So how do you go about writing that bestseller? First and foremost I would tell you not to copy another writer. Just because Twilight has been a great success doesn't mean you should go out and write a story about a human, a werewolf, and a vampire. A bestseller isn't necessarily about vampires, but it's not necessarily the next Alex Cross book either. Most bestsellers, however, do have something in common -- they're written with imagination, emotion, passion, and just a little bit of faith.
Faith and Its Importance in Novel Writing
If you don't believe in yourself and your product, you're just going to produce more fluff, and the literary world doesn't need any more fluff. You have to believe in your story at all stages of production. This includes before you sit down to write it, while you're writing your novel, during revisions and editing, and after you've sent it off to a publisher and agent.
You even have to maintain this faith when you receive rejections, which will certainly happen. Very few books, even those books that make it on to the bestseller lists, are accepted by the first publisher/agent you send them to. Be prepared for rejections, listen to advice, and keep believing in your story. JK Rowling received more than on rejection for Harry Potter, but she kept going. And her books eventually skyrocketed to the bestseller lists.
Imagination and Writing
Of course you need imagination. It takes imagination to write a novel that isn't a copy of whatever it is you last read. But I'm not necessarily talking about this kind of imagination. I'm talking about visualizing yourself as creating a bestselling work. See yourself as crafting something worthy of being read by the masses. Know that you can do it, that you are doing it.
This may seem silly, but it really is true that you control most of what happens to you in your own life. We know that cancer patients with a positive attitude tend to heal faster (I firmly believe this positive attitude is why I survived my own battle with cancer). Why can't this also work when you're writing? Imagine yourself as vastly successful and you're more likely to be vastly successful.
Don't Forget the Emotion When Writing a Novel
Have you ever read a book that seems as if it's no more than words on a page? Not compelling and clearly written without any emotion at all? I know I have, and that's not the way to get on the bestseller lists. You need to feel the emotion in your story and convey that emotion to your readers.
This isn't always easy, but it's made easy by your own connection to your characters and their story. If it makes you cry, or laugh, or shout, you're on the right track. If you're not emotionally affected by your story, your readers won't be either. Find the emotions inside you. Reach down into your psyche and really experience your book. Then take another look and make it even better.
Bestsellers, whether written for children or adult, evoke an emotional response from the reader. Look for opportunities to use emotion to drive your story and you might be crafting a bestseller.
Bring on the Passion in Your Writing
Passion may be connected to emotion, but it's not exactly the same. Passion is that spark, that little thing that kicks a scene up a notch. It's the heat that flies between a couple as they argue. It's the panic that floods through a victim as he or she drowns.
It's hard to mimic a passion you know nothing about. You can research things, of course, but there's something that just can't be captured by simple research. This is where the old axiom "write what you know" comes from. It's impossible to experience everything you might write about, but at least make the effort. No, you can't know what it's like to drown, but if you've never even set foot in the water, the passion will simply not be there.
So what can you do to put the passion in your novel? Get out there and experience life. Actually watch the sun rise before you try to describe what it's like. Stand outside on a windy day. Let the rain pound down on you. Walk down a city street. Fall in love. Observe and interact with the world around you. Then inject these things into your story. It will liven things up and help readers take notice of your work.
The only way to get on the bestsellers list is to write a work that grabs readers. You have to make them buy the book in the first place, then they have to tell their friends about it. You can do this in any genre. Just look at the bestseller lists from the past two decades. You'll see everything from fantasy to erotica and everything in between appear at one point or another. So don't focus on genre so much as on the craft of writing and you'll be well on your way to writing a book that might just attract a following.
