This post was originally published at Novelicious.com and is now at WritingTipsOasis.com. WritingTipsOasis.com acquired Novelicious.com in June 2022.
You’re starting a novel… Do you have to write an outline first?
No! As with everything in creative writing, there are absolutely no set-in-stone rules. You take what works for you and leave the rest.
So, outlining. Writers are often described as falling into two broad types; those who plot their novel first before beginning to write (‘plotters’) and ‘pantsers’ (those who ‘write by the seat of their pants’). So, a pantser may have a character or two in mind and, perhaps, a setting, but will dive into their first draft with only the vaguest idea of story, while a plotter will map the entire thing out, complete with sub-plots, scene summaries and character sheets.
Of course, these are the two extremes; there are plenty of people who fall somewhere in between, or even people who use the different techniques interchangably throughout their writing process.
The important thing to know is this; either (or both!) is completely fine. Whatever it takes to get the words written.
As a die-hard pantser who has been through the process several times, I can honestly say that I do outline. I just do it after I’ve written my messy first draft. That’s the point at which I stand back, work out what the story is and structure it. Yes, it involves a complete and painful rewrite (sometimes more than one), but it’s the way my brain works so I don’t fight it.
I will talk more about revising your first draft for structure later on, but this week I’ve found some resources for the ‘plotters’ amongst you.
Joanna Penn (The Creative Penn) is a firm believer in the power of outlining. This post explains why and gives links to some different methods.
Holly Lisle is a prolific novelist and an excellent writing teacher. In this article she explains a quick and easy method for plotting in a hurry using index cards. If you like that, her e-book ‘Learn How To Create a Professsional Plot Outline’ is available for about 70p here.
This series from The Guardian describes how to write a (very) detailed outline in 30 days.