What Makes a Good Novel?

photo by a trying youth

Back in November, I lost my mind and decided to participate in NaBloPoMo and NaNoWriMo. Now, NaBloPoMo, or National Blog Posting Month, wasn't too bad. I went a little batty trying to come up with a new blog post every day, but I did it.

NaNoWriMo, National Novel Writing Month, was a different story. The goal was to write a 50,000 word novel in 30 days, with quantity trumping quality. I made it to 4,626 words. Which is exactly 4,626 more than I'd written before NaNoWriMo, so I'm considering it a success.

Some interesting characters sprouted up in those nine pages, and I may go back and see what they're up to. There's Anna, an American living in London. And Ian, a Scottish guy who sells puppets in Covent Garden. I know, the puppet thing is weird. I have no idea where it came from.

To gear up for NaNoWriMo, I bought No Plot? No Problem!, written by the event's founder, Chris Baty. He suggests creating two lists to help figure out a vague plot direction. The first list is what makes a good novel, and the second is what makes a boring or depressing novel. Of course, these are completely personal and need not be based on anything more than an inkling, a whim, or a fancy.

Like the puppets, I was surprised at what appeared on my lists.

What Makes a Good Novel

• Strong plot (a page turner)
• Interesting characters
• Relationships
• Satisfying, happy endings
• The feeling that I could live in the novel’s world (and do live there while I’m reading it)
• English setting
• Good (but not extensive) descriptions
• The passage of seasons
• Believable dialogue
• Intellectual pursuits
• Intersections of multiple story lines
• A sense of mystery and intrigue
• Romance and true love
• Unexpected connections
• Drama
• Comedy

What Makes a Boring or Depressing Novel

• Long-winded passages of description of scenery and setting, especially if it involves directional attributes like north, south, east, or west
  
• Too much death
• Industrial topics
• Obviousness
• Adventure stories of man vs. nature
• Anything set in a jungle
• Plots with such a wide scope and so many characters that I need a legend to keep it all straight
• Heavy historical perspective
• Most detective mysteries
• Ghosts, demons, and monsters
• Violence
• Bad character names
• Ugliness

Reading over these lists again, I can see there are no hard and fast rules for my preferences. I've enjoyed a few historical and adventure stories in my time. And sometimes a happy, satisfying ending feels too cliché.

What would be on your lists? Where would you put the puppets?

NaNoWriMo: 2,455 Words

I'm pleased to report that since leaving the 801 word mark, Anna has managed to do more than not get on and then get on a train. Currently, 1,645 words later, she has also avoided a scam artist, looked at a Christmas tree, and met a man named Ian, who apparently sells puppets and marionettes. Who knew? (I certainly didn't when I started this madness.) Things are really starting to pick up -- if you ignore the fact that I'm 7,547 words behind schedule.

Acronyms Abound!

Ah, November. The beginning of the holiday season. Time to reflect on our blessings and start plotting ways to avoid the mall at all costs for the next 55 days. (Who am I kidding? I try to avoid it the other 310 days of the year, too.)

It's also NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month). I said I was going to do it, and I'm sticking to it. I still don't have a plot. But I do have one character named Anna and a setting. Yesterday I wrote 801 words. In that time, Anna managed to not get on a train and then get on a train. If it takes her 801 words just to do that, this might be a very long novel indeed. No matter. As long as I reach 50,000 words by the end of the month, I'll be a NaNoWriMo winner! You gotta love any "contest" in which anyone who finishes is called a winner.

November is also NaBloPoMo (National Blog Posting Month). Am I going to do that, too? Come back tomorrow and find out, won't you?

But now I must go write 2,532.32 words to make up my quota for the last two days.