Outlining Your Novel: A Pantser’s POV
- Why outline your novel?
- Publishers may ask for an outline!!!
- Keeps you on track of plot development
- Keeps you on track with character development
- Helps with continuity/timeline
- When to outline your novel?
- Before: critical for plotters; essential for non-fiction
- After: post first-draft editing tool
- How to outline your novel?
- Many online tools
- By chapter or scene
- One or two lines
- By beginning, middle, end
- The Five-Stage Story Structure
- Exposition: Setting the scene.
- Rising action: Building the tension.
- Climax: The exciting bit.
- Falling action: Tidying up loose ends.
- Resolution: Ending the story.
- 12 stages of the heroes journey (ex. Star Wars)
- Ordinary World
- Call To Adventure
- Refusal Of The Call
- Meeting The Mentor
- Crossing The Threshold
- Tests, Allies, Enemies
- Approach To The Inmost Cave
- Ordeal
- Reward (Seizing The Sword)
- The Road Back
- Resurrection
- Return With The Elixir
- What might an outline do for you?
- Show you where you are repetitive
- Show slow spots in plot
- Show where you can add more tension, suspense, and higher stakes
- Where might an outline steer you wrong?
- Constrain your story and not allow it to grow organically
- Take time when you could actually be writing instead
- Try to force a plot that isn’t working
- Who can you ask about outlining your novel?
- Not me
- James Patterson, no really, Masterclass
- Again, lots of online help
- NaNoWriMo.org
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