Writing—So You Want to be a Writer, How is a Novel Written? Brainstorming Telic Ideas, Technology Example


  1. The initial scene
  2. The rising action
  3. The Climax
  4. The falling action
  5. The dénouement

Announcement:   Ancient Light has been delayed due to the economy.  Ancient Light includes Aegypt, Sister of Light and Sister of Darkness.  If you are interested in historical/suspense literature, please give my novels a try.  You can read about them at http://www.ancientlight.com.  I’ll keep you updated.


Short digression:  back in the USA.

Here are my rules of writing:

  1. Entertain your readers.
  2. Don’t confuse your readers.
  3. Ground your readers in the writing.
  4. Don’t show (or tell) everything.


  1. Immerse yourself in the world of your writing.



Scene development:



  5. Write the release
  6. Write the kicker






  1. What a novel is.
  2. How a novel is constructed.
  3. How a novel is entertaining.
  4. How a novel is written.
  5. How novels have evolved.
  6. Different genre in novels.


If we understand what makes a novel entertaining, we can move on to how a novel is written.


This idea incorporates significant concepts about writing.  First of all, the author must be a skilled reader.  Second, the author must be a skilled writer.  Third, the author must have an idea.  Forth, the author must have the discipline to write a novel.


Brainstorming, lists, dreams, daydreaming, life events, technology, setting, and plot outlining might produce ideas worth writing.  How do we find an idea to write about?


You can write a novel based on a brainstormed idea from a list—let’s explore these ideas in all their parts.  If you notice from the list above, all the words following brainstorming are examples of lists for brainstorming.


Listing technology can be used for science fiction and for general modern novels if you use an indistinct time setting for the modern novel.  I used the flying car as an example.  Let me give you another.


In my list of technology, let’s say I list FTL (Faster than Light) travel or spaceship.  This is great technology.  Like a flying car, I can develop a telic flaw using FTL.  Jack Vance prefaces some of his novels with just this concept.  He uses it as a basis of the telic flaw for the entire setting of a set of novels.  That is for the Demon Princes novels, the assumption of the first and second novel is that FTL makes crime easy and almost unstoppable.  This becomes the actual telic flaw of the second novel, The Killing Machine.


Most novels with FTL in them are not exactly like this.  In most, the FTL spaceship becomes a setting element or a means to enact the telic flaw.  Either one is great, but my point is that a singular listed technological device or idea can become a telic flaw, a means to the telic flaw, or a setting element for a novel.  In other words, you either have a novel plot idea, a means to accomplish the plot idea, or a setting to begin the novel.


In any case, this is an amazing way to get an idea for a novel.  All you have to do is make a list of technological ideas and think about using them.  I haven’t really tried this means before because it isn’t the main way I put together a plot, but I might take my own advice for the fifth novel of my Ghost Ship Chronicles novels.  I need a great way to complete this series.


There are some other means to gain creative ideas.


I’ll write more tomorrow.













About L.D. Alford


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