Are You Missing Opportunities to Make Your Writing Stronger?

By Janice Hardy, @Janice_Hardy 

Little tweaks can make a big difference in our novels.

There are a lot of rules in writing. Some are solid ones, such as rules of spelling or grammar, but others are more nebulous, such as how to start a scene, or whether or not to use adverbs. And some of these "rules" have become commonplace because it's harder to explain to new writers how to do it well, and much easier to just say "don't do it."

I like to look at these ambiguous rules as opportunities to improve a sentence or scene. They're opportunities to strengthen your novel and improve your own writing skills by learning why a rule exists and how to use it or break it when necessary.


I've written before about the rule of "don't open a novel with a wake up scene", so let's use that as our first example.

1. Make the Most of your Opening Scene

There's nothing inherently wrong with a waking up scene, as long as that scene does everything a good opening scene ought to do. But when you start with something that's been done thousands of times, you give the impression that there's nothing original in your work. The first impression your novel makes is "Oh great, another waking up scene. How original."

Right away, you're created a negative impression on an agent or editor, or even someone who reads a lot and has seen this same opening a hundred times before.

You've missed an opportunity to wow a reader with something fresh that shows your novel and your ability in the best light possible.

Think about anything you know really well and have seen/read/heard a lot of. Now think about the times you experienced a scene that used one of those situations. Didn't it feel old? Predictable? Unoriginal?

That's how a clichéd opening feels to those who read a lot of openings. Even when these openings are done well, they still give off the impression that there's not going to be anything new or exciting in the work. And that's not what you want someone reading your work to feel.

(Here's more on crafting strong opening scenes)

Openings are not the only opportunities you have to wow a reader. Here are some places and situations that you could be missing, or could be doing more to make the most of your writing:

2. Choose a Title that Says Something about the Book

Don't take the easy way.

This is the first thing readers see when they pick up your book. Is your title original? Does it give a sense of what the novel is about? The type of novel it is? Is it compelling? It might not seem that important, but let's look at one of the more common titles: Second Chances. A quick look at Amazon shows how many books have this title--either those exact words or those words in some form (like Love's Second Chance) Pages and pages of books with the same title.

When an agent or editor gets a manuscript with a title they've seen hundreds of times, how excited do you think they are to read it? What do you think is their first reaction?

My agent said the title of my book (The Pain Merchants) so intrigued her during my pitch she knew she was going to ask for pages before I ever said a word about the novel. Ironic since my publisher changed it, but what if it had been called The Shifter all along? Would she still have asked for pages? Would she still have been as excited to read them? No way to know, but I do know the title made her physically sit up and pay more attention to my pitch. Even she says her head snapped up when she heard it.

(Here's more on why titles are the first impression your novel makes)

3. Don't Let Adverbs Lull You into Lazy Writing

Adverbs get a bad rap, but they're not bad as we think. They're fantastic first-draft words that show exactly where you have an opportunity to flesh out and punch up an emotion or action--as long as we take advantage of those opportunities. After a first draft is done, do a search for -ly words and find the best way to revise without the adverb. You've already decided an emotion or action was needed in that spot, so make the most of it.

The zombie moaned menacingly and dragged itself down the dark hall.

Not very scary. Not very menacing. But this is clearly a writer's brain saying "this needs to be scary and menacing" to the writer.

A dry moan echoed in the dark hall. Bob jerked straight, eyes straining for some indication of where the damn thing was coming from. He backed away, shotgun out, hands trembling. Another moan, closer, but still out of sight. No, not quite...it had sounded..lower.

Where are you, you freaking dragger?

He pictured it--legless and dead, crawling along the shadows right for his ankles.

Feeling nervous now? One adverb can inspire a longer scene that creates just the right emotion and tension to keep readers reading.

(Here's more on taking advantage of adverbs)

4. Make the Most of Your Scene Breaks

Do the work and be rewarded.

The whole point of a scene break is to get the reader to read on to the next scene, but many writers use them to break up when events happen in a novel. Nothing wrong with that, but if your scenes aren't ending on something that makes readers want to keep reading, you're missing an opportunity to keep them reading. A book they can't put down and stay up all night reading is one they'll tell everyone about the next day and recommend to all their friends.

Take advantage of this opportunity to grab readers by the shirt and drag them on by making sure every scene ends with a reason to keep reading. It doesn't have to be a major cliffhanger, just something to tease readers to turn one more page, read one more scene or one more chapter.

(Here's more on where to end scenes)

5. Reconsider Tired Clichés, Metaphors, and Similes

I'll admit it, I love a good cliché. I use them all the time in everyday life and even on this site, but I leave them at the door in my fiction. Like the waking up opening, they're things readers have seen before so they make a novel feel familiar and predictable.

Same with common metaphors and similes. How many times have you seen a blanket of snow, a head spinning with ideas, or a smile as bright as the sun? Some are so common they've become clichés, but others are just missed chances to show an aspect of your character or world.

I once wrote a pirate character who'd spent his life at sea. When he referenced things, he often uses sea metaphors or similes, because that's what I felt he'd be used to. People went white as a sail, or something was hard as a north wind. My character Nya doesn't get goosebumps or have a chill run down her back, she gets shiverfeet.

How a character speaks and how she refers to her world is another way to show that character and that world, and show off your writing skills to boot. While you don't want to dip into purple prose trying to "write fancy," think about how your character would use a cliché, metaphor, or simile and how that fits into your story and world.

(Here's more on avoiding purple prose)

Traditionally "bad" writing could be good writing waiting to happen if you take advantage of it. There are so many opportunities in a novel to wow and thrill a reader, and the more we use them, the better our books will be.

Are you missing opportunities in your novel? Have you seen missed opportunities in other's? 

Need help revising? Get all three Fixing Your Revision Problems books in one omnibus!

This book contains Fixing Your Character & Point-of-View Problems, Fixing Your Plot & Story Structure Problems, and Fixing Your Setting & Description Problems--PLUS a BONUS workshop: How to Salvage Half-Finished Manuscripts.

A strong story has many parts, and when one breaks down, the whole book can fail. Make sure your story is the best it can be to keep your readers hooked.

With clear and easy-to-understand examples, Revising Your Novel: First Draft to Finished Draft Omnibus offers eleven self-guided workshops that target the common issues that make readers stop reading. It will help you:

• Flesh out weak characters and build strong character arcs
• Find the right amount of backstory to enhance, not bog down, your story
• Create unpredictable plots that keep readers guessing
• Develop compelling hooks to build tension in every scene
• Determine the right way to include information without infodumping
• Fix awkward stage direction and unclear character actions

Revising Your Novel: First Draft to Finished Draft Omnibus starts every workshop with an analysis and offers multiple revision options in each area. You choose the options that best fit your writing process. This easy-to-follow guide will help you revise your manuscript and craft a strong finished draft that will keep readers hooked. 

Available in paperback and ebook formats.

Janice Hardy is the award-winning author of the teen fantasy trilogy The Healing Wars, including The Shifter, Blue Fire, and Darkfall from Balzer+Bray/Harper Collins. The Shifter, was chosen for the 2014 list of "Ten Books All Young Georgians Should Read" from the Georgia Center for the Book.

She also writes the Grace Harper urban fantasy series for adults under the name, J.T. Hardy.

When she's not writing novels, she's teaching other writers how to improve their craft. She's the founder of Fiction University and has written multiple books on writing.

Website | Facebook | Twitter | Pinterest | Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | iTunes | Indie Bound