Someone asked “How do I write a novel with 80,000!!! words in it?” Well, I’m finishing my 5th novel with over 100,000 (in addition to 20-something full-length screenplays). Here’s my answer:
This question always puzzles me. It’s not “How do I write X amount of words?”… The question you should be asking yourself is, “What story do I want (have) to tell?” Answer that question, and how you tell that story is a matter of application.
Hint: You are what you do every day. You may not like hearing that, but it’s the truth.
Map out what you’re going to write like you’re taking a trip to a place you’ve never been. (You need to know the places along the way to get gas, sleep, eat, go to the bathroom, etc.) You’ve got to know where you’re starting from and where you’re going to. And then it’s just planning the route. Sometimes you’ll get lost (especially if you’ve rarely taken a trip like this before), but if you know where you’re headed, you’ll figure it out. And it might mean you have to drive through a cornfield instead of the interstate. That’s how you get to 80, 90, 100,000 words or more. One turn at a time.
