The Four Stages of Writing a Novel

Writing a Novel can be a long and arduous process, mostly, whether it is or not depends on the writer mostly and how into the story they are. Most of the time, regardless of story or writer, there are four stages to the writing.

Stage One:
The start of the novel. This is a time when the writer is fired up with ideas. Inspiration is pushing through like a torrent of water. Here the need to write is so powerful that most of the time the writer will find it hard to leave the story alone. At this stage the writing is easy, it flows onto the page effortlessly, almost as though it's writing itself.

Stage Two:
This is the hardest stage. The initial burst of inspiration is gone, and it leaves a hole behind it. If there is any part of the story that will make you want to quit writing it, this would be it. The second stage is where the story seems reluctant to get onto the paper, where you look over your writing and think about deleting the entire document.
Don't.
You'll be glad you didn't when you reach the third stage.
My advice at this stage is to keep writing. Do a plot skeleton. Push through the barrier. Make that story sit on the page, lay down the words. Plan until you're sure of what you're writing next, and then write. Write anything, because writing tripe is better than writing nothing. Your inspiration may be next to nothing, but keep going, this is where you may have to bleed onto the page.

Stage Three:
This is when you've just reached the other side of that wall. It's like being at the top of a steep climb. From here you can see the rest of your story mapped out before you. By now you may know where it's going, or you may not because that hill that you're on, it might be cloudy below you. The path beyond you is rocky, and you're out of breath after getting through the blockage, the writing here may be slow.
Don't worry though, because the plot should be laying itself out nicely. The writing is less stubborn, and you have your inspiration back.

Stage Four:
The final stage. This is the time when you'll be rushing to the end. You've come through the fog and round all the stones that blocked your way. It's like that part of the marathon where you can see the finish line. You push yourself, just that little bit more, to get there.
Pace yourself though, just because your inspiration comes out in torrents doesn't mean you should stay up night and day writing. You may feel like it, but this part of the writing is the one that can steal full days without you noticing.

Once you finish your novel, put it away and wait at least two weeks to even look at it again. Your eyes need a rest, they need perspective, they need to see things without the writers eyes. In order to see your novel you need critic's eyes.

And there we have it. The four stages of writing.
This post brought to you by the second stage under which I am now struggling with Angelfish.