A Novel in a Year

Writing expert Louise Doughty starts her writers off on their quest to write a novel in a year by suggesting a provocative prompt for each of the first few weeks. Then she asks the writers to clear their calendars and write as near to round-the-clock as possible for the next ten weeks. You can write about anything, even things that are only loosely or potentially connected to the story. Then she arrives at what she calls her favorite bit of the whole process: Put everything out on a big flat surface and gaze at it and put everything roughly in order. Gaps, she says, should soon be obvious, and this is where you should then focus.

And that is, distilled to its bones, the rough process.