Thread: Are outlines really essential when writing a novel?

I have started a novel. I started writing chapter 1 and after 15 or so pages of text that I had polished and rewrote etc, I got a bit stuck. Then I thought maybe I needed to know what happens all along the way, so I gave titles to the whole story and wrote a summary of what happens in the whole book up until the end.

So now technically I can just open a chapter and start writing there when I am stuck with other parts of it. Is having an outline a good idea with a novel? Are there reasons why you shouldn't break everything down that way?

well, there is no rule say that you have to have an outline, but you can easily keep track of the whole story and know where you are going instead of aimlessly writing. It's like getting on a car and drive around the city without a destination, it's a waste of time, effort and gas.

It's whatever works best for you. Some people swear by outlines, others enjoy the freedom offered by going into it without any foresight. At the end of the day, it's whatever you feel comfortable with.

If you do have an outline -- and I swear by them -- just make sure that you allow yourself to deviate from it whenever you want to. The story is better when it develops naturally, but has a goal, I believe.

I hate outlines, but friends of mine swear by them. If this method you're using helps you get the writing down, then use it. If it stops helping, try something else. There's a huge span of methods between "Minutely Detailed Outline" and "Just Sit Down and Write It".

Originally Posted by shadowwalker

I hate outlines, but friends of mine swear by them. If this method you're using helps you get the writing down, then use it. If it stops helping, try something else. There's a huge span of methods between "Minutely Detailed Outline" and "Just Sit Down and Write It".

I hate outlines too. I usually come up with an idea and expand, but I guess it's like trying to build a house without the framework.

Neither of my novels had an outline any further than the next chapter. Two rules I always follow: Never use an outline and never do any editing or rewrites until I have written the entire story. Works great for me, but everyone is different. Find what works best and roll with it

I wrote a novella without an outline once, and it was my worst writing experience. The story wondered aimlessly from one event to the next, often without transitions or connections to past occurrences. I would suggest an outline if your ideas are relatively undeveloped. If inspiration strikes, then let the words flow.

My writing style tends to be automatic writing so outlines for me dont work all the time. I have the general idea of the book in my head, I'll write the idea down and work from that because I like the freedom of changing my mind along the way. If I work with outlines I feel too constricted but its like previous posters have said, its whatever works for you.

I am constantly coming up with new stuff, so mine isnt so much an outline as it is a collection of ideas that I can pull from when its time. It really does depend on what works in your style and works for the story itself. But, when I do use an actual outline, i add and deviate, i don't use them as if they are set in stone.

its tricky. there's no doubt the more you have to work from - be it an outline, character notes, a synopsis, whatever - the easier it'll be, but sitting down and writing an outline isn't for everybody. personally. i don't write an outline purely because i like to spend writing time on actually writing, even if i don't end up actually using what i write. there's no fixed rules, however i do think that whether or not you put it to paper you should have some sort of idea of where *it's* going in your head. i often start with my ending and work backwards with my thoughts, so that even if i don't know what happens in between and even if there's changes i don't anticipate, i still have a pretty good idea when i start about where i'm going. what you don't want to do is to start a novel with no idea whatsoever about what will happen beyond the chapter/page/paragraph you're working on. there should always be some concept of an 'end', even if it is only vague together with a trajectory that can, with minimal adjustments, carry you to that end. the rest should basically write itself. good luck!

I think at a minimum its best to have some idea of the end of the story. That is what I do, then I write from the beginning and allow my creative brain to take over in getting to the end. But the end can change at any point.

Add me to the "swears by outlines" crowd. Are they essential? No, but you're almost always better off with one than without, especially when it comes to editing the story afterwards. If you plan first, you'll waste less time fixing things when you're done. Also, it doesn't hurt that I begin my stories by thinking of a point I want to make, which becomes the conclusion I want to reach. Once you have your conclusion, how are you supposed to write a story but by planning out the events that lead to that conclusion?

Originally Posted by Gamer_2k4

Add me to the "swears by outlines" crowd. Are they essential? No, but you're almost always better off with one than without, especially when it comes to editing the story afterwards. If you plan first, you'll waste less time fixing things when you're done.

Replace the "you"s with "I"s and it works better - no assumptions about universals

Originally Posted by Gamer_2k4

Also, it doesn't hurt that I begin my stories by thinking of a point I want to make, which becomes the conclusion I want to reach. Once you have your conclusion, how are you supposed to write a story but by planning out the events that lead to that conclusion?

Easy - the author always has choices of what actions can or should happen. Will one of those choices lead to the conclusion? Probably. Or maybe the actions which are logical and natural will change that [erroneous] conclusion.

Failing to plan is planning to fail.

I began work on what will be my first novel a few months ago. I've several hundred pages of notes, excerpts of dialogue, idealogies, quotes, etc, which I will eventually assemble to some degree of coherency. I'm determined to plan every page meticulously, so that during the writing process, I'll never reach the 'hmmm, what now?' predicament.

De gustibus and all that, though. People should write in whatever fashion they wish.