I work with quite a few aspiring crime novelists as they get their manuscripts ready to submit to publishers and I contend that the final checks I suggest they do are absolutely crucial if they want to give themselves the best chance of success.

For authors, it means referring to a checklist which confirms that they have achieved what they set out to achieve all those months ago.

A good method – and the one I always use – is to ask myself a few questions about the completed manuscript. Have I:

* Created a strong story with plenty of twists and turns?

* Created a strong sense of place - the reader must be able to visualise where the action happens?

* Created strong characters who come over as real people?

* If I have created a sidekick, have I made sure that they do their job - passing on information, allowing the main character to react so we learn more about them, acting as a confidante etc?

* Made the villain real, not some clichéd baddie, and given them a good reason to commit the crime?

* Grabbed the reader from the first line then kept the story moving - nothing holds a reader better than a story that keeps driving on relentlessly?

* Produced a strong ending, surprised the reader and included some drama, a chase, a fight, a killing, a dramatic revelation etc?

* Made the reader think? Maybe I wanted to cast light on human nature, or perhaps a problem in society. I should not have preached but have allowed the idea to come through in the story (this point is not so important for some writers but it is something I like to weave into my narrative).

* Made sure that every word on the page deserves to be there and that there is no ‘flab’ which slows down the story?

How do I know that I have met all these competing demands when I am reading my final draft? I always think that the best test is that if I get so wrapped up in the story that I forget that I wrote it then it’s job done.

Views: 19

Add a Comment

You need to be a member of John Dean Crime Novelist to add comments!

Join John Dean Crime Novelist

Latest Activity

John Dean posted a blog post

Bestseller chart success

I am delighted that two of my crime fiction works are this morning in the top 100 Organised Crime Kindle charts on Amazon.The DCI John Blizzard box set containing the first seven novels in the series, (The Book Folks) for just 99p - now if that is not an outstanding offer, I do not know what is -  is at number 43 (it is already topping various anthology charts).My new…See More
yesterday
John Dean posted a blog post

Grant award helps develop crime fiction programme

Organisers of the fourth annual Kirkcudbright Book Week have been awarded a £1,750 grant from the Robin Rigg Community Fund to help them develop the crime fiction component of the festival.Kirkcudbright Book Week is designed to celebrate the growing literary scene in and around the South West Scotland town and crime fiction has proved to be a popular genre with audiences…See More
Friday
John Dean shared their blog post on Facebook
Jan 14
John Dean shared their blog post on Facebook
Jan 14
John Dean posted blog posts
Jan 14
John Dean shared their blog post on Facebook
Jan 13
Capping Machine updated their profile
Jan 8
John Dean posted a blog post

The way authors work

A few years ago, I ran a creative writing course and, at the beginning of one of the sessions, I asked my fifteen students how they worked.The result was fifteen different answers –one author wrote everything by hand then typed it onto their computer, another wrote it all in note form then linked the notes together, one did not edit anything until everything was…See More
Dec 29, 2024
John Dean shared their blog post on Facebook
Dec 27, 2024
John Dean posted a blog post

Knowing when to cast all caution to the wind

Writing is an art form which combines two skills which appear, at first glance, to have nothing on common – unrestrained creativity and well-controlled discipline.However, good writing is not possible without either of them. To explain, as I write the latest DCI Jack Harris crime novel, I am being disciplined and following the synopsis that I developed right from the…See More
Dec 27, 2024
Filling Machine updated their profile
Dec 25, 2024
Packaging Machinery updated their profile
Dec 24, 2024
John Dean shared their blog post on Facebook
Dec 13, 2024
John Dean shared their blog post on Facebook
Dec 13, 2024
John Dean posted a blog post

Written in a flash

 I am part of the team that organises an annual short story competition for young writers in Dumfries and Galloway, as part of the run-up to Kirkcudbright book week 2025 in March. The competition is run by the event organisers Kirkcudbright Book Week Society and Kirkcudbright Library. Myself and Lesley Garbutt from the Library are the judges and this year we have asked…See More
Dec 13, 2024
John Dean posted a blog post

Festival announces top quality crime fiction line-up

One of the strongest features of Kirkcudbright Book Week right from its early days has been the popularity of crime fiction - and the 2025 event is set to continue the tradition.The programme to run in the South West Scotland town between March 3-9 includes appearances by several best-selling crime fiction authors as well as those starting out  on their writing…See More
Dec 10, 2024

Videos

Members

© 2025   Created by John Dean.   Powered by

Report an Issue  |  Terms of Service