Anyone with an imagination can sit down and write fiction – at its core, you just have to make stuff up! However, not everyone can sit down and begin writing good fiction!

Learning how to write fiction is a cultivated art form that takes time, practice and determination. Additionally, when refining your writing craft, it never hurts to get a boost in the knowledge department.

So with that being said, here are five tips to help you along the fiction-writing way!

1. Know your audience – Before your pen ever hits the paper, it’s imperative to know your audience and who will most likely be reading your book. The fiction genre is very broad, so whether you are writing a fantasy or crime novel, each style of book is generally written in a different way and includes different key parts, all designed to appeal to readers of that type of book. Audiences will have certain expectations for a book of that genre that you as the writer will need to meet.

2. Make your characters come to life – Details, details, details. The easiest way to make your characters come to life is through the details. Describe nervous habits and characteristics that go beyond physical head-to-toe descriptions. Do your best to add details that are memorable, not typical. You want to describe your main characters in such a way that your reader will feel as if they know them – personally.

3. Transform your story – Don’t let your story plateau. Every great plot includes a transformation. Whether it’s the environment or the characters that change, a transformation is important for your story. Through your writing, you want your readers to feel as if your characters are their friends and their friendship grows as they turn the page. The end goal in your novel’s transformation is to change your reader as well.

4. Build tension – As a writer, you want to add weight to your words and slowly but surely keep adding to that impact. Ultimately, you want to build the tension to a point that it eventually tips and leaves your reader with his or her jaw on the floor.

5. Let it marinate – When people are reading your novel, you want them to think. You don’t want to write in a way that maps out and accounts for every minute of every day. Provide just enough dots that will give your readers a chance to connect them on their own. Not only will this allow readers to use their imagination, it’ll also keep them interested in the story at hand.

Take note of these five fiction writing tips and stay tuned in the coming weeks for more!