A few of you might be aware that I am an aspiring novelist. I have been formulating the ideas for a book for the last year and have been seriously working on my novel, Dragon Games since March. It has taken a huge chunk of my time, but every sacrifice has allowed me to shape this story into something I’m really proud of. It’s one I’ve always wanted to read and it includes, you guessed it, dragons! Every few Sundays, I will be posting things related to my journey as an aspiring writer, whether it be great advice I’ve received, inspiring moments, or even snippets of my novel. This week’s topic:

The Most Inspiring Elements in My Work So Far

There are so many elements that go into writing a book, it can be overwhelming at times. luckily for me, I have an excellent support system in the form of my husband who teaches collegiate English and has forgotten more about the rules of writing than I will ever know. I also have several friends and acquaintances who graciously offer me their time and support in this project and keep me motivated every day to work towards my dreams. They remind me that I’m doing something bigger than myself and talk me out of the furnace when I’m ready to burn it all and start over again.

While support was essential for me to pursed to this as a career, I also needed to learn more about the craft. Along those lines, I signed up for two workshops offered by best-selling author David Farland (Professional Writers’ and Million Dollar Outlines) and found them invaluable in learning how to shape my novel into something people want to read. Farland is a wealth of experience and knowledge and any aspiring writer would benefit from one of his workshops (as a side note, I have also met some of the coolest people at these seminars and am convinced you will be seeing the published works from them in the future). For those of you who can’t make the seminars, he also has several daily writing “Kicks” that impart nuggets of his wisdom throughout the week. I can’t say enough good things about them and fully believe that if I make it as a writer it will be partly because of what I learned at these workshops.

Finally, this project wouldn’t have been imagined without the hundreds of fantastic books I’ve read so far. Every day in my adventures in reading I come across elements of writing that blow me away and help me improve my own craft. Stephen King once said “If you want to be a writer, you must do two things above all others: read a lot and write a lot. There’s no way around these two things that I’m aware of, no shortcut.” I couldn’t agree more; writing every day helps keep the creativity flowing and reading gives me ideas on what sort of book I want to write. Above all else, I know what I like to read and I believe that is invaluable information in creating a story others like me will enjoy.

A great writing support system, classes to improve my writing intelligence, and constant immersion in other authors’ creations are the elements that got me started and have kept me going. What elements inspire you?

by Niki Hawkes