Laura Atkinson
asked
Robin Stevens:
Hi Robin! I am such a huge fan of your books- I have read them all and absolutely love them! Death sets sail was so emotional!!!! I was just wondering how long you usually spend planning your stories? I am writing a story and don’t want to spend too long planning so would like an idea how long you plan for. Thank you so much x
Robin Stevens
Thank you Laura! I'm so glad!
You're right that there comes a point in a story where you need to stop planning and just start writing (usually when you're doing too much research to avoid actually writing the book - at the moment I'm at that stage with Ministry and I know I need to actually sit down and write next week!). I can't tell you when that is in terms of timing - some books take me a month to plan and some take six!
But it's really really important to have some kind of plan before you begin - this can be 50 pages of notes, or a few sentences about how the story is going to go, or like me you can just make a detailed plan of the crime itself (I think this is important for a murder mystery!).
The good news is that if you get stuck in the middle of the story, you can absolutely pause and work more on your plan at that point - you don't have to have it perfect before you begin. I sometimes keep on tweaking my plan until the book is almost published!
You're right that there comes a point in a story where you need to stop planning and just start writing (usually when you're doing too much research to avoid actually writing the book - at the moment I'm at that stage with Ministry and I know I need to actually sit down and write next week!). I can't tell you when that is in terms of timing - some books take me a month to plan and some take six!
But it's really really important to have some kind of plan before you begin - this can be 50 pages of notes, or a few sentences about how the story is going to go, or like me you can just make a detailed plan of the crime itself (I think this is important for a murder mystery!).
The good news is that if you get stuck in the middle of the story, you can absolutely pause and work more on your plan at that point - you don't have to have it perfect before you begin. I sometimes keep on tweaking my plan until the book is almost published!
More Answered Questions
The Mixed Up Files of Ammu and Zoe
asked
Robin Stevens:
Hi, We are the hosts of The Mixed up Files Podcast of Ammu and Zoe and we really love your books!😊 We are also recording a review of Murder Most Unladylike this month and we’re wondering if you’d be interested in participating in a part of the episode. We would really like to have you!:)? If you are interested you can also contact us on our email: [email protected] or here! Ammu and Zoe:)
A Goodreads user
asked
Robin Stevens:
Hello Robin! I just wanted to ask you a question: Do you think Daisy and Hazel will still be best friends when they grow up?
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