How to finish that manuscript – advice for aspiring authors

Another one bites the dust!

Often, the biggest challenge for anyone who dreams of becoming an author – is actually finishing that damn manuscript!

I have been writing for years now. However, the first decade was filled with drawers of half-finished stories. My classic pattern was to reach page 100 and then throw away the bloody thing in disgust. Either, I’d just discovered the story wasn’t working, or it was boring me to death. Whatever the reason, I had just spent a couple of months on a story that I would never finish – again. Fast forward a few years and I have self-published one epic fantasy novella and three full-length novels, as well as a Lord of the Rings fan fiction series. I have also written a number of non-fiction works, and fiction novels under pen names. 

These days I rarely begin novels that I never finish.

Some hints to make sure you finish that manuscript

I could come up with a detailed list of all ways to ensure you get that story written – but in the end it boils down to three key pieces of advice:

Write what you love: I write the stories I have always wanted to read. I throw myself into epic adventures that have me clamouring to return to them. I have to keep writing because I have to know what happens! This advice might seem like a no-brainer but so many of us start out writing the novels we think we ‘should’ write. Is it any wonder then, that we can’t stand the sight of it after a couple of months? Writing a story you love is hard enough, don’t throw rocks in your path by trying to write anything else.

Plan it: I’m not saying you have to sit down and plan the story out in meticulous detail – you’re likely to get bored half-way if you do. However, a story outline and a rough chapter plan, will help ensure that a) the story actually works and b) you think about important elements like structure, pacing and characters. If you’re embarking on an epic fantasy, make sure you do some serious world-building before you write, including summaries of the magic system and a potted history of the world your characters inhabit.Otherwise your story will lack credibility and depth. If you don't believe in the world you've created, no one else will.

Approach it as a professional: If you’re serious about writing, then act as if it is a job. Once you self-publish and list that book on Amazon (or any other self-publishing platform), then you are officially ‘in business’. Self-publishing was a huge motivation for me to finish my novels. Once you approaching your writing as a professional, your entire relationship with it changes. Suddenly, it isn’t such a slog. You find yourself scheduling time, setting milestones and treating your writing with the seriousness it deserves.

Get over the idea of the ‘tortured artist’ stereotype. You know, the guy who stares blankly at his laptop screen, waiting for inspiration to strike, for his muse to whisper in his ear. That guy could be waiting a long time... 

The act of creation is not some elusive power that only the select few master. You can have all the talent in the world, but if you don’t actually finish anything, who will care? Write the kind of books you crave to read, plan before you throw yourself in, and treat it as a profession - and you will have that manuscript written in no time!