Are there rules for structuring a novel?

Are there rules for structuring a novel?

Russell Celyn Jones (Published writer. Professor of Creative Writing and Director of the MA Programme at Birkbeck College (University of London).) gives expert video advice on: What's the difference between plot' and story'?; Do I need to know the ending before I begin?; Are there rules for structuring a novel? and more...

There are no basic rules for structuring a novel. But structure is probably the hardest thing when you're writing a novel. It's the architecture. To have an enterprise that takes up, perhaps 12 months of time is very difficult to manage over the space of a novel. There's no easy answer to this. Only practice. But it is something you will spend most of the time wording about.