A few weeks ago, I got this question in my inbox: How would you go about outlining [a trilogy]? Would you outline it as a whole or each book individually? Awesome question! And obviously, everyone outlines/plans series differently, so I can only tell you how I plan a series. Hopefully that information is still helpful, though. […]
I touched on keeping a writing journal last NaNo, and though this doesn’t only apply to planning–I use a journal throughout my planning/drafting/revising process–I thought I would tack it on to the end of this series. I can’t live without my journals on writing, and perhaps you’ll find them as useful a tool for planning/drafting/revising as […]
Read Part 1 in this series: Of Plotters and Pantsers. Read Part 2 in this series: Before I Start Drafting. Read Part 3 in this series: Scene-Level Planning. Read Part 5 in this series: Writing Journals. Today’s post on “coaxing out the magical cookies” might be more aptly titled “What to do when you get […]
Note: If you need information on WHAT a scene is, I will direct you to these resources: my own very basic breakdown of scenes, this post by my fave author who talks about writing, and this post by another amazingly helpful writing teacher. Okay! Onwards to today’s post! In case you missed the previous parts of this series, […]
So as I mentioned last Friday, I only recently realized that I’m actually a planner and not a pantser. But my method of planning is erratic at best. Disclaimer: this may not help YOU plan a book at all. It’s my method, right? And it’s a very fluid, not-too-organized, definitely not-too-strict method. But then again, perhaps […]
I’m not a traditional outliner when it comes to writing my stories. Actually, up until a month ago, I actually would have labeled myself a straight-up pantser (i.e. writing a novel entirely by the seat of my pants). But I realized that wasn’t really true. I also realized that many of my so-called “panster” friends […]
A recent reader question went something like this: Do you know your endings when you start books? The short answer to that, Dear Reader, is: Yes, I sorta know my endings. The longer, more accurate answer is: Yes, I have an ending in mind but it almost ALWAYS changes. And it usually changes significantly. Let’s […]
Last Friday’s QOTW was about avoiding a contrived plot. At the time, I took this to mean a copy-cat plot, but the responses of Mandy and Julie made me see what the question could have meant: how do you avoid a forced plot — a turn of events in the story that doesn’t feel natural. […]
Overall Rating: 5 out of 5 This book, by Donald Maass, is an extension of his Writing the Breakout Novel (WtBN). While some refer to WtBN as a “masters course in novel-writing”, WtBN Workbook takes it up a big notch to PhD-level. Maass doesn’t pretend that his method will be quick or easy – in fact, he emphasizes that it should take years to fully […]
Overall Rating: 5 out of 5 This book, by Alicia Rasley, is one of my favorites for the planning stage. She makes you think to get your characters, conflicts, and plot in gear. This is definitely my Go-To-Book if I’m having trouble getting an outline or imagining where I want my story to go.