Outlining a Novel

Outlining is so important when tackling a novel. I think part of the reason why people never start writing is that the thought of writing 50,000+ words is so daunting and overwhelming. I remember feeling that way when I first started, but once I finished outlining, I felt much more confident. Outlining also helps prevent writers block when you're halfway through the book and don't know what else to write. Basically, it allows you to work out all the kinks beforehand. I can't overstate the importance of outlining enough. As with writing a novel, there is no right or wrong way to outline. Since I can only speak to my personal experience, I'll give a brief overview of my process.

First, I start with my brainstorming notes. By this time, I have a bunch of random plot ideas, mini scenes, and sometimes even snippets of dialogue written down. I like to go through and highlight which ideas I intend to use then start putting them in order chronologically. Next, I start filling in the blanks and adding substantive details. For example, if two of my ideas involve being on different planets, I'll figure out how the characters traveled and if anything eventful happened along the way.

For Renegades, I wrote out about 200 index cards with one sentence descriptions of the major plot points I was going to put in my outline. By writing them on index cards, I was able to spread them out on the floor, move them around, and add cards until I was happy with the sequence of events. For a more visual person like myself, seeing the book laid out was very helpful.  Here's an example I found with post-its:

This process, however, took a long time. I already started writing Book 2, and I skipped this step. In my defense, I already had a much better idea of what I was going to write in Book 2 before I started than when I was beginning Renegades.  I did a lot of brainstorming and general outlining for the next few books when I started Book 1 so I could tie in elements and themes throughout the series.

Lastly, I typed up my outline in a typical outline format, like this:

I made sure to highlight any lingering questions or plot holes so I could address them as I went.  I know a lot of people don't like to start writing until they have everything figured out, but I find that I come up with some pretty creative solutions when I'm frantically typing my first draft.  Also, I had to remind myself that the outline is only that, an outline. If I felt inspired to take the story in a different direction as I was writing my first draft, I went with it.

For a much more in-depth look at outlining, I highly recommend, Outlining Your Novel: Map Your Way to Success by K.M. Weiland.

Next up: My new cover reveal. After much debate, I decided to ask my graphic designer to redesign the cover for Renegades just one week before its release date, which is this Thursday! (Eeeeee!) She did an amazing job with the new cover, and I can't wait to show it to you!  After that, I'm going to dedicate at least one post to character development.

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