Five Ways to Work on Your Novel (Other than Writing It)

I've noticed a trend of people saying a writer is only working on their novel, or any work in progress, if they are sitting in front of a computer working on the manuscript. Don't misunderstand me, because that is the definition of working on the project. However, it's not the only way a writer, or any creative person, can be adding to their work.

I saw these posts and started to feel guilty, or like I was an imposter, whenever I took a break from writing, or wasn't able to write. I feel like that philosophy, that the only way to work on a novel is to be actively writing, is short-sighted and leads to burn-out. For me, at least, it sapped some of the creativity and joy out of the act of creating. Then, someone pointed out to me that there's more to writing and releasing a novel than simply the act of writing.

So, today, let's talk about five ways to work on your novel  (besides hammering away at your draft) that I've found helpful.

1) Create Character Playlists

Have you ever heard a song and gone "this remind me of [person]"?

Playlists can be incredibly helpful when writing characters and making them feel three-dimensional. Songwriters have been putting their feelings to music for hundreds of years and some songs can encapsulate people, real or fictional, better than they could ever express themselves naturally.

I created a playlist for my book in general, which I listen to when writing, as well as ones for my main characters. Listening to them helps me get into the characters' heads and capture the mood I'm trying to strive for in my writing.

2) Make Mood Boards

Mood boards are fun for all kinds of reasons. I've been making them for years, even before I started writing.

The word "aesthetic" gets thrown around a lot, but if you have a character with a radically different aesthetic than your own, mood boards can help you figure out not only their style, but also their general vibe.

They can also be helpful to keep information straight. Let's say your WIP has characters in a different groups. Whether those groups are rival high school cliques or warring nations, you want to be able to differentiate Group A from Group B. To quote some writing advice that I recently got, it's not enough for you to say they're different, they need to feel, and in some cases by written, different from each other. Having boards for each one, where you can collect images, poignant quotes or links to information, it can be easier to write them.

3) Find Reference Images

I'm not one of the lucky people who can fully envision what a character looks like in my head.

I need references, usually stock photos, to look at when I want to describe a character's appearance, their outfits and so on. You may not need to go into great detail to describe a character, but you do need to provide some information to the reader. The reader wants to get lost in the story, which means being able to picture characters and events in their heads. You need to describe what things and people look like, so they can start to form a picture.

There's an additional benefit to this one as well: you can use the reference images if you want to create or commission art.

4) Write Other Things

"You said this list was ideas that don't involve writing!" I said they were ideas that didn't involve writing your novel. I didn't say anything about no writing at all.

I believe that any writing you do can improve your skills if you let it. There are writing groups that have daily or weekly writing prompts you can do to challenge yourself. Some sites (Reedsy is the one that first comes to mind for me) have a weekly short story writing contest. Even if you don't want to enter one of those, you can write a short story and ask someone you trust to give you feedback on it.

Stretch some new "writing muscles" outside of your big project. Write something with only dialogue to hone those skills. Write something with no dialogue to work on narrative/descriptive writing. Write in a different genre to try something new. Write short, complete synopsis of a movie to work on your summarizing skills.

Use those skills, whatever they may be, when you return to your WIP.

5) Start (or Grow) Your Social Media

This is one falls more on the "business side" of working on your novel, but it's still important. You could write the best book in the world, but no one will read it if no one knows about it. Whether you are an independent author or going the traditional route, you need to build some kind of following.

Creating a social media page and making connections with people is important. I'm not saying you should spend seven hours doom-scrolling, but spending a little bit of time connecting with other authors and readers brings your work to more people's attention and builds a community.

Post about your WIP. Post about your life. Post about what you're reading. Engage with other creatives about their work. Take part in challenges or trends.

+1) Read Some Books

This might seem counter-intuitive, but sometimes, you just need a break from writing. Distance from your draft helps you notice something you might've overlooked. It also prevents you from losing your passion for the story when it's starting to feel like too much pressure.

Spending some time reading books, whether it's an old favorite or a new discovery, gives you that distance. It helps you reset before starting again. I was stuck on how to tackle something in my draft, but putting it away and picking up a book gave my brain a break and when I returned, I was able to think of a solution.

I'm not suggesting you read other books to analyze their structure, or note what they did or didn't do well or compare it to your own work. I'm saying you should read a book to enjoy it and give yourself some "off-time".

See you next time!

Follow Me In Other Places: Instagram / Threads / My Newsletter