David Baldacci’s Top 13 Writing Tips
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Few authors can create a protagonist who is compelling enough to sell a full series of books rather than just a standalone novel. Even fewer can pull that off numerous times with different characters. David Baldacci is one of those people.
Baldacci introduced the world to characters like combat veteran John Puller, detective Amos Decker, and a motley crew of four friends known as the “Camel Club.”
He’s sold over 130 million books, and he recently recorded a MasterClass on writing. Although the MasterClass is geared toward mystery and thriller writing, Baldacci shares many tips that cross over multiple genres.
Here are the top 13 lessons I learned from Baldacci:
1. Don’t doubt your abilities
“Any writer out there who’s doubting their ability to actually sit down and tell a story…I was there. I know what you’re going through. I was on the outside of the glass looking in for almost two decades. I know what’s it’s like to be on the outside thinking, ‘This is never gonna happen for me.’” -David Baldacci
Baldacci used to be a lawyer. He had a day job with long hours when he wrote his first novel, Absolute Power. For years, he wrote every night from 10 p.m. to 2 a.m. (seven days a week) after his family went to bed. In short, he was a normal guy working a normal job who had an extraordinary determination to write.
“Pretty much every writer I’ve ever known, when they were starting out, had another job,” says Baldacci. He says his friend John Grisham even sold his first novel out of the trunk of a car.
These are normal people, just like you and me. The difference between someone like Baldacci or Grisham and many other writers is that they stuck with it. Yes, they had talent, but they also kept writing. You can do the same.
2. View the world through a “writer’s prism”
“Writing is not a job or an occupation or a hobby. It’s a lifestyle…It has to be something you incorporate into your life as you go through your daily routine. I get ideas from waking up in the morning and walking out the door, and I look at the world through a writer’s prism, as I call it…and I see everything that everybody else sees but…I look at the potential of what could be out there if I sort of add a little fictional pixie dust to something.
You can’t just see what’s out there in black and white. That’s what everybody else does, and those people are not going to be writing novels or screenplays or anything. They just see the world and they forget it and move on. Your job is to see the world and then realize the potential of what is out there every single day.” -David Baldacci
When I began writing, I was amazed at how much it absorbed my thoughts. I’d bump into a stranger in my apartment stairwell and find myself creating a story about their life: where they just came from, why they were in a rush, where they might be headed.
As a writer, anything you encounter in the wild has the potential to become a story. Boring things suddenly become less boring. Strangers become spies. Coincidences become conspiracies. Everything is source material. Or, in the words of Anne Lamott, everything is “grist for the mill.”
The more you write, the more you’ll develop a writer’s prism. Allow yourself to get carried away in everyday fantasies.
3. Pace out the steps
“As a writer, you have to take off the novelist hat and you put on the journalist cap…If you take the time to go out and learn about this stuff firsthand, you will bring a depth and a breadth of both plotting and writing to your prose that will life you out of the slush piles and actually enhance your chance of getting picked up by a publisher or an agent.” -David Baldacci
Whenever possible, Baldacci tries to visit the locations he writes about. In his book Hell’s Corner, he wanted to stage a bomb explosion in Lafayette Park across from the White House. So what did he do? He went there in person and literally paced out the steps from one landmark to another. His intimate understanding of the details improved the scene.
While most of us don’t have the resources to go visit locations we write about, the principle still applies: get as close as you can to your material.
As writers in the modern era, we have access to a wealth of resources that can help us get closer to our topics: Google search, online maps with street views, travel blogs from tourists, etc. Marshal your resources. Pace out the steps in any way you can.
4. Fire the gun
“I’m not a gun aficionado. I don’t own guns. (And yet) I have fired pretty much every gun ever manufactured, just for the purposes of researching my novels — everything from a six-shooter to a 50-cal machine gun…It’s not just about finding out facts about stuff. It’s about experiencing something.” -David Baldacci
The best way to get close to your topic is to physically experience what your characters will experience. For Baldacci, that means firing guns. For other writers, that means getting firsthand experience of a different sort.
Ken Kesey’s description of the psychiatric ward in One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest was so powerful because Kesey had personally worked as an attendant in a psych ward. While researching Roots, Alex Haley traveled in the cargo hold of a ship to get more familiar with the destitute conditions of slave ships.
What do you need to experience to improve your writing? If you’re writing a story about young lovers, consider going on a blind date, signing up to chaperone your child’s prom, or visiting a fancy restaurant on a Friday night to take notes on the couples you see around you. Find a way to experience what your characters will experience.
5. Leave out almost all of your research
“If you do nothing else from what I’m telling you on research, do this: leave almost all of it out. You will thank me later.” -David Baldacci
Yes, I just spent the last two bullet points telling you to get close to your material and experience things firsthand. But that doesn’t mean that you should include every element of your research in your writing.
Baldacci compiled five thick binders of research on the military while writing his novel Zero Day. He had an entire binder full of research on nuclear weapons alone! But he whittled down that full binder to two-and-a-half pages about nuclear weapons in his book. In other words, Baldacci compiled all of the research that he needed to know, and only included the elements that readers needed to know.
Give your readers just enough to get what they need and leave out the rest. They don’t want to read ten pages about the interior design of the Pentagon, but they should be able to feel the underpinnings of your research in your work.
6. Have a reason for everything
“Are you driving the plot forward? Are you conveying information? Are you deepening a character in some way?” -David Baldacci
Every bit of dialogue, every setting, every plotline should be there for a reason. Everything should drive the story forward or deepen the reader’s understanding of something they need to know.
In addition to his novels, Baldacci has also written screenplays, and he says that the screenplay process taught him a lot about what belongs in a story and what doesn’t. No director wants to pay actors, the camera crew, lighting crew, and countless other staff to film an unnecessary scene, so directors frequently question screenwriters whether a scene is really worth including.
Question every one of your paragraphs the same way that a director would question a script. Does it really need to be there? Is it serving your reader?
7. Pay close attention to sequencing
“[Y]ou have to understand what information does the reader need to know at this point in time for them to enjoy the story going forward? If you get that out of order, guess what? The enjoyment of the story vanishes.” -David Baldacci
There’s a common saying in investing: “Being early is the same as being wrong.” In other words, if you invest in something before the world is ready to jump on board, you’ll lose your money.
The same principle applies to writing. A brilliant plot twist executed at the wrong time is not a brilliant plot twist. Sequencing is vital, and you need to pay close attention to what information you’ve given your readers so far and what information they’re ready to learn next.
8. Strategically utilize oblivious characters
“What I like to do is inhabit my stories with people who are both really in that world and speak that language (experts) and then also have people who are outside of that world that…sort of stand in for the reader. That allows a plausible way for the people with these specialized skills to slow it down a little bit and say, ‘This is what I’m talking about.’” -David Baldacci
One of the worst things you can do as a writer is to make your reader feel dumb. Once a reader begins to feel lost, they disengage and may even put down the book.
To avoid losing readers when things get overly complex, Baldacci often introduces oblivious, non-expert characters in his books. Those characters tag along with the detective or specialist and ask questions about what’s going on. When the protagonist fills in that character, they’re simultaneously filling in the reader as well.
Many stories throughout history utilized this storytelling technique. One of the most famous examples is Dr. Watson and Sherlock Holmes. A more modern example is the television series Castle, where crime writer Richard Castle pals around with detective Kate Beckett. In that example, the characters take turns as the ignorant one. Castle doesn’t know much about real police work, and Beckett doesn’t know all of the random facts Castle knows, so they both slow down to explain things to each other (and viewers).
9. Get off the couch
“I think if I was probably out of shape and sat on the couch a lot, I don’t know if I could write as many books as I write. But I do know that if you’re precise and focused in other aspects of your life, you’ll be precise and focused when you’re writing.” -David Baldacci
As of this writing, Baldacci is 60 years old and he says he’s never lost his drive to keep moving and stay active.
Although writing is a sedentary hobby, writers need not be sedentary creatures. Exercise fuels your brain and keeps you in peak mental condition. Incorporate exercise habits into your writing rituals.
10. Utilize self-imposed timelines
“Self-imposed deadlines are the best deadlines.” -David Baldacci
Baldacci sticks to a strict schedule: he publishes a book the second week of April and another the second week of November. He’s been in the game long enough to know exactly how long everything takes: writing, revising, getting comments from his editor, editing, etc.
Even if you’re not working with an agent, publisher, or editor, you can still set your own deadlines. Set a rapid pace for yourself. Deadlines speed up projects, so use them to your advantage.
11. Learn the business side of writing
“Bring the same motivation, desire, work ethic, and interest to understanding the business side of it as you do the writing side of it.” -David Baldacci
The publishing industry is complex, and it’s changing at a rapid pace. Baldacci stresses that no one in the world will care more about your career than you do, so you need to take full control over it — and that includes the business component of your work.
Baldacci advises, “It’s never too early to learn about the business.”
Learn how agents and publishers make their money. Learn how royalties work in book sales. Learn about advances, contracts, and book tours. Become an expert of every aspect of the craft — not just the writing part.
12. Consider writing a series
“I don’t care if this is your first novel or your fiftieth novel, if you have the juice and you have the desire, the motivation, and the material to start out writing a series, go for it.” -David Baldacci
For many writers, it’s daunting to think about writing a single book — let alone a series — but many successful authors have launched their careers with a series. Think of J.K. Rowling with Harry Potter or Sue Grafton with A is for Alibi, which kicked off her “alphabet series.”
“It comes down to one question,” says Baldacci. “Do you want to spend more time with these characters? If you do, bring them back. If you don’t, move on.”
13. Change the world
“This world always needs fresh voices. Writers change the world. Books change the world.” -David Baldacci
Books have impacted my life in more ways than I can count. I’m forever indebted to writers like Malcolm Gladwell for teaching me how to tell better stories, Kerry Patterson for helping me become a better communicator, and Elizabeth Gilbert for giving me more bravery in my creative work.
The amazing thing is…you could potentially impact others’ lives in a similar way. What you write today could change someone’s life forever.
What are you waiting for?
If you enjoyed this article, please support David Baldacci by picking up one of his many books.
Happy writing!
