Are you the type of writer who struggles to shorten their manuscript? You write too much, and you know that cutting some of it might help. Or are you like me? I always finish writing my first draft with a word count below average, and I struggle to fill in the gaps to increase my word count.
That’s when the actual mission starts, the moment you write your second manuscript. You ask yourself, well, how do I make it longer? Never fear. I’m here to give you a few tips and tricks that help you increase your word count.
Be Creative with Your Descriptions
That’s usually the first thing that comes to mind whenever I write my second manuscript. Let’s say your character enters a restaurant, and she grabs the nearest table and sits on it. Well? Don’t just stand there? Show, don’t tell! Tell us, what does she see? Is she looking out of the window at the passerby? If so? Describe her view. How do the buildings look? How are the people dressed?
You’ll be surprised how many descriptions can spice up your manuscript because they give a visual insight into how the setting looks.
Use Five senses
I talk about the five senses many times, but that’s because they are essential when writing fiction. Let’s take the restaurant example. Your character is bored, and she’s waiting for her friend who is already half an hour late. She looks inside the restaurant at the servers walking around her with their aprons and wide grins. This might take her back to a memory when she used to work as a waitress as well. The reader gets a better idea about the backstory of the character.
She realizes that she’s hungry when she smells the sizzling fajita platter the waiter is serving the person sitting at the table across from her. She can touch the soft and sleek glass in front of her, hoping water can calm her down. Then she realizes that it’s not water in her glass, but Seven Up. She never ordered a fizzy drink, or did she? You can explain the way it tingles on her tongue and the way it made her feel.
That’s just a simple example we can use. See how many words I wrote in there? The character’s friend can rush inside the restaurant and tell her something important, yet it’s essential to show and make the reader feel part of the place before that happens. We can hear the hustle and bustle the character is hearing, and we can even smell that fajita.
Add a New Character
This one is tricky, and trust me, it is a load of work. Sometimes, however, adding a new character can spice up your manuscript big time, and adding another name who might make the protagonist’s life more complicated is a plus.
Keep in mind, however, that adding a new character opens up the door to research again. It would help if you study your character and examine its behavior and feelings. They might not be necessary in the first place; that’s why, if you add one, make sure they fit in your novel.
Be Bold to Cause Changes
I don’t know about you, but I’m the type of writer who freaks out from change, and that is such a nasty habit I’m overcoming. You need to re-examine your manuscript and to see where is it going? Are you satisfied with the ending? Could you do something better? Of course, you can! Try drafting more than one end, and see how it all builds up.
You can realize that some of your characters lack depth, don’t worry, you have all the time in the world to develop a round character. Please don’t be shy to explain the inner conflict the protagonist is going through and how he progresses through the story.
I hope these few tips will give you some ideas on how to increase your word count. I don’t know about you, but that’s what I will do right now on my current manuscript. See you soon!