Thursday, July 11, 2013

Blog #11 Outlining a Novel: Why I gotta do it…


Years ago, I learned through a ton of trial and error, that I’m not a “by the seat of the pants” kind of writer.  I have to have an outline.  I can’t tell you how many times I’ve sat down and started writing what I thought was a great scene or a great character just to run out of steam half way there.  I’d always get to a point where I didn’t know where I was going – what’s going to happen next?? Outlines help me get through that. Having one in place before I ever write the first page helps me when I feel stuck. I always know where I’m supposed to be writing towards.  And if one chapter is giving me fits, I can move on to the next because I know what’s supposed to happen next.



I know there are lots of writers that claim to be “pantsers” and write quite well, but I suspect they just have their outline thought out internally, rather than on paper. I, myself, like to write mine out.  Now I’m not talking about a traditional I. II. III., A. B.C. kind of outline here.  I’m talking about a chapter outline: a rather detailed description of all the plot points that will occur in every chapter from beginning to end.  When I do this, I take about a week to plan it all and write it down.  As a result, I’ve found that I rarely end up moving entire chapters around in the editing phase, because I’ve done that in the outline phase, and lemme tell you, it’s much easier to move a three sentence chapter description than an entire chapter any day. J
 


I’ve been taught in plot workshops that each chapter should have its own intro, middle, and climax, just like a finished novel does. I’m not sure that’s a hard and fast rule, but it’s a good guide to what each chapter should include.  If you haven’t come across The Plot Whisperer online yet, she’s a wealth of knowledge on plotting. I highly recommend her Youtube videos.  They're free!!

So tell me, if you’re a writer, how do you plan and write your novels? Is it working for you?  Do you think you might want to try outlining now?

6 comments:

  1. I'm not a writer of books, just blogs. And I've learned the same strategy really helps most of the time. I write the main theme, the main points, the keywords and THEN the title. Then I start writing and it comes really quickly.

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  2. Yes, it works with any size peice, really. Even if you just plan it out as as beginning, middle, and end, it helps!

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  3. I did actually pants my first novel but have since discovered that in order to properly edit I've needed to go back and plan each chapter, just a couple of lines is enough but in order to help the flow planning seems to be essential.

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  4. Exactly! You can avoid it for awhile, but the reader does appreciate some structure :) whether they know it or not!

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  5. I tend to blend the two. Every book is different, but I usually outline in my head then start writing. When I get a good feeling of how the book is progressing or when ideas start popping in my head faster than I can remember, I start a written outline.

    Unfortunately, I rarely stick to the outline... I can cut and paste with the best of them! :)

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  6. I often change my plan somewhere along the way too. I've just found that I do better with some expectation of what the end will be than not. Thanks for stopping by :)

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