I worked with a designer on one cover but the rest are very obviously my own design ie not that great!
How to write your own book, what experiences do you have?
- Thread starter becks
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I started by defing my thematic sections, then broke them into chapters using bullet points. Each bullet point became the title of a chapter, and each chapter had subtitles for each subsection within the chapter.
This kept me on topic, prevented digressions, and ensured the book was easy for readers to follow.
Associate
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You can find lots of tips on the subject of literature and publishing. There are also tips on writing itself (writer's block, character development,...). Since it's a publishing house, you might assume they only write about themselves and what they do - but they offer a lot of help for authors in the blog. I think that's because novum publishing is aimed more at inexperienced authors. They probably want to increase the quality of submissions and answer initial questions with the blog. Then nobody has to deal with every single person and everyone can read the tips.
There are certainly other blogs that can help you in certain situations.
Youtube is of course also very good for help. There are already a lot of videos on the subject. If you search a little, you're sure to find a channel that appeals to you. Children are now using it for tutoring and for learning at school. You can also use the videos as an adult to further your education in certain areas.
Soldato
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worth having a look at : Royalroad
as example of what other have done, a well known one is : The Wondering Inn (fantasy)
the youtube channel of the author is sort of interesting, as it shows writing as the author goes. which is very differant to most authors.
Royal road is similar in that its chapters written, uploaded and then read by people and commented as well.
mostly i've written small multi Paragraphs stories (adult). but honestly i feel i get lost in the complexity of bringing to life and managing the parts.
i brain storm ideas then try and fit them together, dropping or adding as works
my spelling is rubbish for a few reasons so i wouldn't be a good author.
sometimes i play the 3 word story game as an exercises with people and a way to try and bond. which turns in to half an a4 sheetand a few paragraphs
one of my mates is doing: articles / writing a children's book / interviews and the like at the moment and really seems to be making progress. won an award recently up north
as example of what other have done, a well known one is : The Wondering Inn (fantasy)
the youtube channel of the author is sort of interesting, as it shows writing as the author goes. which is very differant to most authors.
Royal road is similar in that its chapters written, uploaded and then read by people and commented as well.
mostly i've written small multi Paragraphs stories (adult). but honestly i feel i get lost in the complexity of bringing to life and managing the parts.
i brain storm ideas then try and fit them together, dropping or adding as works
my spelling is rubbish for a few reasons so i wouldn't be a good author.
sometimes i play the 3 word story game as an exercises with people and a way to try and bond. which turns in to half an a4 sheetand a few paragraphs
one of my mates is doing: articles / writing a children's book / interviews and the like at the moment and really seems to be making progress. won an award recently up north
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@Bluecube: That actually makes me smile – there’s something charming about a “not that great” self‑made cover. Like a band’s first demo CD with a photocopied sleeve. I’m torn on whether I’d obsess over design or just throw something together so it feels mine. Did you notice readers caring much about the cover once they got into the story?
@Sankari: Your structure method sounds dangerously sensible. My brain keeps wanting to jump straight into chapter five before chapter one exists. I like the idea of bullet points as chapter titles – almost like a map you can keep glancing at so you don’t wander off into the weeds. Did you ever ditch a whole bullet point once you got writing, or did they all survive?
@Faser Active: Good to know the blog actually goes beyond self‑promo. I’ve always side‑eyed publisher blogs thinking they’re just bait to sell services. Do they get into the messy side too – like what to do when your plot feels flat – or is it more about the “how to get your manuscript accepted” lane? Also, I kind of envy kids having YouTube for everything now. I grew up thinking “research” meant a dusty library card and two hours of guessing where the right shelf was.
@LostCorpse: Royalroad’s been on my radar but I’ve never dived in – maybe because I’m half‑afraid I’ll end up doom‑scrolling other people’s chapters instead of finishing my own. The “Wondering Inn” process you mention sounds like it would either be super motivating or completely paralyzing if you’re not ready for that kind of public writing. Do you find posting as you go helps you finish, or does it make you second‑guess every line?
@Sankari: Your structure method sounds dangerously sensible. My brain keeps wanting to jump straight into chapter five before chapter one exists. I like the idea of bullet points as chapter titles – almost like a map you can keep glancing at so you don’t wander off into the weeds. Did you ever ditch a whole bullet point once you got writing, or did they all survive?
@Faser Active: Good to know the blog actually goes beyond self‑promo. I’ve always side‑eyed publisher blogs thinking they’re just bait to sell services. Do they get into the messy side too – like what to do when your plot feels flat – or is it more about the “how to get your manuscript accepted” lane? Also, I kind of envy kids having YouTube for everything now. I grew up thinking “research” meant a dusty library card and two hours of guessing where the right shelf was.
@LostCorpse: Royalroad’s been on my radar but I’ve never dived in – maybe because I’m half‑afraid I’ll end up doom‑scrolling other people’s chapters instead of finishing my own. The “Wondering Inn” process you mention sounds like it would either be super motivating or completely paralyzing if you’re not ready for that kind of public writing. Do you find posting as you go helps you finish, or does it make you second‑guess every line?
Soldato
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it certainly would be easy to get lost on royal road in other peoples writing or doom scrolling at the sheer volume of peoples writing (which could be demoralising)
Personal i think the answer is a bit of both "super motivating" or "completely paralyzing" and also demoralising. but both approach's (royal road & youtube live writing) allow for a lot of feed back positive and negative, you have to be prepared for the negatives. some times people are negative because they don't understand were your steering the story.
related but not with books, my English writing and spelling isn't the best so i tend to get criticism for trying to engage or write stuff online, some times it gets to me and other times i shrug it off and don't care but i am more likely to take to heart the criticism and be less inclined to engage over time. so you do i feel need to be passionate about what your writing.
"Do you find posting as you go helps you finish, or does it make you second‑guess every line?"
if i was writing live and reading feed back it would help me reach mile stones and help with brain storming ideas / content as people speculate on stuff and i might use an idea directly or an off shoot of an idea floated (A+B deosn't always =C it might be E).
i do think you ned to have a good understanding of your story arcs, characters, relationships, situations and objective(s) if your writing live, or if your very adaptable. self disciplined if you will, and understand your self and how you your self work.
i think any author should be willing to second‑guess every line, because you might have a good idea but be poorly implementing it and might need to re-wite whole paragraphs, but if your 2nd guessing because of feed back then its if its valid or not. 2 different reasons same outcome. but goes back to understanding your goals and story arcs.
one thing a lot of the authors i mention have is engagement with the fandom.
in the wondering inn the author has Polls to help dictate some of the character decisions or the direction the story mores towards
i think it was Zevara were they've had a series of bad events at public poll decision.
to add one of my current favourite authors has a "patron" and on "RoyalRoad", with books released through "amazon" were they also release previews of chapters in royal road and patreon in a delayed scheduled plus bonus in patreon.
Stray Cat Strut [Stubbing Never - lol] | Royal Road
In the year 2057, the world has become a corporate-run utopia for the super-rich, and a hellhole for all the rest. Catherine 'Cat' Leblanc is an orphan that is about as far from super-rich as one can be. When the Incursion alarms start blaring and the sky starts raining hungry xenos, it's just...
www.royalroad.com
&
Teddy Bears on Brigade [A SCS Fanfiction] | Royal Road
One chapter will be released every three days. Evelyn "Teddy" Claire is a street kid just trying to make ends meet. That's hard to do when you live in the undercity, a near slum found underneath the foundations of the megacity of Calgary. Usually, her only concerns are finding a good meal, and...
www.royalroad.com
not sure if that helps or makes sense or not.
when i writ i have specific goals that might evolve over time of writing but end result will still be roughly what i planned or at least in the same ball park
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I never ditched a bullet point, but I did rephrase a few as the chapter took shape.
Depends on how you want to do it and what you want from your book. For me, I had stories to tell and I wanted them out there for people to read. I've made a small amount of money from sales but nothing even close to life changing. If I wanted to make a living from writing then the book covers would have to be much more presentable, something that would be easier today with AI to help you out. For my best two covers, I had a designer sort them out. One of the reasons I didn't bother too much about the covers was that most sales were/ are digital so the cover isn't that important as once the download has been made, the reader will likely never see the cover again. Covers can help you stand out from in the marketplace though.
To actually answer your question, no, readers didn't care about the cover once they started the book. The only comment I've ever had about a cover was some clickbait hunting smart arse holding one up as an example of how not to do it.
Soldato
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sorry should have added something.
one of my northern friends is writing a book, been to a load of work shops and recently won some awards. being quiet industrial last few years but stressful also :/
she is/was also reading and reviewing books through a site.
Goodreads is were she was doing the reviews for
i think she was using something like
bookfunnel
to get books to review.
there are some sites were you can send your book out to people for review and comments ect.
it might be worth having a look to see if it might meet your needs or be of interest later.
one of my northern friends is writing a book, been to a load of work shops and recently won some awards. being quiet industrial last few years but stressful also :/
she is/was also reading and reviewing books through a site.
Goodreads is were she was doing the reviews for
i think she was using something like
bookfunnel
to get books to review.
there are some sites were you can send your book out to people for review and comments ect.
it might be worth having a look to see if it might meet your needs or be of interest later.
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I have actually done it - i.e. started with a concept and got through to the end and turned it into a printed book. Self-published though and didn't make a penny out of it.
I read something by a famous author - may have been Stephen King - which roughly said "just write".
The biggest barrier to you completing a book is not writing anything.
So if you sit down and pump out 500 words, even if they suck and you hate it and you think it was a waste of a day, at least you did it. Another day you'll sit down in the same way and produce 2,000 words you love.
If day after day, you excuse yourself from writing, and think you'll get round to it another time - well that's how you end up never finishing.
That might sound obvious, but my experience was that when I was in the middle it was incredibly easy to write 10 words, think it was trash, and then grind to a halt.
Setting a goal of some kind, even if it's 200 words per day minimum, massively increased my overall productivity.
I read something by a famous author - may have been Stephen King - which roughly said "just write".
The biggest barrier to you completing a book is not writing anything.
So if you sit down and pump out 500 words, even if they suck and you hate it and you think it was a waste of a day, at least you did it. Another day you'll sit down in the same way and produce 2,000 words you love.
If day after day, you excuse yourself from writing, and think you'll get round to it another time - well that's how you end up never finishing.
That might sound obvious, but my experience was that when I was in the middle it was incredibly easy to write 10 words, think it was trash, and then grind to a halt.
Setting a goal of some kind, even if it's 200 words per day minimum, massively increased my overall productivity.
@LostCorpse: What you wrote about RoyalRoad being both motivating and paralyzing hit me hard – feels like standing in a hall of mirrors. I can imagine the feedback loop being gold when it sparks new directions, but also brutal if it makes you question every comma. Do you find you have to set rules for yourself – like when to take ideas onboard and when to just nod and move on? And the polls thing with *The Wandering Inn*… wild. Do you ever feel tempted to give readers that much steering power, or would that risk pulling you off your own arc?
@Sankari: Your “no bullet point ditched, only reshaped” line made me laugh. That’s discipline right there. Did you ever find yourself mid-chapter and realize the structure was boxing you in, or did it actually free you up because the map was clear?
@Bluecube: Interesting point on covers not mattering much once someone’s already reading. Makes me wonder though: did you ever notice a cover making the difference at the *start* – as in, convincing someone to pick it up in the first place? I’m torn between obsessing over that first impression or just letting the story carry the weight.
@Jim99: That 500-words-even-if-they-suck mindset feels like the only way through the fog. I’ve had those days of hammering out a page that I hate, only to find a single sentence survives and becomes the seed for something real. When you set that 200-word daily floor, did you treat it as sacred no matter what, or allow yourself “skip days” without guilt? Curious how you kept the line between routine and burnout.
@Sankari: Your “no bullet point ditched, only reshaped” line made me laugh. That’s discipline right there. Did you ever find yourself mid-chapter and realize the structure was boxing you in, or did it actually free you up because the map was clear?
@Bluecube: Interesting point on covers not mattering much once someone’s already reading. Makes me wonder though: did you ever notice a cover making the difference at the *start* – as in, convincing someone to pick it up in the first place? I’m torn between obsessing over that first impression or just letting the story carry the weight.
@Jim99: That 500-words-even-if-they-suck mindset feels like the only way through the fog. I’ve had those days of hammering out a page that I hate, only to find a single sentence survives and becomes the seed for something real. When you set that 200-word daily floor, did you treat it as sacred no matter what, or allow yourself “skip days” without guilt? Curious how you kept the line between routine and burnout.
No, because I maintained the same structure for each chapter, which worked perfectly for the type of book I was writing.
Can’t say I noticed any difference but most of my books only had a single cover with rare changes made in the first few days of sale so there’s been a chance to compare. A decent cover is important though as it’s what grabs people’s attention and makes them check the blurb. It’s a basic bit of marketing. You may have the best book ever written but if the cover is crap no one will read it - books are always judged by their cover at least initially!