When I first started this blog, I didn't want to write about writing. I wanted to keep it centered on personal or global ideas. But I am part of a few different writing groups on Facebook and have noticed a few of the same questions floating around. All centered on naming books & characters, word count, and story.
I am going to attempt to answer these. They will not be fully comprehensive answers as the blog post would be a book unto itself. I shall try to answer as best and concisely as I can.
I'll start with an easy one to answer. Word count. I've seen multiple people asking about total word count and chapter word count. To start with the latter, there is no word count minimum or maximum for a chapter. Some authors have a random chapter that will be 1 page while others are 30 or 50 pages. I have chapters in my various books that range from 5 pages upwards of 50-something. I do have one series where I deliberately kept chapters about 15-20 pages. That translates to about 4.2K words in each chapter at a 5.5x8.5 formatted book with an 11 point Geneva font.
As for total word count, that depends on your genre and target age range. There are wonderful resources out there that can be used as quick references for such things. Here are a few links that can be used as reference points.
If you pay attention to more than just the graph in the second post you will find that they have made adjustments based on target audience and genres.
Moving on, character and book names. Names of characters should never be place holder names or names that are just personified elements of the character. Simply put if writing a fantasy series and someone is pyrokinetic (can start fires with their mind) you wouldn't name him/her Fuego (Spanish for fire) or Hot Tamale (don't ever name a character Hot Tamale, please) But the meaning of a name I do find important. A name should be significant of where the family comes from. A buy fresh from Italy might be resistant to using Tony when Antonio would be what he is accustomed to being called. Besides cultural significance, the name itself Melvin, for example, has meaning in Celtic origins of leader or chief. However, if you go back to the 1980's Melvin was also a slang term, at least in the midwest, that was associated with geeks and nerds. Mel, the shortened for Melvin (as well as other names), was linked to the actor and being badass on screen. Frieda is a female name meaning peaceful ruler. A name best suited for such type characters. For help with naming characters, www.babble.com is great. That all said, the name of a character doesn't have to always be exotic or stand out on its own. The actions taken by a character is what will make their name remembered for years to come.
Titling books is something that is ultimately up to the author. I am a huge fan of working titles and of course, being a working title, not becoming too attached to it. Writers, including myself, can get bogged down with the details of the book while still working on the broad strokes. Thus working titles. The title can change and most often should change from what it was when you first started writing the book. Whether it is changed completely, like my book So We Stay Hidden had the working title of Becoming (a most overused word for book titles) or added too, (making something up here) say Insomnia! becomes Insomnia! One Man's Journey Through Sleepless Nights and The Torment That Follows (wordy but you get the point) A title should always be open to change. It needs to embrace the body and emotion of the words within its pages. So what I am saying is unless the book is finished, edited, proofread, and ready to print, don't stress about the title. There's always time for stress later.
That all said, do keep a list of title ideas for each book you are working on, the working title can change numerous times throughout the process as the book develops and matures. But if you keep an open mind and a list of possible titles, you will be able to look back as you near completion and weed out the titles that no longer work for that project.
The last thing I am going to talk about, and perhaps the hardest is the story. There is no one way to write a book, and even within that vague statement, the process by which a book is written can change through the writing process. As an exercise, the best way to start writing is to write. The ideas will begin to flow and usher forth through your fingers onto the computer screen or page or whatever you are using to translate your thoughts to words. But at some point, you will stop. Your hand will stop using that pen, your fingers will stop typing, the well of thoughts in your head will run dry. And that's okay. That's when you change your process. Index cards can become your best friend. And should. To write a story off the top of your head can, and will, set yourself up for major plot holes, inconsistencies, and other bad mojo. But write when the writing strikes you. There's always time for editing later. The first sit down and write surge of energy should be used as such ...a surge - a need to write and begin the creative process in the journey that is writing a novel. But the planning stages are crucial. Thus the index cards. If I have lost any readers, I shall explain, index cards - write down one plot point or one event or one character name on a card. Then as your ideas start to become accustomed to this method start writing the events of the story and why each scene is important to progress the story on the card. They will make up th flow of your story. And the great thing is as you come up with the story and need to move elements around, an index card is far easier to move than half a chapter that now needs major revisions. A couple of links that you might find useful...
At the end of the day, you might get stuck on an element or two. You might dwell on possible outcomes of a scene that isn't sitting right in your head. Trust those instincts. If something isn't sitting right, ask yourself is your characters are acting accordingly if the actions of the scene make sense in accordance to the world they are in, if the outside elements of the story are acting accordingly. (a giant, drawn-out murder in a public place would most likely attract outside attention - is it or is the public blissfully unaware because you didn't plan for the scene properly)
When all is done with the cards, for the time being, go back and type the words that make up your story. There will be a back and forth from writers pad to index cards throughout the process and that's okay. That's the process.
Don't fall into the trap of starting a story with a half baked idea for a plot and running with it. No one wants to eat undercooked chicken.
At the end of the day, you can ask 100 strangers on Facebook for advice on your scene and what you should do. The hard part of that is at the end of the day, you are the only one who decides what you should do. It is your story and your baby you are bringing to life. All the advice in the world will only lead it to be other people's baby as well. So, ask for advice, but remember, other people's advice is just that, suggestions from strangers. if you need a sounding board to get through your story development, as a confidant who supports you, who understands the internal workings of your mind, your thought process, and not only enjoys the story you are trying to put to paper but believes that it is a story worth telling.
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