What it takes to write a novel

Who can write a novel?

Seems like an odd question, right? But maybe you, like me, have developed a belief that only a certain kind of person can write a novel.  

This person, we think, is born with some sort of talent or gift that makes them a novelist. They write with ease, the story flowing out of the author fully formed, layered, and free of typos. 

We don’t see the first draft, or the fifth draft, or hear the myriad ideas that were rejected before that final novel came to life. 

We don’t see the years writers spend drafting novels that will never get published. 

We don’t hear about all the times published authors doubted their own ability because the words weren’t coming easily to them. 

We just see those novels in the final, published form. And some of us start to believe that if our first drafts don't look like that and if writing the story doesn't come to us easily, then we're just "not the kind of person who can write a novel." 

You are the kind of person who can write a novel, though. It's not some magical ability gifted to some and not others. Writing a novel is a learned skill, not a talent some are born with and others are not. 

Every writer who’s ever successfully completed a novel has one thing in common, and it’s not a great idea or exceptional talent. That’s the sign of a novelist: the persistence to keep learning and trying, even when the writing was bad. 

For that reason, no matter your current level of writing ability or your idea, you can write a novel. But first, you have to let go of the fixed mindset that you have the ability or you don’t. 

"Individuals who believe their talents can be developed (through hard work, good strategies, and input from others) have a growth mindset. They tend to achieve more than those with a more fixed mindset (those who believe their talents are innate gifts)."

-Carol Dweck
What Having a Growth Mindset Really Means

When you let go of that belief that you either have the talent to write a novel or not, you open yourself up to the possibility that you can learn how to do it. You become more accepting of your mistakes and you use them to improve further. You develop the ability to persist because you accept that hard work will get you further than innate talent.

If you've struggled to draft a novel, and you've wondered if you're just not meant to do it, my challenge for you is to work on changing your mindset while you tackle your novel. Become persistent.

One of the first things you can do is to look at your current writing habits and strategies.

Do you only sit down when the mood strikes you? Do you feel reluctant to write when you don’t know that it will turn out well? Do you spend too much time planning and not writing? Or do you write without a plan? These, among others, are all habits that we employ when we're afraid of failure. We act like we're pursuing our writing goals, but we're not fully committing. We're playing it safe.

So pick one writing habit that isn't serving you and make a plan to change it this week.

The one that's worked for me is sitting down at the beginning of the week scheduling all my writing time in short blocks; then I show up and write at each of those times, whether I feel motivated and inspired, or nervous and reluctant.

One final piece of advice: remind yourself that you are now in the learning and practicing phase. You won’t get to the mastery phase quickly, but you will get there with persistence.

If you feel like you need help developing a new mindset to tackle your writing, let's talk! Mindset work is a fundamental piece of my coaching practice. I create a staged approach for you to change your mindset and overcome perfectionism while you write your novel.

Regardless of your challenges, know that you are the kind of person who can write a novel.