How to Know When Your Book is Done (Writing Advice)

Learn how to know when your novel is finally, truly ready.

Get Brandon's horror/thriller novel The Half Murders:

Get Brandon's horror/thriller novel BAD PARTS:

Get Brandon's supernatural thriller novel ENTRY WOUNDS:

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The Anatomy of Story REVIEW:

Save the Cat Writes a Novel REVIEW:
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[LaserLady]

I'm only 5 chapters in, and have taken a 5 month break... Watching your videos inspires me to get back to writing! 📚

[errantwinds-upuu]

I think it was Stephen King who said that after he finishes his first draft he puts it aside for awhile so that he can come back and look at it with fresh eyes before writing the second draft. It might not be the process for everybody, but it seems like a good idea to me.

Looking forward to your new book Brandon!

[HawkWall]

Recently rebooted my book series, which was definitely a great move on my part. The first few pages are a lot more intriguing than before. It now explains the world better and sets the tone for the series. And instead of the series being 15 books long, making me over 30 years old once I would've been done, is now only 3 books long, with a potential sequel series. Gives me more room for better writing and improvement rather than rushing each installment. And I figured to make the series shorter as to not make it drag on for too long. Star Wars is a great example for this. The Original series alone was good enough, the prequels were a fine addition to give more depth for Obi-Wan and especially Anakin, but anything else pretty much was just milking the series. Some were good, but the series would've been fine without them too. There is no specific rule as to when your book/story is done. It's up to you, the writer, what to do with it. Do you want to use it for its full potential, risking making too much to the point the story might become dry, or leave it shorter but more polished. Making it shorter is the safe play, but making more can lead to better success, if done right.

[somenamedno]

Hi, brandon. Thanks for the video. My birthday is the 28th, so I'm going to order myself a copy of The Half Murders as a belated gift.

[c.h.arvinn]

Look at you man, congrats on the next book!🎉

[shaneblackburn]

I’m finishing up my sci fi space opera action adventure novel. Been working on it for about 6 years. I’m starting to see a light at the end of the tunnel. My cousin who has a background in writing for magazines has been very helpful. I’m half way through my 7th draft. Once I finish my 7th draft, I will go through it few more times until I feel comfortable to publish.

[Alina-Butterfly]

After watching this, I feel like one of the story's I am currently writing needs a lot more work then I thought it would need, your videos help a lot Brandon, thank you🙂

[WriterBrandonMcNulty]

How's your work-in-progress going? How close to the end are you? Let us know!

[KALtheHighstorm]

I'm almost done with the outline of my book. I'll be starting the first draft soon!

[patrickstar-fo]

Great video! Also congrats on your new book! I might check it out along with the others!
I do have a request: could you do a video on how to write war stories? Because one of my books I'm looking to write involves war so I need all the help I can get.

[belenlazaga]

Argentinian here with a work in progress! So thankful for your advices, so clear and simple, thank you so much!! 🎉

[gubalord]

I've never been as close to finish any writings as I am right now. If I can keep up the pace, then my current book will be ready in approximately 16 years.

[EthanSmith]

Be safe and just disable autofocus friend. The expressive hands are great. Love the work, thanks for sharing

[davidaleshire]

Thank you so much for this video. It couldn’t have come at a better time. I’ve just sent my first manuscript off to a friend of mine who taught linguistics in college. Told him not to hold back with that red pen. While he does his thing I’m starting on book two in what I hope will be a three or four book series. If I knew I’d love writing this much I’d have started a long time ago.

[Cobalt]

Hi Brandon. Thanks for sharing those tips with us. In my case, I started writing a book (a thriller) three years ago and after almost 6 months to make the first draft, I put it aside to write another one for my first NaNoWriMo. 😅

Then I came back to it and rewrite it twice after sending it to beta readers. But I still wasn’t satisfied of the story but was unable to find why.

One day, I had an illumination: my main character was too submissive and not active enough. 😊

When I fixed that, it was like a relief. I’m sure the book is not perfect but I can make it reviewed by a professional without feeling ashamed of my work. 😅

[Valkrill]

Over 100k words in, writing the climactic fight scene at the end. Definitely the hardest part of the 1st draft so far. Trying to ensure a satifying conclusion is a wild ride.

[c.h.arvinn]

I’ve been writing everyday for the past year, and I finished 2 rough drafts. I’m very proud of that. Now I’m hammering outlines for the next three. I’ll be done in a month and start out on the next three. I’ll get a printer in a few months so I can edit these first two. Lots of work and I’m excited for it!

[franciscorigozzi]

Thank you, Brandon, this video was really helpful. I was dealing with writer's block because I was feeling panicked to write perfect sentences and perfect paragraphs and this video helped me understand: that crafting the perfect sentence is one of the last stages of the process... It is better to write in a raw sense, following every instinct, and just let it out, specially since I will rewrite everything later... so it's important to enjoy the process. As they say, it's the journey that matters... And now I'm feeling once again comfortable in submerging and diving in the story.


Ps: I think our dreams prove that our brains have the potential to tell powerful, symbolic and convincing stories without the self-flagelation about the how-it-is-told. They play the "show-don't-tell" rule like a fiddle.

[damien_writer]

It has been 4 years since I finished the 1st draft of my first book. So to say I hit a post 1st draft slump is quite the understatement. Early on, I attempted to revise the draft and realised it was so riddled with problems I didn't know where to start. After much thinking on it, I have come to the conclusion that the story needs a complete re-write. So, have the intervening 4 years been a waste of time? I don't believe so. I have learned so much from authors like you and this has given me the tools to look more critically at my work and see where the gaping hole are. This time has also allowed the stronger story elements in the wider setting to percolate through and push out the less important elements. As a result, I believe I have a better and more focused story in my head. Now I just have to write it….

[Tyranniod]

Im halfway through draft 3 of my first hook. A lot of work has been done but i know so much more needs to be done. I'm aiming to be done by the end of this year. Ive been working on it every day so far.