Have you settled on an idea for your story yet? If you read through the first Story Writing Challenge post you will know that I left you thinking about an idea for your story. In the post Tips for Writing a Book there were some other things to keep in mind when developing an idea.

Step 4 of the challenge is to sit down and write a first draft of your book! In the post How I write a Book – Part 1 you can read some more advice on how to go about that and how to get over the daunting prospect of making a start. My best piece of advice – which I’ll keep repeating! – is not to be too ambitious… aim for something that doesn’t feel too daunting! If three pages of A4 sounds like too much, try for just one or two.

Also, don’t worry about making your first run-through perfect. It is more important to get your ideas down and develop the basic story line to its conclusion. (You certainly don’t need to worry about how neat and tidy it looks!) You will be able to make as many changes as you like later and add in more detail as part of the editing stage. Better to crack on and get something down and enjoy the satisfaction of knowing you have already achieved the goal of a first draft!

Before I leave you to get on with it, here is something practical for you to think about…

Should I write by hand or on a computer?

Its really up to you. If you know how to use a computer then it has the advantage that you can keep making changes without having to cross things out and write things out again. If you aren’t very experienced with using a computer then it is fine to write it out by hand. Some people find it easier to think and write by hand anyway. You can always type it up later or ask a grown-up to help you.

At some point you will probably want to get your text onto a computer so you can make it look professional, combine it with your illustrations and print it out. If you don’t, the only alternative is to write it out as neatly as you can by hand leaving space for your illustrations. You can then draw in your illustrations or, if you have already done them separately, cut them out and stick them in. This would still look great but it means you can’t print more than one copy and making any changes in future means doing it all over again!