Writing Tips by Bella Harte

(Author of Scarlett Phoenix)

The process of writing is a very personal thing. Every writer you speak to will have their own formula and way of doing things. There is no right or wrong way, just the way that works for you and once you get into your stride there will be no stopping the words from filling up all those empty pages.

Today I thought I’d share some writing tips with you, so you can get a general idea of how to start your writing journey. Not that I am professing any expertise in the area, this is just what I’ve picked up along the way on my writing travels.

I’ll start at the beginning:

Genre and Audience

So, you finally have a solid idea for the novel/novella that you would like to write. Now you really need to select the genre and target audience. I know that it sounds ridiculous to mention this but it’s very important, because you need to decide before you start writing your novel who your target audience is.

Most of us know what genres we like to read and possibly which ones we’d like to write, so this decision shouldn’t be too hard or taxing. However, if you are struggling with your target audience I have included a basic list of genres for you to mull over at your leisure.

Firstly, ask yourself: Am I writing Fiction or Non Fiction? Then move on to which category you want to write for.

There are several categories for children’s books:

If we start at the youngest audience, up to age 12:

Picture Books
Story Picture Books
Traditional Literature including: Folktales, Fairy Tales, Fables, Legends and Myths
Historical Fiction
Modern Fantasy
Realistic Fiction
Poetry and Drama

The Young Adult Genre is next, this is usually between the ages of 12 – 18 years and the following list is a typical round up of what is expected.

Problem Novels
Realistic Fiction
Sports
Humour
Adventure
Supernatural + Paranormal Romance (PNR)
Horror
Mysteries
Fantasy
Sci Fi
Historic Fiction
Non-Fiction
Biography
Poetry
Drama
Short Stories

Here are some of the adult categories, encompassing the following:

Fantasy

Crime

Suspense

Romance

Horror

Science Fiction

General

Speculative Fiction

Historical Fiction

Humour

Western

Some of the genres do overlap and some have many sub-categories as well. However this list will help you get started and whittle down the possibilities, leaving you with a clearer idea of which direction you want your story to go.

Then you have to decide who you want to tell your story to and why. This is the audience you are potentially stalking.

1.) What’s the message, meaning and/or concept you want to get across?

2.) Are any Agents/Publishers looking for this type of story/idea right now? (This doesn’t matter if you are self-publishing as an indie author)

3.) Are there other stories in the market that are already published which would help you decide if you’ve made the right decision with your chosen genre?

4.) If you want to write for a younger audience: What content is deemed acceptable for your targeted age group? (You need to be very clear from the outset on what age group you are writing for as there are many guidelines for different age groups).

Key Points:

1.) Take the time to do the research now and save yourself the disappointment of spending months, if not years writing a novel that when you’ve finished doesn’t fit into any specific criteria. Leaving you without a specific target audience and perhaps with the potentiality of little, or few readers for your novel.

2.) Should you choose to travel the path of traditional publishing (which can sometimes be a long, arduous journey): Agents and Publishers that you pitch your novel to, may simply reject your book proposal if it vague and non-specific. Also keep in mind ‘what’s hot and what’s not’ in the book world, what’s in fashion today could well be as dead as a dodo in a couple of years or less. So pitching subjects which have been written to death may see you receiving a veritable forest of rejection letters because what you’ve written isn’t in vogue at the time you present it – That Ship has long since sailed. So keep in the loop of what’s trending. I’m not saying be a sheep and follow the herd, but certainly keep in mind the big movers and shakers in the publishing world.

That brings us to the end of Genre and Audience Tips. I hope it helps you on your writing path and saves you time in the long term.

Thanks for reading!