When I start writing a new young adult fantasy novel, it often begins with a complicated idea in my head. It also begins with a confusing magic system that I have to work out by thinking it through, and or writing it down in my drafting notebook. That idea makes sense to me, but then I have to figure out how to simplify it, so that it makes sense when I type out the first draft.
I always want my idea for the book to be clear when I first start writing, but that is almost never the case. With each book I write though, it gets easier to make my initial idea for the book come across faster and with less drafts. I’ve been writing since I was fifteen; I’m almost thirty now and I have learned a lot in the last fifteen years about my writing process.
It really is true what they say, practice makes perfect. I like to say that practice doesn’t make perfect, but rather it gives you the confidence to keep learning that one thing you are focused on. In my case, improving the stakes in my books and working on worldbuilding. Worldbuilding is my favorite part of writing standalone young adult fantasy books. Although, with these standalones, they all have the potential of turning into a series, but I enjoy having a satisfying conclusion to each book I write.
I used to second guess myself a lot when I was worldbuilding. It took me a long time to learn how to sprinkle pieces of information into the book without info dumping, or without it being boring. Now, I love sprinkling information in about the world, leaving little bread crumbs for the reader. It’s so much fun!
One of my favorite methods of not info dumping, is explaining the world through dialogue with my main characters, and through the main character learning something new about their world as they go along on their journey. I love how my process with worldbuilding has changed and how every time I sit down to write it gets easier and it’s more fun because I feel like I know what I’m doing now.