Outlining

[Clockworkbot]

Hi all,

Is anyone aware of any really good systems for outlining a novel, either online or anywhere in print? I'm in the middle of it at the moment but am struggling to find the right framework/level of detail to make sure I set things out in a robust way that won't crumble under their own contradictions once I start writing...

Much obliged!

 

[Brian G Turner]

From Save the Cat by Blake Snyder:


1. OPENING IMAGE (1)
2. THEME STATED (5)
3. SET-UP (1-10)
4. CATALYST (12)
5. DEBATE (12-25)
6. BREAK INTO TWO (25)
7. B STORY (30)
8. FUN AND GAMES (30-55)
9. MIDPOINT (55)
10. BAD GUYS CLOSE IN (55-75)
11. ALL IS LOST (75)
12. DARK NIGHT OF THE SOUL (75-85)
13. BREAK INTO THREE (85)
14. FINALE (85-110)
15. FINAL IMAGE (110)

Although it was written to apply to screenwriting, it can be just as applicable to novel writing - just ignore the runtime notes.

 

[sknox]

Have you written a novel before? Is this your first?

Doesn't matter; the answer's the same for both: no system or approach is going to guarantee you story doesn't fall apart. Expect it to, and accept the event with good cheer.

Meanwhile, if you do really want to use some storytelling structure, the one suggested above is fine. There are others. It shouldn't take too awfully long to try several; approach it like trying on clothes, but don't take it too seriously.
\

 

[Biskit]

Embrace the crumble.
Think of your story as a phoenix. It will crash and burn, and then with a little coaxing, rise from the ashes.
If you get away with only doing that once, you should count yourself lucky.

It sounds like you're a plotter rather than a pantser, so what @sknox said is a great starting point.

If it turns out that you're really a panster, get used to those burn and rise cycles.

 

[Brian G Turner]

Ah, yes - good point. Any initial outline or structure is probably best treated as a guide that can be subject to change as required. .

 

[M. Robert Gibson]

I posted a link elsewhere to a plot structure cheat sheet that contains several possibilities

Plotter or Pantser?

I'm a pantser with hints of plotter. Generally, I find plotting a disaster and I get bored trying to write to a plot outline. I will sometimes write a set of notes for what's coming up if the interleaving of plot threads is getting tricky or, as I am currently doing, I write a "posthumous"...

www.sffchronicles.com

 

[sknox]

I treat my outlines as an especially dreary joke that I nevertheless keep telling.

 

[Clockworkbot]

Thanks all for the responses...I agree that it's somewhat inevitable that things will veer away from the plan and require reconstructive surgery later on, I was just hoping to make my life a bit easier! It is the first time I have written a novel so I am figuring things out as I go along. I think I am probably somewhat halfway between 'plotter' and 'pantser'.

What I was really thinking of, more than a structure for the plot per se, is a framework for building the novel chapter by chapter - for example, I feel like I've seen templates that get you to check off your character's motivation in each scene, the 'reversal' that happens, and so on. I have a feeling I've seen something like that before, but perhaps it's actually of limited use.

 

[sknox]

So, Brian gave you one model. There are others. Here are a few

The Snowflake Method For Designing A Novel

How to write a novel: Award-winning novelist Randy Ingermanson teaches his wildly popular Snowflake Method for designing and writing a novel.

www.advancedfictionwriting.com

Story Structure Series: #1 - Introducing the Four Parts of Story - Storyfix.com

Storyfix is proud to bring you a 10-part tutorial on the fundamentals of story structure. Today’s post is #1 in that series. Introducing the Four Parts of Story Some writers like things in nice little boxes. Others, not so much. Either way, you can look at your story like a box, of sorts...

storyfix.com

3 Awesome Plot Structures For Building Bestsellers — Well-Storied.

Novels are just like houses. Houses have rooms and residents. Novels have chapters and characters. Houses have curb appeal. Novels have pretty covers. Houses and novels both take a while to build, and the end results for both aren't worth much if they weren't built on a solid foundation. And whe

www.well-storied.com

The above I found by seaching on "plot structure for novels". There were many other hits; you should have a look on your own.

Then I search on "plotting a novel worksheets" and got these, among many others

Novel in 30 Days Worksheet Index

To help you successfully complete your book in 30 days, here are nine worksheets to help you keep track of plot, scenes, characters and revisions. All of these worksheets originally appeared in Book in a Month by Victoria Lynn Schmidt and were also featured in the special issue Write Your Novel...

www.writersdigest.com

(not all the links here still work)

Book Writing Worksheets - Novel Factory

Free Novel Writing Worksheets (PDFs) The cornerstone of the Novel Factory software for writers is to handle useful information that authors might be collating in order to help them write their novel. This could be relating to plot, characters, locations and more. As well a offering a place to...

www.novel-software.com

As I said, there are kajillions of references. I haven't even included books. The short version is this: you will find an avalanche of advice. Go ahead and read as much as you wish but don't sweat it too much. Only some of the advice will resonate with you. And some of it will resonate later, after you're on your second or third book. It's not like there's "right" advice out there. The only real mistake would be to take it all too seriously and to wind up handcuffing yourself as you try to follow "right" advice. It's all just advice.

 

[night_wrtr]

I think I am probably somewhat halfway between 'plotter' and 'pantser'.

What I was really thinking of, more than a structure for the plot per se, is a framework for building the novel chapter by chapter - for example, I feel like I've seen templates that get you to check off your character's motivation in each scene, the 'reversal' that happens, and so on. I have a feeling I've seen something like that before, but perhaps it's actually of limited use.

I also fall between plotter and pantser. After starting and failing a few times at writing a novel, I found my current method for outlining works best for me. Something to keep in mind is that everyone writes differently and what works for one, won't for another. What I use is something like this:

Chapter X
Beginning: Starting scene
End: Ending scene
(This gives me a starting point for the chapter and tells me where I need to end and its only a few sentences. Nothing too detailed. By the time I start to outline, I've thought about my story enough to have a basic idea of where its going. Having a start and end point only also lets me enjoy pantsing my way from A to B. It keeps me engaged and thinking creatively.

Key Points: Vital people, places, things, ideas that must be covered in the chapter.
(This is the DON'T FORGET type of things. Character introductions, foreshadowing, character X uses magic for the first time, etc.)

I don't have the level of experience most others on this forum have, but I can offer whats been working for me. This might help you develop your own method at least.

 

[Phyrebrat]

I really liked reading the stuff you’ve all put up here and feel a little peeved that when I’ve tried to plan it’s killed my passion. It’s like once I’ve ‘discovered’ the story I lose interest.

Although I don’t have a problem with editing.

re @sknox’s snowflake link, it’s full of great ways of developing your elevator pitch and synopses when you’re ready to submit to agents and/or publishers.

pH

 

[Juliana]

This link is for an old LiveJournal by Jim Butcher; I found it back when I was first starting to write seriously, and it got me to the end of my first ever finished novel. The planning/outlining entry in particular I found really helpful. Over time, I've found my own way of doing things, but this is a really concise and easy breakdown of how to put a novel together. He has a really fun way of writing too, so it's light-hearted. (And it's free!) Start from the oldest posts (at the bottom in this view-format).

Jim's Livejournal.

 

[mistri]

I find the indepth models a bit stifling, or perhaps my mind doesn't work like that. Nowadays I tend to find anything that lets me easily drag chapter/scene ideas around works - so for example, I've used Excel, Scrivener, old software called Writer's Cafe that had a corkboard feature, and a similar newer app Plottr (not working for them promise, but I have just mentioned it in two posts) that lets you do something similar- ie make timelines that you write short descriptions for and drag them around.

I want to write some mysteries next (probably not sff so not really eligible for discussion on these boards!) and think for the first time I actually might need to use a plotting worksheet!

 

[Bagpuss]

I've seen templates that get you to check off your character's motivation in each scene, the 'reversal' that happens, and so on. I have a feeling I've seen something like that before, but perhaps it's actually of limited use.

There is an eight-point arc, which you could look at. That has reversals included in it. I use a modified version of it. The thing I tend to like about it is that it's flexible. You can apply it to almost any length of story and you can apply it to the story as a whole, a chapter or a scene if you want to. You can include as much or as little detail as you like. And I tend to find that if I have a high-level overview of the general plot then I can focus on the dialogue and characters more, without worrying about whether the plot works or not.

I don't tend to go to the level of plotting scene by scene, but if I have a scene that doesn't work, or I'm stuck with, then applying a modified arc has identified the problem and helped me fix it (or, in a couple of cases, has caused me to junk the entire scene and redo it).