What should my book be about?

Question

It's gonna be a mystery but i don't know how to start it.

Answer 1

Look at some of the questions on this board and you will get some good ideas.

Answer 2

Write about what you know. Start simple using concepts and ideas that you know a lot about. If it were me and not you writing a book I would start with food or computers as they are what I really know. I don't know what you know so I can't tell you where specifically to begin. Use your experiences, where you live and/or have lived, your hobbies, and your likes and dislikes to mold your story. If you write about what you know you be better with the details and the reader will feel it.

Once you have a theme play with setting. If I went with food I could use a restaurant or better yet a culinary school.

At this point you can go a couple different directions. You can develop some characters and figure out how they would act out thereby creating your plot. On the other hand, you can build a general plot (the mystery) and add in characters to fill in the necessary roles.

You should have a few notes by now. Now organize them into an outline. Then begin to fill in the outline with subplots, character development, and the main story. You will probably redo this several times but don't throw anything away as you might want to go back to something that you had dismissed earlier.

Then write it. Just one piece of the outline at a time. Read it. Figure out what you forgot to put in to make it flow then add it. Read it. Make any more changes that improve the story. Read it. If it needs it keep editing and rereading. If it doesn't then let a couple other people read it. Take their suggestions to heart and take notes. Read it again and see if you agree with them. Edit and then let them read it again. Keep rewriting until you and your readers say wow.

Answer 3

I can't tell you, nor can anyone else, tell you what you should write a book about, but why don't you start writing down some basic thoughts. Maybe a main character, what he/she is like, her/his history somewhat, and where they are going or what they are going to do in the story, and how it will affect them. Do I want people to really like and even love him/her right from the beginning? or is he/she a jerk, but we come to love her/him etc. etc. Where is it set? Where will it be going?
Once you have some basic ideas, start from their. But, don't ever, ever consider that they are set in stone right from the beginning. Make a plan, but keep it fluid and flexible enough to change when you need it to to make the characters fit and go well together.
Also, what is the main characters motivation? Why the heck are they doing anything that they are? Does it make sense that they would do it that way? If not, find a better reason. Try and make it as real as possible - good fiction doesn't tell a story with people that do things for no good reason; good fiction mimicks real life enough to seem real. Good fiction is good because it seems real enough to let the reader be and stay involved. If Mrs. Jameson kills her husband becuase he made her a bad batch of cookies, but show no other problems otherwise, it doesn't make sense, and readers won't buy it. Whatever you do with the characters, try and ask: "Why are they doing this? Why did they do that? Does it make sense that they would act that way for the reasons that I have given them?"

Answer 4

Base it on your own life experiences. I find that mysterys are more difficult to write (for me). You may want to start with a "chick lit" book (i.e. Sex and the City as a novel). With a screen name like "gurlygrl" that should be right up your alley ;) Also, you may want to start by writing a short story and then build it into a novel. Completing a shorter work will give you confidence to finish a longer one. And finally, make writing therapeutic. When you write, write for you not for the $ (b/c it's rare to strike it rich writing). Maybe you should write about a girl who's trying to write a mystery novel .... Good luck :) !

Answer 5

Start by describing the protagonist, which will most likely resemble you, also make sure that she's going to be developing herself (maturing) as a character, so when you mention things about her, make sure make her grow in those aspects so the reader can see her development. That always makes a good story, like start of with a insecure girl, and then throughout the book as she meet different challenges, she learns and makes herself better.

Answer 6

A person should notice from high-atop an urban landscape in the last days of spring an odd gathering of stray cats, sniffing inquisitively at a tarp on a balcony. It is a body, frozen by winter, but the thaw is starting...

Answer 7

If it's going to be a mystery make it about something you've experienced in real life that way you can relate to it more. It could deal with family life, school, work, or friends.

Answer 8

To quote the words of a great writer, Stephen King - when he began to write, he would always sit down with a pen and pad and write "what if......questions". i.e. 'what if a woman and child were caught in a car with a mad dog who would not let them out? Voila! "Cujo". Use experiences and things that happen in your everyday world. Use library sources, internet, friends, to create storyline. Good luck.

Answer 9

Vampires! Not enough good mysteries about this subject. Good luck

Answer 10

You can start it using a couple ideas, such as: using a certain level and level boss from a video game, like: a level boss from Twisted Metal: Black