What Common Mistakes Break The Rules To Writing A Novel?

2026-07-30 22:58:43
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4 Answers

Chase
Chase
Story Interpreter Data Analyst
Passive protagonists drive me up the wall. A character who just has things happen to them, reacting but never making decisive choices that push the plot forward. It makes the story feel like it's on rails, just a series of events the writer lined up. Give your character agency, even if their choices are bad ones. Let them want something desperately and then struggle to get it. The plot should be a consequence of their actions, not just a pre-determined path they walk down. That’s what creates tension and makes readers actually root for someone.
2026-07-31 17:06:08
2
Ellie
Ellie
Expert Worker
Info-dumping right at the start is a classic pitfall. You've built this amazing world or complex backstory, and you just have to explain it all in the first chapter. The reader doesn't care yet! They need a reason to care about a character or a situation first. Throwing a glossary of terms and a history lesson at them before they're invested is a surefire way to get the book closed. It’s like meeting someone and they immediately tell you their entire medical history—you just disengage. Let the world unfold through the character's experiences. The reader will piece it together as they go, and that discovery is part of the fun.
2026-08-02 11:50:56
3
Dylan
Dylan
Sharp Observer Accountant
I see a lot of talk about 'rules' that I honestly find a bit stifling. One of the biggest mistakes I think new writers make is following those 'rules' too rigidly. Like, never use adverbs, show don't tell, start with action...these are tools, not commandments. Slavishly adhering to them can drain the voice right out of your prose. The point is to learn why those guidelines exist, then break them intentionally when it serves the story.

Take the 'said is dead' crowd. Replacing every dialogue tag with something elaborate is far more distracting than a simple 'she said'. The real mistake is forgetting that your primary job is to make the reader forget they're reading words on a page. When you're so focused on checking rule-compliance boxes, the story's heartbeat gets lost. A perfectly 'correct' novel can be utterly lifeless.
2026-08-04 06:08:48
3
Yolanda
Yolanda
Careful Explainer Editor
Thinking your first draft needs to be perfect. That's the killer, right there. You write a paragraph, hate it, delete it, stare at the blank screen, and the cycle repeats until you give up. The first draft is just you telling yourself the story. It's supposed to be messy and full of inconsistencies and bland dialogue. You can't edit a blank page. Get the whole ugly, broken thing down first. The real writing happens in revision. I wasted years trying to make chapter one flawless before moving to chapter two, and I never got past chapter three. Embracing the messy draft was the only way I ever finished anything.
2026-08-04 11:03:30
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