How to write a novel if you've a short attention span

 

Having a short attention span is a good thing, honestly. Especially in writing. Short stories, essays, blog posts, articles, content / copy writing. If you have a short attention span it means you highly focus and concentrate on one thing while you're working on it. However, be forewarned, if that focus is interrupted it tends to evaporate from interest with instant effect.

For example, I'll make this blog post as short and to the point as possible. I don't want to lose your interest by rambling. I myself almost lost interest in posting this in the time it took my old computer to start up so I could begin writing it!

So basically in order to write an entire novel (which takes more than one sitting, writing being interrupted by the need to eat and sleep, amongst other things) I write short stories and then put them together as one entire book.

Initially I'll get an idea in my mind for a whole novel. I'll write it down and then become frustrated when I write the first chapter or two, go to bed, then the next day I'm not as enthused about the story I started. So instead I've switched to making each day (or sitting) of writing devoted to one story. Even if my mind wanders to new novel ideas at any time, which it does often, I'll take note of it for use in the book I'm currently writing. Every one of my novel ideas doesn't have to be restricted to starting an entire new book. They can be applied to each new little story of my novel.

1. Get an idea.

2. Make sure you know if you'll have a block of time to write, whether it's hours, or a full day.

3. Write a short story with a beginning, middle, and end. And then a cliffhanger / entice the reader on to read more.

4. The next day, or allocated time availability, write the next story you've thought up with the same character from yesterday's story i.e. story 2 in your collection.

5. The day after that write story 3 and so on until you have enough linear stories to make a 50K-80K novel.

6. I like to use the last 2 or 3 mini-stories or so to conclude my book. 

7. Go back and look at each mini-story summary throughout the book and create a title for each, if you haven't already.

8. Put all the mini-titles together to form 1 idea for the twist and cataclysmic ending, then write this as your third to last mini-story.

9. The second to last mini-story within the novel is the wind-down and explanation bit of the book.

10. The final mini-story in my book will be the conclusion. A complete and satisfying ending for readers.

Even if you write series books each instalment must have its own ending. The above tips can help with series writing as well, in that you can carry on in the same way.

I do struggle finishing tasks, especially writing entire novels. I just want to start on my next new book idea! So I do, then it doesn't get finished, and so on until I've got a thousand file stash of barely begun novels. That's where my 10 step attention-span method has really come in handy. I've been able to go back and use those unfinished books as mini-story plots for each section of the manuscript I'm working on until it is all done. Finished. Fin.