Kirei na Hoshizora

If the author creates compelling characters and natural dialog, he or she is 90% of the way to success. My feeling is that the way in which a writer writes is actually more important than the plot. Stephen King, who writes so well, could write a novel about a peanut butter sandwich and it would be great.

1. First, browse to Cliff Pickover's Tips for Writers
2. Second, browse to the New York Times recipe for creating an instant bestseller.
3. Third, browse to the Lester Dent magical recipe for creating a best seller.
4. My additional advice:
----- 1. Buy a National Geographic magazine. Page through it and select a setting. Look at the photos to help you create vivid descriptions.
----- 2. Your novel should have two main characters C1 and C2 (a man and a woman) and two secondary characters C3 and C4 (also a man and a woman). C1 should fall in love with C2 during the course of the book, or, if already in love, their love should deepen. A subliminal attraction should also exist between C1 and C4 to increase tension. Character C1 should have a special skill that will help him (or her) solve problems presented in the book.
----- 3. At some point in the book, C1 and C2 should show a physical expression of their attraction, such as exhibited by holding hands or kissing.
----- 4. A dangerous condition should exist throughout much of the book.
----- 5. The dangerous condition should appear to be mitigated at some point in the book but come back to haunt the characters.
----- 6. Avoid any long descriptions that slow down the pace. Practice keeping the pace of your novel brisk by allowing no paragraph to be more than five sentences. (You can relax this prohibition later in a few places if you find it absolutely necessary.)
----- 7. Start your book with something that grabs the reader's attention. Make your first sentence shine.
----- 8. Don't use flashbacks. They break the flow of the book.
----- 9. Never submit a work without having several people proofread it first.