Books: Write Your Novel in a Month

Write Your Novel in a Month
My Verdict: Skim It

In Write Your Novel in a Month: how to complete a first draft in 30 days and what to do next by Jeff Gerke attempts to tackle a lot of information. He purposefully chose to summarize a variety of topics in order to fit everything into one book, because other books have gone in depth on individual themes (some of which he has written). If you want to write a novel or have gotten lost somewhere on your path, this book might be able to point you in the right direction.

Please note that the title says “first draft”. The “thirty days” mentioned throughout the book is meant only for writing your first draft. Not thirty days to conceive your idea, write your novel, and be able to send it to publishers in thirty days. The book is split into three sections: Planning Your Novel (before the thirty days), Writing Your Novel (in thirty days), and Publishing Your Novel (takes place after the thirty days and includes several more revisions of your draft).

Gerke returns to one piece of advice over and over as he covers different topics: “One commandment for fiction…You must engage your reader from beginning to end.” (p. 14-15) As with all writing books you can pick and choose which advice fits for you and what doesn’t.

The most important thing in picking out any writing book is to read the first twenty pages. If the author’s voice, opinion, or structure doesn’t align with what you enjoy – don’t read it. Some people need a casual voice that speaks directly to them. Others want a lecture that’s boiled down to almost no personality. Keep in mind which one you need before spending time trudging through a book you can’t stand.

As a closing note: Gerke states in the introduction, "Film is the highest, most powerful form of storytelling in our culture today, in my opinion, and the principles that make for strong cinema also make for strong fiction." (p. 9).

Take that opinion as you will.

Your homework: spend at least fifteen minutes objectively thinking of your skills as a writer. Pick out the top item you do best, and the worst. Then find a book for each that specializes in that topic. (The best will either confirm or deny your expertise and the worst will help you improve on something you already know is a problem).

Rating Scale: Keep on Desk, Own It, Read It, Skim It, Don’t Bother