Do you want to publish an adventure book? Take a look at our tips.
There are so many topics to write about! There are many realities that an author can delve into and different genres to shape them. Today we are going to delve into adventures, those thrilling stories where we become inseparable companions of the protagonists in their conquest for a final goal.
Like any literary genre, the adventure genre has characteristics that every author who wants to delve into it must consider. Although, as we always say, the writer must give free rein to his or her style, the basics must not be forgotten. Having them clear and adapting them to your vision of the literary world will open the way to success.
Are you thinking of writing an adventure book? Do you want your readers to enjoy reading this exciting adventure? Pay attention to the following tips!
- Build the world around the story
- Take care of the rhythm of the story
- Read books of this genre
- Take care of the main characters
- Make small tests
Build the world around the story
A good story is useless if the reader is not able to immerse himself in it. To achieve this, one of the keys is for the audience to recreate in their minds what the world where the protagonists live the adventure is like. How to achieve this? Nothing better than the descriptions of the spaces! Here you have to be very clear if you are going to use a real or an imaginary place.
In the first case, we recommend you look for information where described needed epoch – read blogs, books, and free essays samples about the cities, towns, or places where the story will take place. In this way, you will avoid mistakes such as assuring the presence of non-existent monuments, errors in the street map, or inventing customs in the style of Mission Impossible 2.
You may also decide to opt for a place known in a bygone era. In addition to reading about what these environments were like in other years, we invite you to consult historians to help you travel back in time and get an idea about these environments so that you can convey the same to your readers.
If you choose an environment born in your imagination, it is up to you to bring it to life. It is up to you to create a culture that makes this world credible and does not give the impression of being a gray place without many distinctions among its citizens. The customs, the language, how their houses are, if we find ourselves in a futuristic environment or with tints of the past, etc. All that will depend on you.
But be careful! An excess of descriptions can hinder the reading and make the reader evade this story that, in theory, should have a marked rhythm to give the sensation of being in a real adventure, which brings us to our next tip.
Watch the pace of the story
Adventure does not equal action, but it does have similar traits. Your book’s pages should have a manageable and manageable pace for the reader. As we said before, long descriptions can be the culprit of a book with an exciting story that ends up gathering dust on a bedside table because it has been spent offering details of the environment in which it takes place.
To begin with, it is worth remembering the basic structure of any story and the rhythms to be followed in each of its parts:
Introduction. We meet the characters, and it is here where perhaps a greater breadth of detail is allowed to inform us well of where we are and who will accompany us in our reading. But remember, it is not the most important point of the book.
Knot. We get to the heart of the matter. The characters described above are faced with a problem that they must solve, which will mark the story’s course. Here you have to know how to play with time, not to reach the end prematurely or drag it out for no reason. You can combine several tools to avoid falling into monotony or overwhelming the reader with too much speed, such as plot twists or the appearance of secondary plots (which we only recommend you extend as necessary).
Denouement. And we reach the end of the book. It is difficult to slow down after so many exciting pages, but it is time to do it gently, without standing still abruptly, giving the reader a feeling of confusion or dragging on too long. Many stories have fallen apart for not offering a good closure.
Read books of this genre
It never hurts to remember that other authors in the Genre can teach us just by reading their works. Throughout these pages, we will see the most important points in these stories and specific patterns that are repeated in the great successes of this theme. Write them down well and think about how to achieve the same result.
Also, keeping an eye on trends is always good for thinking about our work. Is the theme we want to write about saturated? Is there a book that is too similar to our project? How can we break with trends and show signs of originality?
Take care of the protagonists
The plot must revolve around certain characters. No matter how good the idea is, the development will fall on the shoulders of these characters. We have already discussed them in an article about creating characters, which we invite you to consult. But, as a summary, the following must be present in your story:
Protagonist. The story’s star should not necessarily be the hero who solves the problem. But he must be the one with a goal that he must try to conquer, and in front of him, he will have his counterpoint as an antagonist.
Antagonist. As we have said, he must be the character who opposes the protagonist’s vision. He can even become the hero and save the world if his rival has the destruction of the world in mind.
Secondary. They have their role in the story and sometimes even become its protagonists. But, in principle, they are the companions of the protagonist and the antagonist. A prominent example of this category is the villain’s henchmen.
Make small tests
A writer can be so flawed with his work that he cannot detect flaws such as those we said before (a boring plot, excess of details, lack of depth in the characters). Exposing the work to people who know nothing about it can help us.
Invite your friends for coffee one afternoon and offer them some long excerpts of your work, ask them for their opinion, and accept criticism once it appears. Nothing is perfect, but we can get closer if we find the flaws.
