I'm 100,000 words into my story and I've got a nagging feeling it's too slow. The story takes place several years after the country was hit by drought and how people are still suffering from its effects. The maincharacter is a seventeen year old girl who was rescued from a lap dancing club and raised by a woman who sheltered her from the world. The main part of the story is about how the girl breaks free and interacts with the people she meets bringing people together.

Its cracking me up! I've been working on it for the best part two years and seem to be getting nowhere. Any help would be gratefully received. :)

Do you have local writers club. Many cities do. That might help. Also, I do a great deal of writing for school and have found out that many novel ideas should be reduced to a short story outline to tighten the process. What must be in the story? What can be left out? Butcher the thing until you get it down to 25,000 words. Does it still make sense? Why or why not? Add the clarity, then move on.
Put on your judges hat and objectively review your work. If you cannot be objective, you will not be bale to sell your work. Good luck

:p A little lat I know but thanks Leatherseats!

Hey, here's what I think. If you can't get the darn thing rolling, just go crazy with it. Make it completely absurd, make very strange things happen, I know it sounds weird but at least that way you won't be wasting you're time thinking its slow, get it going, just write. Write until you are tired, then re read and I'm sure you'll find something you'll like and want to keep, then revise and edit, fix it to your liking. Sometime writers get stuck and the only way to get out of that is to keep it going. I guess it depends on the type of novel you want to write, comedy, historical? Science fiction, that will really make you think out there, or combine them all. Maybe you'll end up likeing another thing you have written and another story will grow from it. Just keep writing... good luck!

Try listening to Tom Clancy's audiotape "Without Remorse". It has a similar story line, and may be inspirational. I started listening to it, and am fascinated by it.