STS EP 24

1. -
2. Four Mistakes to Avoid
3. [00:00:00]
4. Nicole Meier:
5. Every writer's journey is unique, and comparing
6. yourself to others can be discouraging and counterproductive. You never know
7. what work someone else has done behind the scenes, what breaks they had in
8. the business, or what challenges they've had to overcom
9. e. In other words, don't
10. compare your beginning to someone else's end.
11. [00:00:28]
12. Nicole Meier:
13. Welcome to Steps to Story, the show that helps
14. aspiring authors turn their ideas into action and transform their dream of writing
15. a book into a reality. I'm you
16. r host, Nicole Meyer, multi published author and
17. certified book coach. I spent the first part of my fiction writing career desperate
18. for guidance that was unavailable to me.
19. [00:00:50]
20. Nicole Meier:
21. I wrote draft after draft. Flying by the seat of my
22. pants
23. , with lots of passion but little guidance. Thankfully, there was a writing
24. community that opened its arms and welcomed me. This community sustained
25. me. But when it came to strengthening my novel writing process, I was
26. determined to find a better way.
27. [00:
28. 01:11]
29. Nicole Meier:
30. One that didn't involve piecemeal strategies. and
31. confusing courses. Now, more than a decade later, I'm serving my younger self,
32. who yearned for support while writing a book. If you're an emerging author
33. seeking guidance, this podcast
34. is for you. Are you on the list to get my novel
35. writing guide? I designed this workbook to take you through five essential
36. strategies that will level up your novel writing process.
37. [00:01:41]
38. Nicole Meier:
39. Grab your free copy at NicoleMeyer. com forward
40. sl
41. ash crafting greatness. That's NicoleMeier. com forward slash crafting
42. greatness. Crafting greatness, or at the link in the show notes.
43. [00:02:02]
44. Nicole Meier:
45. Hey, hey, hello and welcome. Today we're diving into
46. four crucial mistakes to avoid when writin
47. g your novel. So while there is no
48. quote wrong way to write your book, because your writing process really should
49. be your own, and what works for some people doesn't necessarily work for
50. others, I can tell you as a book coach, I can confidently say there a
51. re certain
52. mistakes to be avoided in your process.
53. [00:02:26]
54. Nicole Meier:
55. Avoiding them will save you from what I call hair
56. pulling iterations on the back end. So whether you're a seasoned writer or just
57. starting out, steering clear of these pitfalls can
58. make your writing process
59. smoother and more enjoyable. So I would say grab your coffee or tea and let's
60. settle in. Let's get started.
61. [00:02:46]
62. Nicole Meier:
63. All right, let's start with mistake number one, and that
64. is not having a roadmap. Boy, have I be
65. en here before. Let me tell you. Let's
66. just say on my debut novel way back in 2014, I wrote it completely by the seat
67. of my pants. I had zero idea who or what would show up on the page every time
68. I sat down to write.
69. [00:03:08]
70. Nicole Meier:
71. It was pretty
72. fun until really, it wasn't. That's because
73. writing a novel without a plan is like setting out on a cross country trip without
74. a map. Sure, spontaneity can lead to some great discoveries, but more often than
75. not, you'll find yourself lost and frustrated, a
76. nd nothing zaps your creativity like
77. frustration.
78. [00:03:28]
79. Nicole Meier:
80. A roadmap for your novel doesn't have to be a rigid
81. outline. It can be as detailed or as loose as you need it to be. Some writers prefer
82. detailed chapter by chapter outlines, while
83. others might just have a list of major
84. plot points or character arcs. The key here is to give yourself a direction to
85. follow.
86. [00:03:49]
87. Nicole Meier:
88. Alright, imagine you're writing a mystery novel.
89. Without knowing who the culprit is, or how the protagoni
90. st will uncover the
91. truth, You might write yourself into a corner. Planning ahead allows you to
92. plant clues and red herrings strategically, creating a more compelling and
93. cohesive story. So I would encourage you to take time before you dive into
94. writing to
95. sketch out your roadmap.
96. [00:04:15]
97. Nicole Meier:
98. Your future self will thank you. By the way, if you're
99. wondering about a manageable way to outline your story, go back and check out
100. episode number 20 of my podcast. Inside that episode, I'm answering writ
101. ers
102. questions, specifically, my favorite way to outline your book in the form of a
103. story roadmap.
104. [00:04:36]
105. Nicole Meier:
106. Let's move on now to mistake number two. And that
107. is rushing the process. This is another pitfall I have fallen into more times than
108. I
109. care to count. But as the old saying goes, writing a novel is a marathon, not a
110. sprint. As a writer myself, I can relate. It's tempting to want to get your story out
111. as quickly as possible because we're excited about our premise.
112. [00:05:00]
113. Nicole Meier:
114. But the harsh truth is, is that rushing can lead to
115. sloppy writing, plot holes, and underdeveloped characters. Rushing often means
116. glossing over good elements of story structure. If a writer is racing to the finish
117. line simply to chase the muse, it can be
118. difficult to go back and structure the
119. story.
120. [00:05:20]
121. Nicole Meier:
122. Instead, as an author writes forward, they need to be
123. thinking, at least on some level, about things like a protagonist's scene goals.
124. character motivation, and a cause and effect traj
125. ectory. These are just a few
126. story elements in a much larger picture, but of course no one needs to be perfect
127. and nail everything all at once, trust me, but rushing usually means skipping
128. past much of the building blocks of a novel, and honestly the resul
129. t is a story
130. that falls flat.
131. [00:05:52]
132. Nicole Meier:
133. All right, I'm going to pause here and repeat myself.
134. Your first draft doesn't have to be perfect. Give yourself permission to play
135. around, experiment, make discoveries, but also take the time you need
136. to
137. develop your ideas fully. If you push too hard and meet an unrealistic deadline,
138. if, say, an agent pitch session or self publishing date comes up, you might end
139. up burning out and losing your passion for the project.
140. [00:06:23]
141. Nicole Meier:
142. I encourag
143. e you to set realistic goals and create a
144. writing schedule that fits into your life. Whether it's writing a certain number of
145. words per day or dedicating a few hours each week, find a pace that works for
146. you and stick to it. Your writing will be much stron
147. ger for it. Let's move on now
148. to mistake number three, and that is writing as if someone is looking over your
149. shoulder.
150. [00:06:47]
151. Nicole Meier:
152. This can be paralyzing and stifle your creativity. You
153. might worry about what others think, if they will judge
154. your ideas, or if your
155. writing will be good enough, but I'm here to tell you that's not going to serve
156. you. I, too, have written a draft this way, and my beta reader called me out on it.
157. That's because readers can tell when a writer is being guarded or hol
158. ding their
159. audience at arm's length for fear of revealing something too personal, too raw,
160. or too controversial.
161. [00:07:15]
162. Nicole Meier:
163. Reminding yourself that readers want to be let inside
164. your character's head and to That they want to connect and build empathy for
165. your cast will ensure you write the story that's on your heart and, in essence,
166. bleed it all out onto the page. With this in
167. mind, it's also important to remember
168. that your first draft is for your eyes only.
169. [00:07:35]
170. Nicole Meier:
171. This takes some pressure off, right? Give yourself the
172. freedom to write without judgment. Let your ideas flow and don't worry about
173. editing or poli
174. shing until later drafts. This will help you tap into your creativity
175. and produce a more authentic and original piece of work. Once you have a solid
176. draft, then you can start thinking about feedback and revisions.
177. [00:07:58]
178. Nicole Meier:
179. But in the beginn
180. ing, it's just you and your story.
181. Embrace that freedom. Now, I'm moving on to mistake number four, and this
182. one's a big one. Comparing your progress to someone else's. Every writer's
183. journey is unique, and comparing yourself to others can be discouraging
184. and
185. counterproductive. You never know what work someone else has done behind
186. the scenes.
187. [00:08:24]
188. Nicole Meier:
189. What breaks they had in the business, or what
190. challenges they've had to overcome. In other words, don't compare your
191. beginning to someone else
192. 's end. It's easy to look at another writer's success and
193. feel like you're not measuring up. But remember, you're only seeing their
194. highlight reel, not the real behind the scenes struggles and setbacks.
195. [00:08:48]
196. Nicole Meier:
197. Focus on your own path and c
198. elebrate your own
199. milestones, no matter how small they may seem. I would say set personal goals
200. that are meaningful to you and track your own progress. Celebrate your
201. achievements and learn from your setbacks. Writing a novel is a personal
202. journey, and the
203. only person you should compare yourself to is the writer you
204. were yesterday.
205. [00:09:11]
206. Nicole Meier:
207. I'm going to say that one more time. The only person
208. you should compare yourself to is the writer you were yesterday. As a recap of
209. this list, remember,
210. avoid these four things. Not having a road map. Rushing the
211. process. Riding as if someone's looking over your shoulder. And comparing
212. your progress to someone else's.
213. [00:09:33]
214. Nicole Meier:
215. Keep these tips in mind and you'll find the writing
216. process much
217. more rewarding and enjoyable. And finally, if this episode has got
218. you thinking you'd like help in the form of craft, community, and coaching in
219. your novel writing process, I've opened up my waitlist for my fall Steps to Story
220. novel writing program.
221. [00:0
222. 9:51]
223. Nicole Meier:
224. So if you're curious, visit stepstostory. com forward
225. slash program. I'll also put some information in the link in the show notes.
226. Okay, thanks for tuning in, everybody. If you've enjoyed this episode, don't
227. forget to subscribe and leav
228. e a review. I'd really appreciate it. Until next time,
229. happy writing.
230. [00:10:15]
231. Nicole Meier:
232. If you want to check out my coaching programs for
233. fiction writers, visit NicoleMeier. com. That's M E I E R. And if you like this
234. episode, I'd love you to take a
235. minute to leave a rating and review for this
236. podcast. This will help more writers like you to discover the show. and to get
237. going on their writing journey.
238. [00:10:35]
239. Nicole Meier:
240. Thanks so much for listening. Until next time, happy
241. writing, everyone.