The 6 Challenges of Writing a Second Novel

Writing your first story is a special experience. It brings many difficulties and challenges, but it also tends to carry itself (and you) along with a sense of passion, fun, and discovery. When we finish it, we may think, Well, it can only get easier from here, right? But as many sophomore writers can attest, writing a second novel is often an entirely different experience. It may be easier in some ways than the first, but in others, it is often surprisingly and even bewilderingly more difficult.

In my own experience, it wasn’t so much my chronological second novel that was a different experience but my second published novel. Third and fourth novels are also their own unique experiences, but that second novel can be a significant hump for writers to get over, not merely in the terms of actually writing it and making sure it is as good or better than the first one, but perhaps even more particularly in the psychological aspects of the process.

6 Unique Challenges of Writing a Second Novel

A while back, reader Eratta Sibetta wrote to me about this problem:

I am … an author (Soft in Flowers) and am now working on my second novel. My problem is that the Second Novel seems more daunting and much harder to write. I don’t get why this is? I have outlined all the chapters but it seems like the writing experience for my first novel is just so overwhelming and overpowering. I hardly think I will manage to achieve the same level of sharpness with this second book. Any advice would be appreciated. Thank you so much.

I don’t believe Eratta is anywhere close to being alone in finding the sophomore novel to be more difficult. I know this was certainly true for me in writing Behold the Dawn back in 2005 (and may I just say holy mackerel, I can’t believe it’s been that long!). Part of the struggle is, I think, what Eratta termed the “overwhelming and overpowering” experience of the first novel, in all the best ways. We tend to have lived a bit longer with the first novel—because, at that point, it’s the only one. We pour all the parts of ourselves into it. By the time we get to the second book, we don’t always feel as if we have as much to say. Plus, we’re usually more educated about the process at that point and, thus, sometimes find it more complicated (and perhaps even less fun).

For some of us, we may find one book was really all we wanted to write. But for most of us, the fact that we’re trying to write a second book at all is a sign this is a path upon which we must learn how to soldier on. Here are six of the challenges I see writers routinely facing when writing a second novel.

1. Your Audience Is No Longer Theoretical

This was one of the “shockers” for me in moving from being an unpublished author to a published one. I had written four novels before publishing my first, so technically my “second” published book was in fact my sixth. But the sophomore blues still hit me pretty hard, and one of the biggest shifts was that, suddenly, I was no longer writing into the ether. I was writing for people who would respond, have opinions, leave reviews, and take personal possession of my characters. My writing would be weighed and measured, and I would be accountable for what I said to far more people than just myself. However much we may long for just that, it’s still a lot of pressure and a totally different environment into which to be pouring our hearts onto the page.

2. You Gave “Everything” to the First Book

When we write the first book, it’s the only one—and we give it everything we’ve got. It gets our best ideas (maybe even all of our ideas at the time), our rawest emotional power, and the first rush of all our artistic enthusiasm. We leave it all on the field. What does that leave for Book #2 that won’t feel second-best or rehashed?

Alex: So why aren’t you writing? I have always been struck by the perspective of Keira Knightley’s author character in the movie Last Night, in which she discusses with an old boyfriend her writer’s block with her second book:

Joanna: I am writing.

Alex: No. Why aren’t you writing? … Your book, Joanna.

Joanna: My editor says that I just need to get over my doubts.

Alex: What do you doubt?

Joanna: Everything, Alex. I go to write and every word, every thought, every choice that I make leads to another and I doubt every single one I make. It wasn’t like this last time. You live with your first book all your life. It’s sort of—it comes out on its own. After that, though, it’s different. You can suddenly write anything, and you second-guess everything.

3. Your Relationship to the Inspiration May Be Different

Why did you decide to write the first book? Every writer has a different reason. But for many of us it was because some burst of inspiration struck us—perhaps something that had been building inside of us for a long time. Sometimes lightning strikes twice, and we get that same experience with the second book. But often we finish the first book, and even if we have an inkling of what we want to write about next, we don’t necessarily feel it in the same way. Certainly, the incubation period may be shortened. My early story ideas were ones I lived with for years before writing them; later ones inevitably got (and, frankly, needed) much less time.

4. You Know More Now (aka, You May Now “Know You Don’t Know”)

Another major hang-up for many people in writing a second novel is that suddenly they know way more about writing than they did before. One of the reasons I think I didn’t have “sophomore novel syndrome” until writing what was, in fact, my sixth book was that I wrote most of those books when I was too young and unaware to realize there was a technique to writing. Once I started learning about “how to write,” everything changed. My writing got a lot better, but it also got a lot harder. The irony is that, in the early days of your writing education, the first thing you know is often that you don’t know. In short, you’re now responsible for a greater deal of knowledge than you were before.

5. You Feel Pressured to “Live Up” to Being an Author Now

When you wrote your first book you had absolutely nothing to live up to. After writing it, a lot changes. Particularly if you published that book, you now have an audience to please, a story already out there that you need to equal or perhaps surpass, perhaps contracts to fulfill, perhaps even bills to pay. At its simplest, the biggest different between you as a writer of your first book and you as a writer of your second book is that now you “have written.” From this point on, you will always be someone who “wrote a book.” In some ways, that brings the confidence of experience. But especially in the second go-round, it can also feel like a lot to live up to.

6. You’re Tired, Maybe Even Burned Out

Writing a book is no mean feat. Particularly if you were under any kind of deadline on your first book, you may well have spent months or even years hammering your passion onto the page. Much of that will have been exhilarating, but it can also be exhausting. If you pushed hard, you may even be feeling some burnout. If you dive straight into Book #2, part of the struggle may simply be that you’re tired. A little break to refurbish your energy and inspiration can do wonders for resetting.

7 Ideas for How to Make Writing a Second Novel Easier

Challenges or not, you’re probably here reading this because you are going to finish this second book and that’s that. Sometimes just recognizing why something is hard can go to surprising lengths in easing some of the pressure. But if you find you are struggling with your second story (or any story, really), the following seven tips may prove helpful.

1. Tell Yourself No One Ever Has to Read It

This was the magic pill for me when I was writing what would be my second published novel. Although, of course, my desire was to publish the book eventually, I knew the most important thing was just to finish it—for my own sake—whether or not I ever published it. I also knew I’d have an easier time writing the story I wanted to write, with honesty and vulnerability, if that small scared part of my writing brain felt safe. So I promised myself (and meant it) that no one would read this book if I didn’t want them to. I wrote it, it turned out better than my first published book, and of course I did publish it. But in cutting myself some slack early on, I was able to recapture some of the freedom I’d experienced in writing the earlier books that had been just for me.

2. Consciously List and Address Fears

Maybe you’re afraid that you just got lucky with that first book and that you’ve “lost” whatever talent you had. Or maybe you’re afraid readers will dislike certain characters or find your research wanting. Maybe you’re afraid you won’t make your deadline or fulfill your publishing contract. Maybe you’re afraid you’re wasting your time and that no one will ever buy this book. Whatever it is, write it down. Writer’s block is often fear-driven. Especially if you’re now swimming in the brave new waters of being a published author, you may find there is a lot out there to overwhelm you. Write a list of anything that is causing you anxiety. Give the scared or shaming voice in your head a chance to have its say.

Sometimes just the act of consciously acknowledging the buzzy cloud of anxiety in the backs of our brains is enough. But you can also go the extra step and burn or bury the paper as a symbol to your subconscious that these thoughts no longer have power in your life.

3. Consciously List and Address Actual Problems

Anxiety is one thing; actual problems are another. As part of the previous list or as a new one altogether, write down anything and everything that is bothering you about the actual writing and story of this book. Are your worries about readers disliking a certain character valid? Listen to your gut, not your fears (the most trustworthy intuition is neutral, without emotion). Then put on your writer’s cap and brainstorm ways to actually address the issues in your story.

It’s important not to flail away at a story, editing and editing it, simply because you having a nagging feeling that something might be wrong with it. Rather, use what you learned in writing the first book, and drill down to name your own true feelings and instincts about any problems—and how you can constructively fix them.

4. Take a Break

This one will be entirely subjective to each individual writer, but you might consider taking a break between writing (or publishing) the first book and starting the second. Let the experience of writing the first book digest in your system for as long as you can. Ignore any pressure from the outside (excepting contract deadlines, of course) or from yourself, and wait until you’re really feeling the urge to get back to the page.

People often ask me what one piece of advice I’d give my young writer self when I was just starting out. In all honesty, there wouldn’t be much I’d say, since most of my actual writing mistakes were steps along the path of maturation. But one thing I would try to tell my stubborn overachieving little self would be that inspiration and creativity are gifts that must be nurtured—not limitless resources to be plundered. If you’re in this lifestyle for the long haul, you want your focus to be on the quality of your own experience rather than the quantity of your output. Care for your creativity like it is the most precious thing in your life—because it probably is.

5. Feed Your Mind and Imagination With New Resources and Material

Particularly if you lived with your first book for a long time, it may have benefited from a lifetime’s worth of resources, research, and inspiration. So while you’re taking a break to stave off the burnout between books, make use of that time to fill yourself up with goodness. Don’t flog your brain trying to learn every writing trick and rule there is. Rather, focus on filling the well with whatever inspires you and makes you feel good. I would posit that this becomes all the more important the longer you are a writer and the more books you write.

6. Focus on What You Learned Writing the Previous Book

In some ways, the first book may have been more fun (or not) because you didn’t know as much. But in other ways, you are now much more prepared to write a better first draft. Without judging or punishing yourself for mistakes you may have made in writing the first book, examine what you’ve learned. Congratulate yourself for the broadening perspective that now allows you see things you might have done differently back then, and pay conscious attention to how you can now proactively apply these lessons in writing this second book.

In many ways, the second (and third) books may be some of the most difficult you will ever write. They are your “learning” stories, in which you are broadening your understanding of story at a rate greater than perhaps any other time in your life. Embrace their challenges and use them as rungs up the ladder to writing better and better books down the line.

7. Go Easy on Yourself—But Don’t Give Up

If you find yourself struggling in writing a second novel, resist the urge to judge or criticize your experience. You may sometimes feel that because this book is harder—or even just different—than the previous one that something must be “wrong.” I can all but promise you this is not the case. Your experience in writing this second novel is simply part of the learning process and the writing path. You are exactly where you are supposed to be, and your experience in writing this book is right on track.

Part of the experience may well be that writing a second novel is hard. Accept that and go easy on yourself. One of the aphorisms of my writing life is that “every book is its own adventure.” Don’t try to force the process of writing a second novel to look just like that of the previous book. If you need to take it easier or slower, do so.

But don’t give up either. Recognize and accept that this book is as hard to write as it is—no more, no less. Face its challenges and keep going. Eventually, you’ll reach the end of this book, and you’ll move on to the equally unique adventure of Book #3.