot works and what drives a story forward from it’s core instead of following all writing advice. 

Don’t disregard story structure and story principles you read about for the sake of art, but don’t follow advice without verifying it’s true importance to the crafting of a remarkable story either. 

Avoid the Writing Mistakes! 

I’ve explained these writing mistakes to avoid in broad strokes, and I know many overlap, but they are some of the most valuable lessons I wish someone had mentored me through when I started writing. 

My hope is you may glean something from the writing mistakes I’ve made, so you can avoid them yourself.

Have faith in your skills and ability to learn, and don’t give up. Our writing does get better. 

Related Reads: 

• 5 Traits You Need to Be a Powerful Writer
• 8 Ways to Become a Fiction Writer for Beginners

Tell your story,

Sarah