My Novel Approach
I’m writing a dystopian thriller, and this time I have an editor and writing coach in fellow SubStacker Allison Ink Smith, and we have lofty aims for the project.
This is a collaborative piece for me and my editor/writing coach Allison Ink Smith. I’m writing a novel and I needed help. INK is a wonderful partner for the job. Maybe you’re thinking about writing a book - this might give you some concrete ideas for how to progress. We’ll post regularly here about our journey together.
RALPH:
I hear it all the time from people in and out of the sports and entertainment industry, and sometimes I hear it from others too; … I want to write a book…
Do you? Have you ever wanted to? Have you ever thought about it? Do you know where to start?
I’ve been writing – writing stories and writing for work for decades. Taking typing in high school was as good a scholastic elective decision as I ever made. My computer folders and files contain scores of finished and unfinished writing projects. I write something pretty much every day. I publish here on SubStack about three times a week and have for about a year and a half. I can sit down and bang out a decent and cohesive piece in a little over an hour.
My writing muscles are in great shape.
But I wanted to write another book. Truth be told, I was putzing with a handful of ideas and had written parts or sections or treatments or outlines for them all. I had some good concepts – but I was stuck. I had two sci-fi novels. I had a book on the culture of professional hockey and corporate horrors based on my time in Chicago. I had an idea for another self-reflective human story.
What’s the one to write right now? Where do I begin? I needed help.
I self-published a science fiction novel – Saving Lenny Franks – in 2017. It took me two years of starts and stops, of long stretches away from the real world to pound it out. I didn’t know what I didn’t know. It’s not bad… and you can buy it here - ha.
Saving Lenny Franks By Ralph Strangis
I know a little more now and know enough to know I need help. I want someone else’s eyes on it with me. I want more of a plan this time. Because I have what I (and my editor, Allison Ink Smith) think is a very solid concept and timely idea for a dystopian thriller.
I follow so many publishers, writers, novelists, and editors on SubStack, and so many have shown me so much with their notes and posts.
I zeroed in on “Ink” – and now – she and I are in it. We’re in it together. And as we work our way through Act I, I’m very certain I made the right move in getting help, and I made the correct call in hiring her.
INK:
I’m an editor and a published author, and I’ve been doing this work for 15 years. I’ve seen it all—writers who have endless stories to tell but no writing experience, authors who are crippled by overthinking and imposter syndrome, people who have been writing for years but are stuck and can’t progress on their current project.
Ralph is a rare individual in many ways, and I knew that we vibed from the first 60 seconds of our introductory call. His energy matches mine, and we’re both no-BS people. We know we have something truly amazing in the works.
As editors, we ask, “Why this story right now? And why is this person the best author to write it?”
That was never a question with this project. Only a handful of times in my career have I seen a story pour out of an author. Ralph has devised a premise that’s both timely and compelling. Dystopian novels are hot right now. And, almost more importantly, he’s using insights and experiences from his own life to drive the narrative arc, character depth, and worldbuilding. That’s an approach that is often undervalued.
RALPH:
Over the next few months, we’ll publish updates on our progress. For you – or anyone who is interested in doing something like this – let us make the mistakes for you! Or maybe you’re just curious as to how something goes from an idea in somebody’s head to a shelf in a store. The whole process.
So come on along – and let’s see how we pull this thing together.
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