8 Ways to Bring Out the Best in Your Fiction Manuscript

Fiction writing is an imaginative way of creating stories that are not based on real events or people. It is a literary form of writing that requires a proper storyline, a theme, and a plot. Fiction writers and authors use their imagination and creativity to invent new narratives in their stories.

Fiction writing should inspire new ideas, entertain and provoke thoughts, and explore new themes and concepts. In a fiction manuscript, the writing should be compelling and engaging so that it fascinates the reader. One of the tips that fiction writing authors give is to read masterpieces to produce one.

The more you read about a particular author’s work, the more you internalize their style of writing, their expression and learn the way of story development. Initially, by planning with the use of some helpful tricks, you can take your fiction manuscript from your desk to the readers’ attention.

Here are 8 ways to bring out the best in your fiction manuscript:

1. Decide a Storyline

The first step in creating a fiction manuscript is to come up with a compelling story. This means that it should be something that grabs the reader’s attention and convinces him to continue reading. A compelling storyline should spark the interest and curiosity of the reader.

Source: freepik.com

The minds of the readers should be directly transported to the imaginary world of fantasies and wonder. This is the real essence of fiction writing. Whether you are describing the fantastical realm, a busy city life, a horrible night in the jungle, or a quiet neighborhood. The reader should feel everything just by reading the words.

A storyline develops ideas in the writer’s and reader’s minds. You can add a thrilling story or a romantic one according to the genre that you are writing about.

2. Develop Characters

Strongly developed characters contribute to advancing the plot of the fiction book. Character development is a key to making your fiction writing even more engaging. Their assistance allows you to take the storyline in various directions.

By giving characters certain personalities, names, and some indicators, the reader gets hooked to it. He may also have a favorite character in his reading journey. This will help bring out the best in your fiction writing as it takes the reader’s attention as well as interest.

3. Build a Plot

The plot of the fiction manuscript is just like the foundation pillar of the house. Without a plot, the story of your fiction book will be baseless. To bring out the best in your manuscript, there must be an existing plot.

A well-structured plot includes building up tension, thrill, curiosity, and emotions with a satisfying resolution. This will help the author to develop dialogues for every setting and move the story forward. You can also consider using techniques like foreshadowing, plot twists, climaxes, and subplots to make your manuscript stand out.

This will polish your writing skills and help you write good fiction in your journey of writing.

4. Using Correct Language

The best fictional manuscripts have clear and concise writing expressions so that they are easily readable to everyone. It is essential to use appropriate language and expressions, as the reader can be of any age. This way, you can engage a vast audience.

The use of strong verbs and active voice will keep the readers engaged. To maintain the attention span, writing clear and simple words will help continue the storyline as well. Well-crafted language will keep the reader immersed in the story.

This will help you develop a structured form of writing in your manuscript to make it the best example compared to other fiction books.

5. Edit, Edit, and Edit!

Fictional writing can be a very exhausting process. Editing the entire work requires a great deal of mental and imaginative effort, word choice, and expression development, making it a mentally demanding task.

To achieve the best outcome for your manuscript, you must divide it into drafts. There must be a rough first draft till the final draft that goes for printing. A structured approach will help you effectively edit and proofread your work.

Self-editing can also be a task along the journey of writing fiction stories. After doing proper research and looking for recommendations, you can also get proofreading services in Australia for your manuscript.

This will add a professional touch and improve the quality of your work. Proofreading will also cater to ambiguities and eliminate any extra information in the text. It will also deal with grammatical errors, spelling mistakes, and punctuation.

6. Revise After Feedback

Once you have checked, edited, and proofread the work, it is your responsibility to revise it based on feedback received. You can also get it checked by a fellow companion or author so that the feedback that you receive turns out to be fruitful for the manuscript.

Revising the manuscript ensures thorough checking for the best outcome.

7. Format Correctly

This is a crucial step that authors often overlook in their manuscripts. Formatting according to the pattern of fictional writing will bring out the best in your manuscripts. It will make it stand out. Formatting will make the writing look very concrete and concise. 

It will allow you to tighten or expand the scenes while you are writing the storyline. Verifying the proper use of dialogues and formatting speech tags will improve the outlook of your manuscript.

8. Stay Consistent

Staying hopeful and consistent till the very end while writing a book is very important. It takes a lot of mental exercise to convince yourself to keep going. To continue writing in even hopeless situations takes a lot of courage.

Since writing is a long and exhausting process, it requires the right amount of attention from the author as well. It is also important to maintain coherence, believability, and reader engagement throughout the story. By keeping yourself organized, disciplined, and consistent, the manuscript will come out the best as well. The work you do will reflect your vision.