8 Mistakes That Ruin Your Fantasy Novel on Page One
ฝัง
- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 27 ก.ค. 2024
- In this video, we delve into the 8 biggest mistakes that can derail the beginning of a fantasy novel. Drawing on two decades of reading and writing fantasy, these pitfalls are broken down to help writers craft a more captivating and engaging opening for their stories. From avoiding the common trap of overloading exposition to the art of creating deep and original characters, each point is explored with practical insights.
Discover key strategies for engaging readers from the first page, including the nuances of pacing, dialogue, and the subtle introduction of conflicts. Whether it's setting the right tone or balancing language and jargon, this video is an helpful guide for anyone looking to enhance the start of their fantasy novel.
If you find this video helpful, please consider giving it a like, and don’t forget to subscribe to the channel for more content on storytelling, worldbuilding and fantasy writing.
#Worldbuilding #WorldbuildingAdvice #WorldbuildingGuide #WorldbuildingTips #Storytelling #StorytellingAdvice #StorytellingGuide #StorytellingTips #FantasyWriting #CreativeWriting #WritingAdvice #WritingTips
00:00 Introduction
00:16 Neglecting the Hook
02:05 Overloading with Exposition
04:10 Superficial Characters
06:21 Unbalanced Pacing
08:42 Poorly Constructed Dialogue
11:01 Misusing Language orJargon
13:11 Bad Tone, Atmosphere & POV Choices
15:07 Neglecting Early Conflicts
![บุษบา - เมนทอล [Official MV]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/IGnWPokSEis/mqdefault.jpg)
Transform Your Fantasy Writing in Just 5 Minutes a Week: Sign Up for the Tale Tinkerer Newsletter here => thetaletinkerer.com/newsletter/
I've written and published a book but i'm not getting any sales 😢
First things first: Congratulations! Actually finishing a book is something not many do. That is an achievement in of itself. Now when it comes to actually selling the book, it obviously depends on a lot of factors, so it's hard for me to give any personalized advice here.
I'm assuming you've self-published the book which means the entire marketing process is up to you as well. Nowadays, many writers on the self-publishing side of things put significant effort into building an audience even before selling something. Others invest heavily into paid marketing to get that initial traction that hopefully brings in not just sales but also positive reviews that then lead to more organic sales.
Personally, I would try to do an honest self-assessment and figure out at what stage you see yourself. Are you still early on, refining your writing and trying to find any audience at all? In that case, I would work on the next project while looking into community building around yourself/your projects (could be TH-cam, Facebook, TikTok, Blogging or....). If you are convinced that your book is better than a lot of stuff out there that is selling well, then I'd look into sales funnels, a proper landing page, paid marketing etc. to get data in that either confirms that or shows a different reality.
I hope that helps a bit :)
@@TheTaleTinkerer I'm not a novel writer, but as somone who is getting into a similar industry, you are a national treasure
@@breadlordthemighty559Thank you for those kind words - I'm just trying to provide value while enjoying to spend time of things I love :)
I will also start with a congratulations. CONGRATULATIONS!!! You finished a book, that is a difficult thing to do. I myself have only finished a novella and put it up for sale. Working on my novel which is being edited by my editor at the moment. Remember one thing, you are building a style that speaks of you as an author. You really want to sell your style to those who will enjoy it. I sold mostly because my editor knew people who read and she advertised it, I advertised it to people I know and then my sister spread the word to people she knew. Word of mouth got a few, but that's just a start.
One of the things I should bring to your attention is that with Mainstream going to total crap, independent is really starting to jump off. The issue we have is that we are all separated. BUT!!! A network is getting formed, and I gather talk to other writers. If you go to conventions, find someone and advertise there. Unfortunately, at our stage actually renting a booth to sell at a convention is a bit too far. Especially with their prices for tables. While paid marketing can be good, remember that not everyone can afford it. Find where writers are and talk to them. Spread the word and build a network and they can spread it to their readers. Or if you have gotten art done for the book, the artists want their art seen by many and will spread it too.
Building upon everything is the best way to do it, though it does mean being a bit social. Also, the other best thing, keep writing. The more product you have the easier it is for the algorithm to find you. And when they find one of your works, they can find others to enjoy and purchase. Good luck, the independent writing is the future I believe, and we need to build that network.
I struggle a lot with overloading with exposition and with getting too formal/theoretical in my dialogues and narrative voice when it's not supposed to be. Something that helps me not to do that too much is writing it down separately. Not only does it help me with being able to start over with the scene because I finished the thought I had, it also helps with keeping an overview of all the rules I made and keeping those consistent.
Just wanted to share this in case it helps someone
Thank you for sharing this, I'm sure someone might find it helpful :) When I started out writing years ago, I also struggled very hard with the exposition problem. My beginnings read like world descriptions rather than actual stories. Luckily, I was able to leave that behind me with enough practice (and feedback from others) :)
Wonderful approch. I've noticed I've done this myself in a couple of points in my first draft. With the intention of fixing it later.
This is a great way to explain everything to myself, then condense and highlight the important elements I need to apply in the story itself. Thank you.
I have created two rules for myself when it comes to exposition.
1. Never put exposition in the first two pages. You can explain something a little later. Let that first part of the scene play out.
2. Don't write more than a short paragraph for exposition. Explain the world based on what is happening at that moment. Don't go beyond.
Used to have that problem, but figured out ways and the rules to follow.
I recently subscribed. Your videos are informative and beautifully delivered; with direct, clear and actionable solid advice. Much respect for what you do.
Thank you for taking the time to leave that kind of feedback - this is really appreciated :)
dude how are you not more popular also thank you I don't really see myself writing anything for a while but i do love creating my own worlds this video is quite helpful.
Because he didn’t invent the wheel. You think that the author doesn’t have workshops and even university courses? If they want. Not to mention they can just listen as he did? It’s (as he said) superficial) he didn’t say anything new, most of the booktubers told it about any given book.
@@nazimelmardi im sorry? i just complemented him what are you talking about?
Really appreciate the positive words, and the time taken to share them - thank you for that. I only started the channel two months ago, and so far I've been quite amazed by all the people interested and willing to support via likes and motivating comments. So I'll keep doing my best to improve with every video and then we'll hopefully grow this community of creatives to a force to reckon with :)
I very much appreciate a slice of life leading into the inciting incident, so you get context for what things change from, what's at stake or what is lost. Early hooks are fine, BUT the author then has to keep up the reader's interest or risk the reader losing faith. It's easy to make something exciting happen in the first chapter, but exciting isn't the same a compelling; you can only jangle keys in the reader's face for so long. I, as a reader, tend to have more faith in an author who doesn't do that because in this writing climate it speaks of confidence in their plan for the story as opposed to OMG EDGY! LOOK AT ALL THE DANGERS!
Now, this all depends on how you interpret the term "hook". For some readers its flashy or violent (like the invasion of a town), for some its an intense emotional moment (like a funeral), both certainly ARE hooks, superficially, and can also be inciting incidents, but I find this bit of advice is often misconstrued by inexperienced writers. Sort of like "show don't tell" is. You see it used badly often enough and you stop responding to it. These days when a story opens on an action scene I just roll my eyes. It's like "Yeah, yeah, let's get on with it." If I don't have fantastic characterization happening right quick, I'm done.
I personally think it depends on the focus rather than the action.
The story I'm currently writing, a sort of origin story, introducing one of the main characters of the series I am planning, does start with a chase as well. There is a not a lot of "action chasing" though and more focus on the character, his emotions, the reason for being on the run, etc.
The first book of the series then starts completely different with two characters taking refuge in an abandoned hut, the danger here being implied, less imminent at the start.
Impotant to me is always the question whether or not there is a reason for the action beyond being just show :)
I'm a fantasy fan, and I remember this one book where the literal first sentence on the first page ruined things and made me not want to read it. I forget what the book was (it was like 10 years ago), but the plot description on the back sounded interesting involving magic and witches and stuff. So I opened the first page, and this is literally how it went for me:
Opens book. "We came to this planet-". Closes book. Done.
I had similar experiences. None that I can recall in detail but that isn't surprising either, after all, I decided to not read far beyond the first page :)
Saw this randomly recommended to me and I could not be more happy. Very short yet simple guides for writing. This vid introduced me to this channel and it is such a good stroke of luck.
Thank you for taking the time to leave that feedback. Very glad to hear that you were able to get some value out of the video :)
I've now watched so many videos on first chapter and first page things that ruin your fantasy novel that I now can't start my novel. I feel like i'm in a cage of "nope" with no way out, because everything is wrong to do x.x
Sorry to hear that, maybe this video of mine can help you since its focused on a variety of ways to start your novel :) th-cam.com/video/3Tlm6dDY_-4/w-d-xo.html
@@TheTaleTinkerer that would help, Ty :)
Great break down. I've fortunately avoided most of them I feel. Or in the very least am keeping myself aware of them to the point of knowing what I need to fix after the first draft.
I start off my story with a small fight scene too. But I feel it works as I can "show" the hook instead of explaining through exposition after the fact. It also immediately provides some important details about one of the main characters abilities and some of the magic in the world too.
But, I agree that trying to draw the reader in with a hightend scene of emotion then going to a slower pace, exspecially one that seems to progress for a while, will turn the reader off.
Another informative video. Thank you.
Appreciate your input (and positive feedback) as always, thank you. I'm pretty sure too, that some of these mistakes can be found in my own writing to some degree still as well. It's an entirely different thing of making a theoretical, educational video about something and then ensuring that you put everything into practice when writing (even though you are aware of all these things).
I do think though that the biggest leap you make is being aware of it in the first place. Even if just unconciously, you probably avoid some of the mistakes you'd make otherwise. And then with some proper revisions, the rest can be improved even further :)
Another great vid. 👏👏👏
Thank you for positive feedback - just trying to keep improving and add value one video at a time :)
this is so well done! I love the topics you brought up, this definitely deserves more than 30 likes!
Thank you - these supportive comments are really appreciated. Only started this channel two months ago and the feedback has mostly been incredibly positive, so I'll keep improving one video at a time and then hopefully, we'll keep growing this amazing community of creatives here :)
@@TheTaleTinkerer Every story has to begin somewhere. Might seem late in the game to get started, considering how far ahead some others may be, but fortune favors the bold. My first thought about your channel came halfway through watching this vid, the first one I have seen from you. The quality was high, so I checked your number of subs. Less than 3k? With a vid of higher quality than I've seen on channels with 300k+? My man here is just getting launched, month or two old. ... Yep. Verified. ... The number of times I've subbed on the very first video from a channel could be counted on my fingers. Would need both hands, but it's still quite a small percentage. Prove me right.
@@robertthomas6363Thank you for taking the time to leave that motivating and positive feedback, much appreciated.
And I'll definitely continue to do my best to keep improving with every video, so you're hopefully not regretting that sub :)
Could the hook be formulated later like for example when writing the second or third draft?
I connot think of an engaging and powerful hook for now.
So I thought that it might be easier if I put the the whole story first, then write the hook.
For a hook think what does my character want and why can't they have it. This will work for 90% of stories.
Your hook is your inciting incident. You want it as close to the beginning as possible. Some authors will tell you it should come in the first third of the book. Others will say within the first 3 chapters. I say within the first 3 pages, if not the first page. Go straight into the inciting incident. You gotta remember, the longer it takes to get to that kickoff point where the narrative actually begins, the more likely the reader will put your book down and not pick it back up. If you know your inciting incident, that's where you start your book. If you haven't yet determined what your inciting incident is, why are you writing beyond that point? That should be part of your first draft.
I'm personally an advocate for an inciting incident as early as possible as well, yes. It probably could be written later to really tie into the rest of the story build up but it depends on every writer and their personal approach I'd say. My current novel was heavily influenced and even alterered in terms of outline based on how the first few pages ended up taking shape.
I do prefer to have things early on still tie into the overarching plot though - even if its only providing context or background information. Because of that, what happens at the start (although being edited and polished many times over) usually is something that was part of my outlining process.
But that's just me. You could certainly just take a discovery writing approach, finish an entire draft and then go back to write a hook at the beginning that fits to that :)
Unless you are writing multiple novels at once like I am. I'm writing a 4-part series at the same time, so I don't necessarily have each inciting incident plotted out fully, but I know that book 1 begins with its inciting incident, which is a heavily guarded secret. Let's just say it's to die for.
But I write scenes that come to mind through plotting the narrative and world-building, then I'm filling the gaps and jigsawing everything together. This is a huge endeavor and I would not recommend doing it like me. Especially if it's your first ever manuscript. Do not do that to yourself. Just worry about getting the first novel completed and you can always build upon it later.
@@bigredcrazykHook ≠ inciting incident.
Can it be applied to Comics?
Some of it might be, but I'd be hesitant to say "yes" here since I'm not deeply experienced with comics myself (even in terms of reading it has been many years since I actively did so). Sorry that I can't be more of help on that front.
Well feel better about the novella I did put out there, and for the novel I am about to. Start with conflict that will continue over the rest of the story. A dark scene of a village looking over a corpse mutilation counts right?
I obviously cannot speak to the exact reading experience and anything about style, tone, pace ... but it certainly raises questions about "what happened", "who did it", "who were they" within this comment's context, yes :)