There's a lot of things that you need to consider when writing stories. You can use any of these story outline templates to create a good piece of work.
A blank novel outline template for use with Google Docs, Google Keep, and Scrivener. The One Page Novel is a simple, memorable structure for novelists.
This is a worksheet that students can use to identify the elements of a plot in a story. They can also use it to create a plot for a story they are writing. It asks them to identify the conflict, characters, main events of the story, climax and resolution.
In 1997 Bloomsbury took a punt on first-time novelist Joanne Rowling, publishing 500 hard back copies (yours then for £10.95) and 5,150 paperbacks (£4.99) of her 1995 children’s book Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone. Recast as J.K. Rowling (boys eschew women writers, apparently), over 500 million copies of the wizard’s adventures have been … Continue reading "J.K. Rowling Sketches And Plot Outlines For Harry Potter"
So, where exactly is your plot taking you? What happens next? What is this story about? It’s time to think about plot. Plotting Worksheet
If you cut my wrist, I’d bleed pantser all over you. Which, for anyone that knows me in real life, is about as ironic as you can get. I’m hyper organised. I have lists of lists and spreadsheets to make even the hardiest of geeks weep. I’m so extreme my wife has to schedule in […]
How to Plot a Story: Understanding Plotting and Climax. Plotting a story can be tricky, but it's the difference between a poorly and a well developed story.
Plot development can be one of the greatest challenges when you're working on writing a novel. If you're plotting a novel, these plot development charts and tips will help you with writing plot structure, outlining and more.
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In this post you'll learn all the details of the Plot Point Outlining Method for fiction writing, developed by A.E. McRoberts.
Writing a great plot twist needs a few ingredients. Read this post to find out how to mislead and surprise your readers.
Outline for the first arc of my current WIP Until quite recently, I'd considered myself a loud and proud pantser. I had tried outlining in detail once before, it killed my muse, and I declared that I'd never do it again. Then I started getting writer's block more often than not, and would stare at the page and not know what comes next. I mixed and matched outlining methods and ways to structure story to find the one that suited me that best. Right now, I've come up with the spreadsheet method that's shown on the right, but I promise it isn't as terrifying as it looks. This is by no means the best or only way to outline, but it's my way. Quick things to note: I sort of use the three arc structure. I use the scene/sequel structure (if you don't know what that is, click here and here). My current manuscript is told from a singular first person POV (I'll suggest alternatives for people working with dual/multiple POV further down) I'll be using Pride and Prejudice examples taken from K.M. Weiland's Structuring Your Novel to illustrate everything as I learnt a lot from it. Row = Horizontal, Column = Vertical This post is a little long, so I'll put it underneath a cut. Okay! So let's get started. I open up Excel and start to fill in the top row. If I was outlining Pride and Prejudice, it would look something like this: From left to right, my columns are set as such: Arc - I use this column to track where my Key Points are (more on those later) ✓ - I place a tick there when I finish writing that scene Summary (Protagonist POV) - 1-2 sentence summary of the scene, Place - Where the scene happens Time - When the scene happens One column each for significant supporting characters - A line about what they're doing either behind the scenes (if important) or in the scene. If they're not in the scene, whether doing something important behind the scenes or not, I block it out with grey Scene/Sequel - See linked posts above Goal/Reaction - See linked posts above Conflict/Dilemma - See linked posts above Disaster/Decision - See linked posts above Short-term goal - Not the scene goal, but a very minor goal that takes more than one scene to complete (e.g. to steal enough money to pay the dressmaker) Long-term goal - Big Picture things that are needed to achieve the end goal (e.g. to disguise herself as a noblewoman to enter the palace) Overarching goal - The end goal, what the protagonist wants (e.g. to kill the royal family) While the sheet is still empty (apart from the column labels), I copy it twice so I have three sheets which are exactly the same. I name them Arc One, Arc Two and Arc Three. You could keep it all in one spreadsheet, but because I plot out every scene, it tends to get very long and I'd rather click between tabs than keep scrolling. These are columns are completely flexible, I have some characters don't get their own columns until arc two, and some characters who were significant enough to get their own column in arcs one and two, but ends up dying during the third plot point and no longer needs a column. If you don't think it's important to keep track of the location of the scene, you don't need a location column. If the weather is important, add a weather column. One scene in one row. I fill in all the columns, and if major parts that make up the scene/sequel are . missing, I know that I'll have to seriously rethink about whether or not I need that scene. Potential filler scene avoided before it even began. I can move the scenes around, insert new rows if I need a scene to go in-between, and easily get rid of scenes that I no longer want. Then I add another sheet called "Key Points." Pride and Prejudice would have one that looked something like this: In column A, I write down in each row: Hook Inciting Incident Key Event First Plot Point First Pinch Point Midpoint Second Pinch Point Third Plot Point Climax If you have no idea what any (or some) of these points here, click here. In column B, I write down the scene(s) involved involved in that plot structure point. I edit and add to this as I outline-- usually it goes from a vague idea (e.g. Elizabeth rejects Mr Darcy), to an more concrete idea (e.g. Elizabeth rejects Mr Darcy in the rain after he acts like an asshole and insults her entire family before declaring his love). This really helps me keep track of where the story is going. I usually set up empty spreadsheets for all of my significant characters, and everything and anything that suddenly comes to me goes there. Pictures, dialogue, "what-ifs," all the ideas I get during outlining that I'm not quite sure where to put. Same goes for a worldbuilding and locations. Quick Tips: Freeze the top row. Colour is your friend. Colour code everything. Wrapping the text will save you. If something no longer works, change it. If you suddenly feel the need to revamp everything, click Save As and save it as a new file before going on a deleting spree. If you have more than one POV character then one way of adapting it would be to repeat the scene summary column for as many POV characters you have, and add a POV column. Indicate which POV is being used (through colour or column) and keep notes about what your other POV character is doing during that time in their columns. Hopefully, all of this made sense and didn't confuse anyone too much. If you have any questions or want me to expand on something, feel free to leave a comment!
Use a Line or Triangle in Your Plot Chart Effectively After Grabbing a Free Download Doc Sample. We Offer Example Graph Layouts for a Development Outline, Mountain Map, Story Structure, and Pyramid Worksheet. Avail Yourself of an Empty Plot Diagram Now in Word, PDF, or Google Docs Format.
Having trouble outlining your book? Use this free BookMap template to get clear on your ideas before you dive in.
How to outline your novel in 15 easy steps. Part of the How To Write A Novel blog series. Learn how to outline your novel and other great tips.
In my previous post we looked at how Rowling was able to build her complex plot by, ironically, breaking it down into individual series that collide and interact in significant ways. The different …
A plot hole easily derails an otherwise good story and stretches credibility. Read 7 tips to avoid and fix plot holes.
These methods of outlining will help you create a novel outline that makes writing your first draft a breeze, whether it's your 1st or 10th time writing a book.
A few weeks ago, I was at the half-way point of my first draft and having trouble with my plot. After ten months of steadily pounding away at the keyboard and chipping at the word count, I was incr…
Recently at the Corvallis Chapter of the Willamette Writers, I gave a presentation on plot and character development when writing short stories.
So, I haven’t posted in quite a while. I do have a few good reasons though. I’ve been busy with my photography blog, A Moment to Capture, posting photos and looking for opportunities to…
We've created novel outline templates for each major genre that follow the Hero's Journey and other proven story frameworks.
One of my favorite ways to outline or plan a story is to map it out like a subway or road map. Here's how this technique works. Each road or subway line
To force structure on a story too early is inevitably to force the story itself. You don’t want to impose structure; rather, you want the story to find its own
For my latest revision, I’m working out some plotting and pacing issues. And, since I own bright neon mini PostIts, it was time to go to the magic board: Main and subplots are listed across the t…
Plot structure can mean the difference between 50,000 words worth of beautiful descriptions, action-packed scenes, and witty dialogue—and an actual story.
These methods of outlining will help you create a novel outline that makes writing your first draft a breeze, whether it's your 1st or 10th time writing a book.
Writing a great plot twist needs a few ingredients. Read this post to find out how to mislead and surprise your readers.
A summary of the comprehensive outlining method developed by Youtuber and writer, Kat O’Keeffe.
Learn how to create a story outline that will ensure that you finish your draft without running into the dreaded writer's block.
Using a story planner template is an effective way to ensure a positive short story writing experience for both new writers and established ones alike.
Use a Line or Triangle in Your Plot Chart Effectively After Grabbing a Free Download Doc Sample. We Offer Example Graph Layouts for a Development Outline, Mountain Map, Story Structure, and Pyramid Worksheet. Avail Yourself of an Empty Plot Diagram Now in Word, PDF, or Google Docs Format.
For all the writers reading this blog, here’s my cheat sheet for the Plotting Board Method of plotting, which I learned from Cherry Adair. The Cherry Plo...
6 story structures, complete with story structure charts to help you create an original plot and outline your next novel.
There's a lot of things that you need to consider when writing stories. You can use any of these story outline templates to create a good piece of work.
Sometimes there is nothing better than the classics. Today we examine Freytag's Pyramid, the most common plot structure in novel writing.
