I've seen a lot of advice that says you should plan your novel before you start to write it. But then I've heard hugely successful novelists say they start with a small idea and then just start writing and the novel develops as they go along. I follow the latter. I very much just start writing and the story changes and develops as I write. I don't think there is any right or wrong way, but just wondering what everyone else does?
I HAVE TWO BOOKS IN MIND.
I.MY AUTOBIOGRAPHY.
2A BOOK ON THE SCIENCE OF SPIRITUALITY.
Thank you all for the great comments! So interesting to see how different people approach their work. No, Victoria, I really didn't plan it. I had just the seed of an idea and I started writing the novel the very same day. As I wrote it though, I did have to go back and change things and add things and develop the plot. Looking forward to finishing it. I'm very nearly there!
It is the first in a series though so I have already started planning the next books in my head and I expect I will write a rough outline for the next books before I start writing any of them.
Ok, so you don't plan on paper, but does that really mean you don't plan? I always say I didn't plan my books, but it was ten months after I had the original idea that words started to hit the page. In that time the characters had become fully formed, the theme of the novel thought about, the POV was settled and I knew where I wanted the characters to end up, even if I had no idea as to how they were going to get there, but I hadn't so much as opened a notebook. There wasn't a scrap of paper detailing any of this and I told everyone I was just going to start it and see where it went. It went all the way to the end... of six books. I'm finding it difficult to say there was no planning at all!