How To Write A Book (Part 1)

Explaining a Process: How to Write A Book (Part 1)
 
When I first started teaching, I was working with my students on how to write an explanation for a process. To provide them with an example, I wrote the following information about how to write a book. NEXT WEEKEND, I will follow up to this post with an update and see how true this still is for my process. For now, I wanted to share the unchanged information I gave my middle-school students years ago.
 
How to Write a Book, by Breyanna Evans
First, you need an idea. The idea is a central part of the writing process. It is what keeps you organized, motivated, inspired, and allows you the initial push you need to begin your writing project.
 
Once you have an idea, then you need something to write on. Anything will do for the drafting phase. You can write your first draft by hand, on a napkin, type it up in your phone… the possibilities are endless: And here’s an even cooler part of the drafting process: It can be anything. You can create your draft whatever way you want to. Some authors have been said to have written their drafts for novels on napkins in restaurants!
 
While you are writing your rough draft, do your best to write a beginning, a middle, and an end, and try to make your scenes and chapters flow well from one to the next. This organization doesn’t have to be done in the drafting phase, but if it is, it can make your editing process much easier to complete.
 
When you have finished your rough draft (emphasis on ROUGH), you are ready to begin the first read. This is the part of the writing process often referred to as the macro edit, where you read the story to make sure that the story as a whole works. You are not editing or searching for mistakes in your writing: You are merely reading to make sure that everything makes sense. Does your plot work, do your scenes flow, do your characters seem real and fulfill their purposes?  The macro edit is meant to answer all of these questions.
 
After the first read, you may begin the micro editing process. As its name implies, the micro edit is where you pick your piece apart: Search for errors in grammar, spelling, punctuation, and dialogue. These are tiny things that make a world of difference in your draft.
 
After editing comes formatting. This is the step that allows you to make your document your own, with a style that suits you. You can change page colors, sizes, numbers, edit your font, and create chapter headers. If you choose to put a table of contents in your manuscript, this is the step you would want to do it in, after you have completed all of your chapter headings.
 
Finally, you send your manuscript off for copyright and beta-reading. Did you know that once you have written a manuscript, even if you don’t send it off for legal copyrighting, if you can prove you wrote the script, it is technically already copyrighted to you? Cool, huh!
Lastly, create your cover. Many authors hire professionals to design and create their cover so it can be as appealing and marketable as possible. However, if you have a talent for it and you know what types of covers suit your particular genre, you can create a cover of your own.
 
Now, you’re off to be published, which is a process all in its own. Congratulations on completing your manuscript, and good luck!
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A lot has changed with my process and my knowledge about writing books in the years since I wrote this example for my students. I’m excited to share with you what’s changed next week!