You don’t need to be excellent at grammar, punctuation and spelling. If you are good at these, that’s a bonus, but you can always get an editor to clean up the text for you. You would be surprised how many best-selling authors don't know a preposition from a gerund. You don't need to know those either to become a success.

Actually, Lana McAra hated writing in college. When she ventured into her first story writing course--almost by accident--she discovered a whole new world outside of academia. When you're in class, ask her to tell that story. It's very interesting how it all happened.

Even if you hated school or quit school altogether, you can still write a strong novel. Lana will show you exactly how to do it.

The story and the message have to matter to you. You will spend countless hours over many months putting together your novel. No one will be standing over you, urging you forward. You need the internal drive to stick with it.

Very few writing geniuses simply sit down and type out an epic novel. The rest of us are typical human beings who learn by making an effort, finding places to make improvements, and going at it again.

You will take your manuscript through at least 3 drafts. Each time, you will add more layers. A novel is something you build with thousands of details for your settings, character development, story events, and so on.

You need the ability to learn from others. While Lana is kind in her feedback, as a published author, you will work with editors who are direct and to-the-point. A professional attitude and a desire to become better and better will take you a long way toward a long-standing relationship with a publisher who eagerly publishes your work again and again.