What if your novel isn't stuck because you're not ready—but because you're expecting yourself to know too much before you've even begun?
Most people do not struggle because they lack ideas. They struggle because the moment they decide to start writing a novel, the idea suddenly feels too big, too messy, or too important to get wrong.
I really struggled with this especially before we wrote our debut novel 'Meet Me At 10'. It felt like a mountain to climb. I knew I had to break it into smaller parts.
But I was thinking the following:
One scene becomes a hundred questions:
Who is the main character?
What happens first?
Is this even worth writing?
That pressure stops a lot of good books before they begin. The better approach is simpler.
You do not need to know everything about your novel before you write it. You need a starting point, a workable plan, and enough trust in yourself to write badly before you write well.
Start writing a novel by making it smaller
A novel sounds enormous because it is enormous. That is exactly why you should not treat it as one giant task. A novel is built from manageable parts - a character with a problem, a setting with tension, a sequence of scenes, and a reason for the reader to keep turning the page.
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If you are trying to begin with a polished concept, a perfect plot, and complete confidence, you are asking too much of yourself too early. Instead, reduce the project to something you can hold in your mind. Start with one sentence that explains what your story is really about.
(We help you do this by creating a logline or a story snippet - makes it so much easier to see your story on one page.)
It might be as straightforward as: a widow returns to her home town and uncovers a family secret. Or: a teenager discovers his father is not missing but hiding. The sentence does not need to sound clever. It needs to give you direction.
Once you have that, ask three practical questions. Who is at the centre of the story? What do they want? What is making that difficult? If you can answer those, you already have the beginning of a novel.
The first job is not brilliance
Many beginners think the opening pages must prove they are a real writer. That mindset creates hesitation. Your first job is not brilliance. Your first job is movement.
Writing a novel means creating enough material to shape. You cannot improve a blank page, but you can strengthen a rough chapter. Give yourself permission to draft something incomplete. That is not lowering the standard. It is respecting the process.
What to decide before you begin
You do not need a fifty-page plan, but a little structure can save you from drifting. Before you write chapter one, make a few decisions that will help the story hold together.
Choose your main character and write a short note about what they fear, what they want (their goal such as to solve the murder case if it was crime fiction) and what they are avoiding.
People become interesting when desire and resistance sit side by side. A character who wants love but fears trust, or wants success but fears being seen, gives you tension from the start.
Choose your setting with care as well. Setting is not wallpaper. It affects mood, pace, conflict, and possibility. A story set in a sleepy village moves differently from one set in a crowded city. A crumbling house creates different scenes from a glossy office tower. If your setting can create pressure, your plotting gets easier.
Then decide where the story begins (in our courses and workbooks, we teach about creating an exciting inciting event- basically when the story kicks off.)
Not the earliest thing that happened, but the moment life starts to change. Readers do not need every piece of background at once. They need to enter the story where something is unsettled.
How much planning is enough?
This depends on how your mind works. Some writers need a sketch of the major turning points before they feel safe enough to begin. Others lose energy if they over-plan and prefer to discover the story while drafting.
I or we at Hackney and Jones are definately planners - we get the job done.
Neither approach is better. What matters is honesty. If you often abandon projects halfway through because you do not know what happens next, more planning may help. If detailed planning makes the idea feel stale, keep it light. A one-page outline is often enough for a first draft.
A simple way to start writing a novel
If you feel stuck, use this basic framework. It gives you shape without boxing you in.
Begin by writing down your premise in one or two sentences. Then sketch your protagonist, your central conflict, and the stakes.
Make your main character 'good' for 80% of the time and 'bad' 20% of the time - this makes them human.
After that, think in scenes rather than chapters.
What is the first scene that introduces the problem?
What is a scene where things get worse?
What is a moment where your character has to make a difficult choice?
We use index cards or note cards to plan out scenes.
This matters because scenes are easier to write than abstract ideas. You may not know your whole book yet, but you can write one moment. A woman opening a letter she hoped would never arrive. A father lying to his daughter at the breakfast table. A man returning to a house he swore never to enter again. Specific moments create momentum.
When you sit down to write, resist the urge to edit every sentence. Stay with the scene until it has a beginning, a middle, and a shift. Something should change by the end of it, even if only slightly. A secret slips out. A decision hardens. A relationship becomes more strained.
We actually recommend to edit only after you've finished your first draft because otherwise, you will break your flow.
Your brain is in creative mode for writing, then logical brain for editing. It's challenging to do both at the same time - so don't. Don't do it to yourself.
Why beginners stop too soon
There is usually a point, often a few chapters in, where the excitement fades. The opening idea no longer feels magical. The middle looks foggy. You start comparing your rough draft to finished novels and assume you are failing.
You are not failing. You are meeting the ordinary reality of long-form writing.
The early stage of a novel gives quick rewards. Later, the work becomes steadier and less glamorous. That is where habits matter more than inspiration.
If you wait to feel ready, your novel will keep becoming a future plan instead of a present project.
Try setting a small writing target you can meet even on a busy day. That might be 300 words, twenty minutes, or one scene paragraph.
The point is not to impress yourself. The point is to keep contact with the story. Consistency builds familiarity, and familiarity reduces fear.
Protect the draft from perfectionism
Perfectionism often disguises itself as high standards, but in practice it blocks progress. You keep rewriting the first chapter, changing names, or questioning the premise instead of moving forward. (This is why we recommend just getting your first draft down - edit later.)
A healthier standard is this: make the draft clear enough to continue. Not final. Not flawless. Just alive.
If a section feels weak, leave yourself a note and keep going. If you are unsure about research, mark the gap and move on. If a character voice feels uneven, trust that revision will sharpen it. The first draft is where you discover what the novel wants to be.
Build a writing routine that fits your real life
A lot of writing advice assumes unlimited time, perfect concentration, and a tidy schedule. Real life is messier than that. You may be writing around work, parenting, caring responsibilities, or plain tiredness.
That does not mean you cannot write a novel. It means your routine needs to be realistic.
Think of it as 'how much time can I prioritise?'. Be honest with yourself, if you say 10 hours a week, is that sustainable? If you said 2-3 hours and you smash that consistently, this will give you momentum and confidence to keep going.
Choose a regular time you can defend without creating constant guilt. For some people that is early morning. For others, it is half an hour in the evening or a longer weekend session. Keep it simple enough that you can repeat it.
It also helps to know what you are writing before you sit down. End each session by noting the next scene or problem to tackle. This small habit removes the friction of starting cold.
We always prefer to know exactly what scene we will be writing the next day - using the notecard method in our workbooks. Works every time.
At Hackney and Jones, that blend of structure and encouragement matters because most people do not need more pressure. They need a clear next step.
When your idea keeps changing
This is common, especially in the early stages. New possibilities appear as soon as you begin writing. Sometimes that means the story is deepening. Sometimes it means you are dodging the harder work of developing the original idea.
A useful question is whether the change adds strength or simply offers novelty.
If the new idea raises the stakes, clarifies the theme, or makes the protagonist more compelling, it may be worth following. If it is just shinier, be careful. (This is called 'shiny object syndrome' or 'the woman in the red dress'.)
You do not have to decide everything forever in chapter one. Novels evolve. But constant restarting can become a way of avoiding completion.
Let the story grow without giving it permission to run away from you.
Your first chapter only needs to do a few things well
There is too much pressure around openings. A strong first chapter does not need to explain the entire world or display all your talent at once. It needs to create interest, establish tone, and introduce a disturbance.
Give the reader someone to focus on, something to wonder about, and a reason to continue. Clarity matters more than spectacle. If the emotional direction is clear, readers will follow you.
That means starting with motion rather than explanation. Let us see a character wanting, hiding, deciding, fearing, or failing. Backstory can come later when it earns its place.
If you have been waiting for the perfect moment to begin, this is your reminder that novels are not written by waiting. They are written by showing up before you feel fully prepared, making sensible choices, and trusting that clarity grows through practice. Start with one sentence, then one scene, then the next.
Your novel does not need you to be fearless. It needs you to begin.
Good luck, we are here for you at any stage.