invitation letter/itinerary

Hi, I plan to travel to China for ten days or so and spend half the time with a family member who lives hand works there and the other half on a tour/in hotels. Can I complete the visa forms with both an invitation letter and hotel bookings ?

Secondly, do you need to have booked all flights and accommodation etc. in advance of starting the visa application (wondering of the risk of the visa not being accepted / processed in time and losing out on flights etc).

Thanks,
Laura