It sounds impossible, doesn’t it? To write a full length novel in a month..and yet K.Dawn Byrd does it on a regular basis. Let’s find out how she does it.
My journey to publication wasn’t all that long. I’d been writing for about a year when a writer friend encouraged me to submit my first novel, Killing Time, a book set in a jail to her publisher, Desert Breeze Publishing.
Other publishers weren’t interested because they were concerned about how many women would want to read a romantic suspense partially set in a jail. Desert Breeze will often buy books that don’t fit perfectly into a category. They liked it and the rest is history.
That was 2009, but by the end of this year, I’ll have 11 books available. How am I so prolific, you ask? Since I work a full-time job in addition to writing, I have to be organized and motivated. I write each of my books in 30-day marathons. Upon completion, I’ll put them away for a few weeks (sometimes longer) and then resurrect them and edit, adding flesh to the bare bones. This usually takes a 50,000 word novel to around 60,000-65,000, except for my young adult novels, which I keep at right under 50,000 words in order to keep the price down for teens.
In order to write that quickly, I must start with a solid plot. I fill out character worksheets in order to get to know my characters better. I scour magazines and the internet until I find photos of my characters, which gives me a visual. Then, I take a stack of index cards and begin plotting. A description of each scene is placed on an index card.
My characters also get index cards, which give me a quick reference if I forget something minute like eye color. I use a couple of cards for plot twists also. I place the cards in order as I write the scenes. The good thing about index cards is that I can move them around in the stack if I move the scenes around in the manuscript. Sometimes, I’ll pin them to a corkboard in order to get a better look at how the plot is flowing.
I hope I’ve helped someone with this article. Entering NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) contest several years ago taught me how to write a novel in 30-days and changed the way I write forever.
Shattered Identity: Nineteen-year-old Lexi Branson thinks she’s found the guy of her dreams. He’s hot, wealthy, and older. She soon finds out that sometimes the perfect guy turns out to be perfectly dangerous.
Wow! I’m always so impressed with writers who can organize and plot their stories the way K.Dawn does. To learn more about her books visit:
www.kdawnbyrd.com
www.kdawnbyrd.blogspot.com
K. Dawn Byrd is giving away an ebook. The winner will have a choice between SHATTERED IDENTITY and MISTAKEN IDENTITY. To enter for a chance to win the book of your choice, you must leave a comment at http://www.examiner.com/christian-books-in-cleveland/lilian-dunca
Winner will be chosen on April 23rd.
Have you ever wanted to write a book? If so, what’s stopping you? Until next time, God Bless and Good Reading. Lillan
Tiaras & Tennis Shoes 
Kdawn was one of the first ACFW writers I met when I joined Facebook in 2009. I’ve watched her career skyrocket as I predicted it would with her first novel. Thanks for giving us her tips. I like the card idea, moving scenes around easily and keeping a thumbnail of character traits handy.
I’m not an outliner but her system must work. She’s doing great.
I’m hoping this goes through. I’m having trouble posting. Thanks for the comments. It’s a lot of work to write a book in 30-days, Holly, but it sure does keep the story fresh in my mind. I’ve been a little lazy lately and haven’t written much. Instead, I’m judging several contests.
Amazing…I’m motivated now!
Go for it, Holly!! Don’t forget to click on the examiner.com page so you can be entered in the contest for a free book.