As new fiction writers, most of us make common mistakes as we begin our stories.
Even after we’ve read a ton of novels in our genre and have studied books on the craft of writing, there are still mistakes that are common among beginning novelists.
As I’ve been in the middle of edits, I’ve noticed a bunch of mistakes I’ve made in my manuscript that I’ve needed to fix. These glitches seem to be highlighted in my own manuscripts after I’ve read novels by bestselling authors. It’s plain to see I’ve missed details that would have made the book even better.
So I wanted to write down some mistakes that I’ve made – along with many other new fiction writers.
If you have some other mistakes you’ve seen, it would be helpful if you’d add them in the comments below ~ that way we can learn from each other.
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A Few Common Mistakes of First-Time Fiction Writers
If you’re like I was when I first started writing stories. I wrote my heart out, not really understanding that there were guidelines to write a great novel.
It was finally when I finished my first novel and submitted it to an editor, that I realized there were a bunch of details I didn’t know about writing a novel.
I was encouraged to learn – as I worked on fixing my mistakes – that I wasn’t alone. There are many common mistakes that beginning writers make. So I hope the following list gets you started.
1.Too Much Backstory. As writers we naturally fall in love with our characters. We want our readers to know everything about them, so they can love them too. But what new fiction writers don’t realize is that you’ve don’t have to tell a character’s complete background to hold your reader’s interest.
Most likely, is the less backstory you tell up front, the more curious your reader will be about your character.
I added too much backstory with my 1st nove, and then needed to take out a 3/4’s of it during the editing process.
It makes for a better story, when you can grab the reader’s attention with a compelling scene right out of the gate, and then add backstory later. Readers are excited to have the action happening right from page one.
2.Unable to deliver on the promises you make to your readers. All fiction writers make promises. These include: 1)I will not waste your time. 2)I will entertain you. 3)I will write clearly. 4)I will have something to say that will matter to you. 5)I will give you characters you care about. 6)If I put something in the story – it matters. 7)I will respect the fact that you are smart/clever.
Readers are looking for a consistent theme, plot and character arc in the genre you’re writing.
But, there are more specific promises you make as you write your story. For example; if you’re writing a romance, and your female character meets a man in the first chapter, the reader expects something to happen between the man and the woman and for the story to end happily. Or, if you’re writng a mystery or crime thriller and there’s a murder at the start, readers want to know who did it by the time they reach the end.
Readers are looking for a fiction book to be a great story along with the payoff of a good ending.
3.Awkward Use of Point of View(POV). I confused POV with my first novel. I would jump into the heads of different characters in the same scene. This can be confusing for readers.
The basic rule with POV, is to tell the story through the eyes of one character during a certain scene or chapter. The character whose eyes you see through is called the POV character and when you write action, or description, you only write what that character sees and feels. It’s a little like looking through a camera lens. Whatever your character sees through the lens is what you have them see when you write your story. Example: your character can’t see when someone sneaks behind them, but they can smell an odor or hear footsteps as the person gets closer.
4.Telling vs. Showing. I struggle big time to stay consistent with this one. This is another thing I learned during the edits of my 1st book.
Instead of naming the emotions, writers can show the emotion in an action beat by researching how that emotion is shown in normal human action. – physcially and viscerally. A much better way to reveal that your character is angry is to show him being angry, instead of telling the reader the character is angry.
Readers want to be inside your character’s head, and to feel the character’s reaction to the event by their behavior. When they can feel the emotions, it makes for a much better reading experience.
5.Unclear Story Structure. Story structure is important to get to the end of a satisfying novel. Instead of thinking of story structure as a bunch of rules, think of it as destination stops on the way to where you want to go.
The most common story structure begins in Act 1, with taking the character out of the comfort zone of her ordinary world, and being called to a new adventure. The hero refuses the call, afraid of the unknown. Then she meets with a guide who helps her move forward so she leaves the ordinary world to enter a new world. In Act 2, the hero is tested and meets new enemies which she needs to fight. Many times she confronts death and/or faces her greatest fear. But from death comes new life… this is where she gets the treasure. Act 3, takes the hero to the biggest test of all, she has a rebirth of sorts and returns home with the treasure. Now the hero has the power to transform and change her old world, as she has been transformed.
6.Using too many exclamation marks. Sometimes as eager new writers, we think we need to add excess punctuation. I did this in my first novel. I was trying too hard to communicate emotion to the reader. I learned instead to show the emotion through action or behavior of the character.
7.Using first names too much in dialogue. Again, another detail I struggled with in my first novel. I would consistently, write the first name of the person the character was addressing at the beginning of their conversation. Sometimes it’s needed, but most of the time it’s not.
Something that helps, is to read your dialogue out loud – preferably with another person. Does it sound natural? Or maybe it works for you to read your manuscript into a recorder and play it back. That would also work well. One of the key parts of a compelling story is that it flows well from beginning to end and well written dialogue is an important part of that.
Many of us start out making these common writing mistakes. But it’s okay, that’s how we learn to improve.
One of the greatest things about being a writer is that we can keep telling our stories better. Ever setting, dialogue or description can be one word closer towards improving our writing craft. So keep writing your stories, get help in the editing process and have readers who will read your work and critique it. This is how as writers we learn to create the stories that we love.
What are some common mistakes you see in the books of new fiction writers? I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments below 🙂
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has inspired me to join more conversations and to give people tips on what’s worked and what I’m creating right now. It’s encouraging and inspiring for writers.
by Angela Ackerman and Becca Puglisi, is amazingly helpful. This little book(which is FREE as I write this post), helps authors write accurate descriptions of characters who have or are feeling: attraction; addiction; boredom; exhaustion; pain and much more. Really useful tool to have in your library.
it herself.
*Ruth says she has fun writing historical westerns and regency romances. She mentions that some of her funnest blog posts to write is when she does character interviews. The idea came as she was talking with romance author Rose Gordon. It’s a great way to get to know your character better. Sometimes when she get’s stuck writing, Ruth says she asks questions of her characters and it helps her get past writer’s block.
*If she is stuck and doesn’t feel like writing that day, she’ll try to write only 250 words. Ruth’s tip: If you’re stuck or don’t want to write, try writing only 250 words.
characters. She said she would start by writing blog posts on the topic. 
Ruth mentions that there was a time when she wanted to quit writing books, when she first began writing and saw 1 and 2 star reviews.
, by Lorna Faith).
by Joelle Charbonneau).
by Barbara Freethy).