To Outline or Not to Outline?

By Northwind of Otters

How often have teachers, parents, and other readers of your writing told you that you ought to outline your story before you write it? I know that, for me, this is a common occurrence. In fact, when I was homeschooled and then went to a private school, it was required by my teachers that I outline my story, even if it was fiction. Their thinking, I do believe, was that by outlining my story I was stuck with a specific timeline of events that would occur in the tale, and that this would help ensure that my work was finished by the established date. This would have been fine had I been a delinquent student, or even a student that had trouble with motivation; I, on the other hand, enjoyed writing and often finished my piece ahead of time. The outlines not only destroyed what little inspiration I may have had, but they also made me feel as if the plot had lost all of the little twists and surprises that even I was unaware of until I actually wrote them.

Needless to say, I hated outlining. Now that I am in my sophomore year, however, it is not required—just strongly recommended. I was discussing it with a fellow student who agreed with me—he, too, held the view that outlining killed one’s writing; he ended up being one of the only other students who saw it as I did. I guess it really depends on the mindset of the particular author. Some, like my mother and best friend, require an outlined plan to their fiction (and everything else!) while some like to write as it comes to them.

Now, to get to the question, Are you an outliner? Well, if you are, here are a few tips for you, fresh from the press of helpful and handy mothers who can’t live without outlines…

1) Your outline will, first off, help you to organize your thoughts, secondly, make certain your plot lines up, and thirdly, be a great source of help when you wish to have your story critiqued. It can give people a basic summary, with which they can tell you whether or not the story has any definite clichés and such.

2) The purpose of an outline is to help you plan out your story and know where you want to go with it. Don’t go into detail; just list certain major events in the order they are supposed to happen.

3) Don’t diverge from your outline much the first draft around. If you really need to, you can, but try to remain true to your plan until the end, when you can finally edit your story.

4) When editing, remember to look over your outline and make certain that all the events line up.

5) When making your outline, plan out your characters and write a list of their important details and their characteristics. This will help you while you are writing to make certain that you aren’t making mistakes, clichés, or contradictions. (See Saarh Jevsa’s June article on Cliches.) Don’t, on the other hand, make a set of iron rules for your character; they should not always behave in the exact same manner, as this gets boring quickly.

6) Though your outline is an important part of your story writing, don’t stress over it. It is only an aid, not the actual story itself.

For those of us who do not write with outlines, there are fewer tips, but some handy ones.

1) Don’t think too far ahead without jotting down your ideas. Though you may not want to outline everything, you need to make certain that you don’t forget the wonderful inspirations you get. I always carry a small notebook in which I write my ideas.

2) Never, ever try to write out an outline of your character unless you are certain that it won’t deflate their importance. I found that it completely flattened my character when I tried to write out everything, but it is helpful to know what your character is like ahead of time, so you may still want to consider this.

3) Keep to a schedule or just write as inspired? is another issue to consider. I attempt to set aside an hour per day for writing time, but rarely does it happen just the way I want. I wish I could form the habit to do so, but for others, there may be hope. Try to write by a schedule; it will improve your ability to write when the need is greatest. Inspiration will come, inspiration will go—but your schedule will always be with you!

4) And, finally, enjoy writing your story, relying on your current mood to tie the loose ends that make up the tale you are composing.