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.
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
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.
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…
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.
A plot structure might be the key to finishing your novel! Here'a a printable cheatsheet to the 7-Point Structure, Save the Cat, The Writer's Journey, The One Page Novel...
This guide has 5 great ways to start your story if you're stuck.
Having trouble outlining your book? Use this free BookMap template to get clear on your ideas before you dive in.
Recently at the Corvallis Chapter of the Willamette Writers, I gave a presentation on plot and character development when writing short stories.
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!
This guide has 5 great ways to start your story if you're stuck.
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 […]
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"
I have been working on my novel for many years. I’ve had confidence issues, fear issues, procrastination issues…but now I’ve decided enough is enough and it’s time to get on with it. This is a vlog of my progress and for this month I show how I am outlining and re-plotting my manuscript.
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.
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.
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.
This Brainstorm Your Story worksheet is a thoughtfully designed tool to assist budding writers in outlining the fundamental elements of a narrative. The worksheet features designated spaces for key components of a story, including the main character, character traits, setting, and details. The main character and setting sections are in rectangular boxes, while the character...
Planning your book doesn't have to be complicated,so in this post I show you how to outline a novel in just four simple steps.
A plot structure might be the key to finishing your novel! Here'a a printable cheatsheet to the 7-Point Structure, Save the Cat, The Writer's Journey, The One Page Novel...
In this post you'll learn all the details of the Plot Point Outlining Method for fiction writing, developed by A.E. McRoberts.
Author Tricia Goyer shares Free Printables for Writing Your Novel. Do you want easy-to-use worksheets to help novel writing? Grab these!
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.
A plot hole easily derails an otherwise good story and stretches credibility. Read 7 tips to avoid and fix plot holes.
Have you ever had the exact vibe of your story down, but no idea what actually happens? If lack of plot has ever stopped you from exploring your totally aesthetic story idea, read this post to learn how to find the plot under those immaculate vibes. This blog post could be all you need to […]
Writing a great plot twist needs a few ingredients. Read this post to find out how to mislead and surprise your readers.
Writing a great plot twist needs a few ingredients. Read this post to find out how to mislead and surprise your readers.
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.
Scene and Story Construction Spreadsheet and Nanowrimo Writing resources and recommendations. Writer and Artist Patricia Tiffany Morris shares her favorite resources since starting her writing career in 2018. Click on some of the links to share affiliate goodness and find your next writing book.
We've created novel outline templates for each major genre that follow the Hero's Journey and other proven story frameworks.
I should start by saying, first, I am not an organized writer. And that's part of the reason I'm writing this post. Until I started writing mysteries, I was a proud pantser who sorta/kinda organized plot events as she went along. But no more. For one thing, mysteries need to be tightly plotted. For another, I'm contracted to turn in an outline many months in advance of a manuscript. And though the outline was helpful, it wasn't enough for me in terms of structuring my story. I needed an extra layer of organization that would help me flesh out and manage the main mystery plot, as well as the subplots. So I tried each of the following, sometimes in isolation, sometimes all together: sticky notes colored sticky notes index cards colored index cards writers' software highlighting text in Word changing the color of my text in Word using an Excel spread sheet using the table function in Word using a large whiteboard with different color dry erase markers using a blotter-size desk calendar for the timeline making a flow chart of plot events As you can imagine, my office is a pretty messy place. The index cards kept getting lost and the sticky notes wouldn't stay stuck. Excel, it turns out, will screw with you even more than Word, and I would end up getting confused by my own flow charts. (And I know that one of the QT bloggers uses writing software with great success, but her name is not Rosie.) So now I'm down to three main tools: the white board, which is invaluable in terms of scribbling ideas, re-ordering them, or just writing little notes to myself. The blotter size desk calendar serves well for a timeline; the blocks are large enough to write in, and personally, I need big visuals. But the board and the calendar, like my editorial outline, aid me in macro-plotting: where the story is going and how it's getting there. I think of those things as a map. It's the micro-plotting--exploring motivation and showing cause and effect, planting clues and red herrings, both to the mystery and to the personal life of my protagonist, and delineating the interior life of my main character--that I tend to get lost. So my third tool is the table function in Word, which I use to create a compass to go with the map: The table function in Word helps me track my main plot and subplots. While working with Word can be less than rewarding for a writer, I do like the nifty table function. It's easy to use and manipulate. I set up a fairly simple chart for myself; the one pictured here is the one I'm using for my WIP, The Wedding Soup Murder. It uses a chapter breakdown in which I indicate place, time, date, and characters. I use red text for the main mystery plot, and other colors for the subplots. As I draft each chapter, I go back and fill in the chart. The chart, or my story compass, helps me stay on course in a number of ways. For example, cozy mysteries move at a fairly quick pace. If I look back over my chart and see that the green, purple, and blue text is taking up more space than the red, I go back to the ms and ensure that the subplots aren't bogging down the main story. I can read straight down the red text and isolate the main plot from the subplots, to make sure the mystery arc is swift, tight, and logical without the distraction of my main character's love life. On the other side of things, I can choose a color and follow that subplot, but I can also see how it is threaded into the main story, chapter by chapter. The chart also helps me identify a missing element. My main character has two love interests; I indicate one in green text and the other in blue. When I looked over my chart I realized that the blue ink didn't show up until Chapter Six. Her second guy had gotten short shrift in the story, so now I am working on ways to introduce him sooner. One last reason to love the chart: it makes a nice break from composing. Filling in another chapter is rewarding, and provides evidence of my progress. Whether we use sticky notes or fancy software, we all need to find our own way through our stories. What about you? What serves as your map? Your compass? A Jersey girl born and bred, Rosie Genova left her heart at the shore, which serves as the setting for much of her work. Her new series, the Italian Kitchen Mysteries, is informed by her deep appreciation for good food, her pride in her heritage, and her love of classic mysteries, from Nancy Drew to Miss Marple. Her debut novel, Murder and Marinara, will be released October 1. An English teacher by day and novelist by night, Rosie also writes women’s fiction as Rosemary DiBattista. She lives fifty miles from the nearest ocean in central New Jersey, with her husband, two of her three sons, and an ill-behaved fox terrier.
Plot structure can mean the difference between 50,000 words worth of beautiful descriptions, action-packed scenes, and witty dialogue—and an actual story.
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.
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.
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 …
Want to write a story that works? Learn how to plot your novel using the Save the Cat! Beat Sheet in this post! (Free worksheet included!) #writingtips
Do you think writing an outline of your chapters will help you but don't know where to start creating one? Create the perfect chapters outline.
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…
