Can Good Writing Make an Ordinary Story a Successful Novel?

The success of a novel often hinges on its marketing strategy, with elements like paid reviews, giveaways, and contests playing key roles. From a marketing perspective, these tactics can certainly boost a book's visibility and sales. However, from the creator's viewpoint, the true success of a novel lies in the love and passion poured into the story. It's about the joy of crafting and the deep connection with the art of writing.

Many believe that stories, whether novels or other forms of narrative, are inherently ordinary. Characters face typical struggles, and plots weave familiar themes. However, the essence of these narratives often originates from real, relatable situations. Works like The Alchemist, The Kite Runner, and Gone Girl stand out because they take common experiences and elevate them through compelling storytelling and vivid, relatable characters. The plot, the dialogues, and the characters' journeys are crafted in such a way that they resonate deeply with readers, even when the concepts themselves are grounded in everyday reality.

Importance of Detailed and Vivid Crafting in Writing

A good novelist delves deeply into every aspect of their creation, ensuring that characters, dialogues, and plots are vivid and compelling. A truly great novel is one that features strong narratives, plotlines, and dialogues, all of which are inhabited by characters that feel real and relatable. These characters are multi-dimensional, with strengths and weaknesses that make them authentic and human, just like the readers who connect with them.

While there are exceptions to the rule of crafting an extraordinary story with ordinary elements, such as captivating prose that can make mundane concepts exciting, these cases are rather rare. More commonly, it's the rich details that transform an ordinary story into a remarkable one. Let's explore an example to illustrate this point:

Transforming a Mundane Story into an Engaging One

Consider a simple situation: a woman getting into an accident on her way to pick up her children from school. This is a fairly standard scenario. However, by adding extraordinary details, we can take this ordinary situation and turn it into a thrilling narrative. For instance:

The accident isn't a car accident but a spaceship one, because the school is on Mars. The woman gets into the accident after discovering her children's school is secretly a training ground for German spies.

While this storyline might be overly complex and contrived, it highlights the power of adding rich, creative details to transform an ordinary story into an engaging one. This kind of detail enlivens the narrative, making it more interesting and memorable for readers.

In conclusion, while good writing can undoubtedly elevate an ordinary story to a level of success, the true magic often lies in the accumulation of such extraordinary details that create a world that feels both familiar and thrilling. The key is to find the balance between the relatable and the unorthodox, crafting stories that resonate deeply with readers and remain memorable long after their reading concludes.