#56: "How to Write a Novel with the Kitchen Sink Thrown In" by Amber Sparks, author of HAPPY PEOPLE DON'T LIVE HERE
Some advice from author Amber Sparks on how to use all the interesting bits of information one comes across / collects. It is targeted at fiction authors, but maybe, as Austin Kleon puts it, it can be useful for non-fiction authors or, dare I say, everyone else.
To wit:
- Buy a LOT of notebooks and start separating your interesting things by topic
- Get a bulletin board or really big piece of paper or reserve a wall in your house or office or apartment and then use it to connect your ideas with red string like in the detective shows (or the meme of the crazy conspiracy guy 😆)
- Think about the characters you have, and how you can feed them the information you’re gathering
- Jump around in time: time travelers, storylines happening in different times, flashbacks, etc.
- Remember the iceberg: not everything needs to be in the book
- Pare back: if it doesn’t fit, then it doesn’t fit