Some of us writers often wonder what it takes to create a successful novel. We draw inspiration from other authors and their works as well as real life experiences. If you’re attempting to write a book, think of it as a recipe. You’ll need certain “ingredients” in your book to make it a hit. Here are 8 novels and the ingredients that made it happen!
1) The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
1 bucket of money
2 oz of smugness
3 teaspoons of hatred
4 cups of wine (red or white, depending on your preference)
2 tablespoons of betrayal
1/4 cup of jealousy
Sprinkles of tears and blood
2) Lord of the Flies by William Golding
1 large plane
1 deserted island
A pack of boys
3 3/4 cups of adolescence
5 oz of a murderous nature
3 teaspoons of savagery
1 tablespoon of crying and screaming
1 rock
3 spears
4 oz of killing
1 large rotten pig
3) The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien
1 ring to rule them all
3 oz of obsession
5 cups of evil
5 pairs of hairy feet
1 wizard
Generous amounts of death
4) Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë
1 adopted child
1 oz of childhood love
3 cups of class distinction
2 teaspoons of betrayal
1 death
1 soul, lightly beaten
1 bucket of tears
A lifetime of torment
1 tablespoon of weirdness
Endless years of haunting
5) A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens
1 croissant
1 can of English baked beans
A ton of revolutionary spirit
An array of bullets
Some infatuation
A pinch of revenge
6) Macbeth by William Shakespeare
8 cups of desire for power
1 lady
3 witches
1 blood sausage
1 cup of blood
7) Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck
2 men
1 farm
A group of puppies
Some dead puppies
1 lady
1 dead lady
1 gun
1 dead guy
8) The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger
1 field of rye
6 cups of black coffee
1 dingy hotel room
1 angsty teen
A heaping spoonful of sarcasm
Stirred inside Central Park
Featured image courtesy of https://bit.ly/2iKIFw9