The fastest I’ve ever written a book was in five days, and today I’m going to share with you exactly how I did that.
Also, for reference, this book was a novella, meaning it was much shorter than a novel. The final word count of this book was 37k, and I had about 1-2 hours each day to write the book.
1. Outline
I wrote a very meticulous outline, to the point that each CHAPTER was outlined and an estimated number of pages was given. This really helped save a lot of time and helped me pace myself.
2. Make a plan
My husband knew I was on a tight deadline, so we were on the same page as far as my book writing plans. When my daughter napped during the day, I would get about 1-2 hours to write. Sometimes she didn’t nap, so on those days, my husband would take our daughter for the evenings and I’d still get in about 1-2 hours of writing.
3. Pace yourself
This was a novella, so it wasn’t as long as a novel. However, I still paced myself by writing x amount of chapters a day. If I got that amount done, I was on track.
4. Eliminate distractions
I didn’t go on social media, and when my computer was open, I made sure the only two tabs open were my outline document and my story document. That was it!
5. Fight discouragement
It’s easy to get discouraged when you’re on such a tight deadline, but know that this is possible! Believe in yourself and believe that God can and will help you with your writing, especially if you’re doing it for the right reasons. In my case, the novella I wrote was for a charity series, and I definitely felt God giving me the strength and motivation I needed to get it done so quickly.
6. Use mundane tasks as time to brainstorm and think ahead
When washing dishes or doing other mundane tasks, I would think to the scenes ahead. What needed to happen? How would I frame those chapters and scenes? This really helped me to stay in the mindset of the current book and know exactly what I wanted to write when my writing time came.
7. When your writing time is cut short, write out what you planned to do next
My daughter would wake up from her nap and, of course, I’d be in the middle of a scene. I would hurry and literally write: This is what happens next. And then commence to write my train of thought. This saved a lot of time and mental energy when I came back to my draft. I would be able to pick up right where I left off last time.
If you’re wanting to write a book in five days, know that it’s possible! If you have tips and strategies that have helped you write a book in 5 days (or less!), let us know in the comments below. And remember: you got this!