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Lately, I’ve been dealing with my love/hate relationship with plot and outlines. I recently saw the quote below on a friend’s Facebook page. It came with the accompanied tag: “An outline is meant to be a road map (including detours)… NOT a straitjacket!”

All of my writer spidy senses went into high alert when I read this. Immediately, I felt the need to defend my personal feeling that an outline is like a straitjacket. My mind whirred with reasons: an outline is going to stifle the story! It’s not going to give my characters room to breathe! I’m going to force my characters to do all the things my outline says they must do!

Obviously, outlines are a trigger for me.

I should clarify, when I say outline, I’m thinking about something very detailed. I’ve written 10 to 17  page outlines in the past, cataloging what happens when, where, how, and why. If you say the word outline to me, this is what I think of. Often, when you put that much work into an outline it can feel like the story is set in stone, unmovable, and pre-written. I’ve had to throw away entire projects that came as a result of this type of outlining, and it stole away my sense of discovery during the writing process. Many projects I’ve outlined, I’ve never finished. Hopefully this gives a little insight into why I have such a dramatic reaction to outlines.

But deep down I do think it’s important to have some sense of where your headed – some vague elusive sense, yes.

Let’s return to the quote above, I want to identify exactly why I reacted so negatively to it. The heart of the issue lies in the implication of the following two lines:

1)  “Always start a novel with an outline.”

Outlines and a sense of direction are important, but must you always start with one? First drafts (in my opinion) should be about exploration and discovery. Who are your characters? What do they want? What’s the premise and how could it play out? If you have an outline before you have a clear sense of who your characters are – will they even become real people? Or are they doomed to be cogs in your plot machine?

Are we so afraid of not knowing where we are headed? Outlines give us set destinations, but is there no room to explore with our characters? Is there no room to let our characters come a life and dictate the direction of their own stories?  (Be sure to read author Tristan Riehl’s great post about authors not being honest to their character’s stories).

Do we lack the faith that our stories will reveal themselves to us if we give them the space to do so? Do we not trust the writing process?

Of course, at some point we will want to look at the big picture and deal with the overall structure and plot. Of course, we will do this! But should we always start the process that way?

I think my big question here is: When is the right time to outline? Not that you should never outline, or that it can’t be a useful tool. But why do we choose to outline at all? At what point in the process should we do it? And what help does it provide? Is always starting with an outline an action done in service of the story or in service of the author?

Which leads me to…

2)  “…you will be able to make changes without wasting too much time.”

I have a sneaky suspicion that sometimes an outline exist so we don’t waste time. It exists for the author, so we can be efficient. I get it, time is valuable! There are sacrifices that must be made in order to make time in our lives to write. An outline can be a great tool to keep us on track and moving forward with our stories.

However, just because something is efficient, doesn’t mean it’s effective. It may serve us (the author) and give us a sense of accomplishment. But is it always serving our characters?

What gets lost in the process? What do we rush past and not see?

You may have heard the story of renowned violinist Joshua Bell, who did an incognito performance in a subway station in 2007. Bell played for 43 minutes during the morning rush hour and was passed by over 1000 people. Only a handful of people (including a child) stopped to hear him play. The rush to get to work, save time and not be late, was a stronger force than the desire to slow down and listen. Very few allowed themselves the space to experience something beautiful and unexpected.

Are we doing the same thing with our own stories in our mad rush to save time, finish our drafts, and get published? I’ll admit it. I’ve done it. And I had a nice pretty outline to guide my way. I know outlines have kept me from noticing the glorious events on the sidelines, things that would have made my book stronger, more alive, and vibrant. Has a dependency on an outline caused you to have similar blind spots?

Am I saying you shouldn’t outline. No, not at all. I’m saying you should ask yourself what you need from your outline. What’s the right time to use it? And is it a crutch that’s causing you look rush past the true heart of your novel?

Photo credit: mlpdesign / Flickr.com
My daughter, who is in fourth grade, was assigned a paper in December around the same time I received a lengthy assignment. At one point, the two of us were traipsing to the library together to check out books.
Her deadline has approached faster than mine; her assignment is definitely shorter than mine. But reviewing outlining and research techniques with her has helped me to identify areas to improve for her work process, as well as mine.
Here are some brief suggestions that might help you with your writing process:

1. Do some preliminary research and reading before taking pen to paper. Too frequently I saw my daughter start a search and follow one path without considering there might be some forks in the road. In determining what elements to include in her outline and report, I found myself suggesting that she delve a little deeper to confirm her pathway. With my assignment, I stopped myself once or twice to make sure I was being as inclusive as I could be.

2. Take time to consider deadlines--including those who need to sign off on your work. She and I have our deadlines. Working during the holidays paid off for her and she turned in a draft of her paper earlier this week. This has given her time to revise over this weekend with a deadline of Monday. Meanwhile, I had to do the bulk of my work before the holidays in order to send my outline for approval from my client. Planning your work can also help in ensuring that you don't get into a crunch and cut corners in order to get done faster.

3. Keep track of research. Too young for footnoting, while I was reviewing her paper I found myself asking: where did she find that information? Fortunately, she had either noted the website, had used a book for background research or had printed a copy of the web page she used. My daughter's teacher encourages project folders, which also help to contain the work in one place. (Now if her mom could imitate that!) Early on, I would have recommended index cards for research, but having never done a spectacular job of using or keeping track of index cards, it was hard to make that argument.

4. Find a chunk of time to work--undisturbed. This proved difficult during my kids' vacation, but when there were pockets of quiet time, I pulled out my notes and research. For my daughter, a sister-in-law suggested setting a timer for 15 minutes helped to focus the work and focus those of us around her. Working in the smaller increments for some can be a freeing concept and worked well for my daughter. That is something I plan to try to get from outline to final product.

5. Don't be afraid to research more, even if you have already started drafting or writing. When using an outline based on early research, you have a guide. However, when you start writing, keep in mind that your information may not cover all that you need to answer. Delve deeper, if necessary. Having more information can bring depth to a subject and can only reward your final product. Not getting beneath the subject and leaving question marks may frustrate your reader.

BONUS TIP: Save, save, save. Fortunately, no mishaps during the writing of