I have discovered the answer to the nagging question: how long does it actually take me to write a novel outline? The answer: it depends on what you mean by an outline, but all told about two weeks. And here it is, in all its skeletal glory!
Yes, those are Post-Its....about 12 hours before it fell off my wall and had to be replaced by a bulletin board and index cards. Also, before I put it into Scrivener and started reorganizing some things. But there you are, a real-live, novel outline. So how did I do it? There are a lot of ways to outline and an infinite trove of online resources to guide you. But here's what worked for me.
Step 1: Brain dump!
I started by writing down everything I knew about the story. Who the main characters were, what the world looked like, themes, conflicts, goals, antagonists, etc. Anything remotely story related went into a stream-of-consciousness document. Mostly, I found that I had a main character that I loved, a purpose for her story and a rough idea of where I wanted her to end up. Next up...
Step 2: Research!
As previously mentioned, I had no real idea of what I was doing before diving into the actual outline. So, being the perpetual student that I am, I started researching plot structures, outlining techniques, and story arcs to get a feel for what the bones of my story might actually look like. You can see a bit of the result in that picture, where I drew out a story arc and three-act structure. There was a lot of procrastination masquerading as productivity during this step, but finally I had to suck it up and dive into...
Step 3: Scene List
This is exactly what it sounds like: a list of scenes that make up the plot. One by one, I started with where my characters were/what they were doing and asked myself, okay what happens now? I tried not to worry too much about tracking these scenes to the plot structure I drew out and instead just focused on what made sense for the characters. What would force them to make the decisions I needed them to make to end up at the story's conclusion? And for all you pantsers out there who worry that outlining takes away the magic and surprise of letting your story develop, I will say that there are plenty of surprises to be found in this step. The romantic subplot I originally envisioned never quite developed because the characters could not be forced to get all kissy faced. A supporting cast of characters developed to fill out the stage and assert their own motivations. And the main character did a forward-backward dance with the conflict that, at least at a high level, feels natural.
So that's it, right? Outlining done! Well, not exactly. At this point, I had enough of a structure that I could probably begin writing. But I wanted to help this novel along as much as possible, stacking my chances of actually finishing and completing a successful edit cycle. So I moved on to...
Step 4: Plotting Structure
I noted that while drafting the scene list, I didn't really worry too much about tracking scenes to plot structure. But there's a reason why the Hero's Journey and three-act structure exist. Why most stories can be plotted against the same structure regardless of content. It works. Our brains like these classic story paths and respond to them with happy story chemicals (shhh that's totally a real thing). So after I had my scene list, I went back and tracked it against the plot diagram I'd set up, marking the inciting incident, rising action, "dark nigh of the soul" and other story milestones to make sure that the overall arc contoured to a natural journey.
Step 5: Explore!
This is where I am right now. I have my outline, now transferred into Scrivener where I can write scene by scene. I have my story structure. So it's time to add flesh to the bones. Most of this will come in the writing. I can't anticipate every question that might come up in the world I'm creating. But I'm arming myself for the journey as much as possible: fleshing out characters, constructing the rules of the story world, and planning the practicalities of writing. This is another phase where procrastination easily masks itself as productivity. After all, I should know my characters as well as possible so why not fill out an extensive character questionnaire and create an avatar to represent them visually? It's an urban fantasy novel so I need to know exactly how magic and the supernatural work in every situation right? Nyeehhh sort of? But eventually, I'll have to start actually writing. And that's where you'll hopefully find me next time I check in.
For those of you, like me, who are just learning to plot, here are some resources that helped me:
Step 1: Brain dump!
I started by writing down everything I knew about the story. Who the main characters were, what the world looked like, themes, conflicts, goals, antagonists, etc. Anything remotely story related went into a stream-of-consciousness document. Mostly, I found that I had a main character that I loved, a purpose for her story and a rough idea of where I wanted her to end up. Next up...
Step 2: Research!
As previously mentioned, I had no real idea of what I was doing before diving into the actual outline. So, being the perpetual student that I am, I started researching plot structures, outlining techniques, and story arcs to get a feel for what the bones of my story might actually look like. You can see a bit of the result in that picture, where I drew out a story arc and three-act structure. There was a lot of procrastination masquerading as productivity during this step, but finally I had to suck it up and dive into...
Step 3: Scene List
This is exactly what it sounds like: a list of scenes that make up the plot. One by one, I started with where my characters were/what they were doing and asked myself, okay what happens now? I tried not to worry too much about tracking these scenes to the plot structure I drew out and instead just focused on what made sense for the characters. What would force them to make the decisions I needed them to make to end up at the story's conclusion? And for all you pantsers out there who worry that outlining takes away the magic and surprise of letting your story develop, I will say that there are plenty of surprises to be found in this step. The romantic subplot I originally envisioned never quite developed because the characters could not be forced to get all kissy faced. A supporting cast of characters developed to fill out the stage and assert their own motivations. And the main character did a forward-backward dance with the conflict that, at least at a high level, feels natural.
So that's it, right? Outlining done! Well, not exactly. At this point, I had enough of a structure that I could probably begin writing. But I wanted to help this novel along as much as possible, stacking my chances of actually finishing and completing a successful edit cycle. So I moved on to...
Step 4: Plotting Structure
I noted that while drafting the scene list, I didn't really worry too much about tracking scenes to plot structure. But there's a reason why the Hero's Journey and three-act structure exist. Why most stories can be plotted against the same structure regardless of content. It works. Our brains like these classic story paths and respond to them with happy story chemicals (shhh that's totally a real thing). So after I had my scene list, I went back and tracked it against the plot diagram I'd set up, marking the inciting incident, rising action, "dark nigh of the soul" and other story milestones to make sure that the overall arc contoured to a natural journey.
Step 5: Explore!
This is where I am right now. I have my outline, now transferred into Scrivener where I can write scene by scene. I have my story structure. So it's time to add flesh to the bones. Most of this will come in the writing. I can't anticipate every question that might come up in the world I'm creating. But I'm arming myself for the journey as much as possible: fleshing out characters, constructing the rules of the story world, and planning the practicalities of writing. This is another phase where procrastination easily masks itself as productivity. After all, I should know my characters as well as possible so why not fill out an extensive character questionnaire and create an avatar to represent them visually? It's an urban fantasy novel so I need to know exactly how magic and the supernatural work in every situation right? Nyeehhh sort of? But eventually, I'll have to start actually writing. And that's where you'll hopefully find me next time I check in.
For those of you, like me, who are just learning to plot, here are some resources that helped me:
- A. B. Keuser's How to Write a Novel blog series
- Ava Jae's many blog posts about plotting:
- How to Turn an Idea into a Plot
- How to Plot Without Plotting
- Combining Two Ways to Plot
- How I Plot a WIP
- Lady Writer's One Page Novel Formula
- She's Novel's How to Write a Novel Outline Like the Lady Boss You Are
- Jenna Moreci's video: How to Outline Your Novel
No comments:
Post a Comment