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Ok-Character7754 t1_iya4g5p wrote

I’d like to try writing a book, always wanted to. Not got any expectations of publication or anything would just like to see if I can. 2 questions for you: 1, how do you start the process? Mapping out the whole plot? Building character and world descriptions? 2: Ideally I would write a fantasy novel, I love all the epics from the likes of David gemmel and Raymond Fiest. So my question is what authors have you been inspired by? And how do you abound duplicating all the cliches- ie orphan street urchin is actually only person who can save the world if he gets this one ancient relic and so on? Thanks in advance

Edit : sorry this is defo not just 2 questions

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barrylyga OP t1_iya8kq0 wrote

  1. I never map it out in advance. I start with a beginning, an ending, a main character, and an epiphany the character will have. Then I write. Sometimes I'm wrong about any of those things, but those are the four things I need to get started.

While writing, I will often jot notes to myself about how I see things playing out, but I stay flexible. Nothing is written in stone.

  1. Inspirations? Wow, so many... Classics like Milton, Poe, whoever the hell wrote Beowulf... Genre guys like Haldeman and King... Comic book writers like Moore, Levitz, Bates, Conway... John Barth. Timothy Hallinan. Mark Frost!

  2. Cliches... Lean into them, then lean far away. Let the reader think they've seen it before, then take a hard, HARD left turn.

It's funny you mention the "street urchin who can save the world" trope because I always wanted to write a book where a Mysterious Stranger knocks on a kid's door and is like, "You are the Chosen One! Only you can save us!" and the kid is so freaked out he commits suicide. And it's, like, page 4. What the hell happens next???

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Ok-Character7754 t1_iya9t5n wrote

Thanks you very much for such a detailed response I really appreciate it. Aha that would be amazing I would 100% read that and would love the morbidity of it. I have just been reading up on your ‘ I hunt killers ‘ series so I can see how you enjoy flipping the cliches on there heads. Anyway again thanks for the pointers, I’m away to get the first in your series on my kindle 😊

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