October Novel Prep Challenge

Sometimes I find it very hard to find an object to describe in the novel, and other times it can be the first thing you think about in your idea.

What qualifies as an object? Anything that needs to be defined for your story to have more meaning.

In Aladdin, we have a magic lamp and a flying rug. (In some cases I think it might have been a magic ring.)

In Dresden files, think of the Unseelie Accords. This is an agreement between all kinds of humans and other creatures to prevent a big bad war. But it's referred to often, and having it becomes important even if we don't exactly know what the thing says.

In Harry Potter, you could say a wand was the object that required a great deal of description. Wands vary by type and by user.

In Gone Girl, I'd pick Amy's diary as a primary object. She put a great deal of work into that diary, so much that it gives the readers (and the police) a tale of who Amy was and what she was up to during the early times when Amy and Nick got together.

In Run (Ann Patchett), I would bring attention to the statue stolen from a church. This statue put many of the characters in motion, and it tied together the end with how the family recovered from the events of the book.

Switching to other media- Guardians of the Galaxy would have the mix tape as one object. The Big Bang Theory would use the roommate agreement as one important object (though the couch with Sheldon's spot is also important). Revenge uses Emily's double infinity box with all the things contained within. Saving Mr. Banks might have used the original movie script that the author always ripped apart.

Think to your favorite books, movies, tv shows. Several of them have at least one object and sometimes several that are important to the plot and characters. Your job today is to figure out what it is to make your book complete with objects. Good luck!


If you can make this object also a symbol, bonus! It pulls the theme deeper for the readers, and it can focus your writing toward themes.
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