TOOL: Outlines
These two books tell you exactly what bullet points to list, how many you'll need, and what actually needs to happen in the middle of your novel. Best of all, both of these books feature free online resources you can use right now.
There is something very satisfying about an outline when you do it well. Of course when it's not going well it can be one of the most frustrating parts of writing a book. While not a required part of the process (anyone who tells you differently is lying) an outline can be useful at two stages of the process: at the beginning when you are fitting all the puzzle pieces together; and when you are starting your revisions to figure out what pieces are missing. There are lots of books on plot, and we'll get to those, but I have two books that really show you how to outline. They tell you exactly what bullet points to list, about how many you'll need, and what actually needs to happen in the middle parts of your novel. Best of all, both of these books feature free online resources you can use right now.
What: Use an outline when you want to make all the bits of your book fit together better or at any time while plotting or revising to get a high-level view of your story.
List Criteria: Books that have clear and thorough outline templates
2,000 to 10,000 - Rachel Aaron
Aaron goes into some detail about how she outlines in her book 2K to 10K. Her method isn't the most detailed I’ve seen but that may be a plus. Sometimes if your outline is too thorough it can feel like the writing is already done. Her description of her process is thorough and you’ll end up with a workable plot if you follow her instructions. If you are in a rush, or don't want to read a whole book, Aaron also details her entire outline process on her blog. The text differs from the book, but the process she describes is the same. If you want to get an outline done as fast as possible to get back to writing, this is the outline method for you.
Save the Cat Writes a Novel - Jessica Brody
Brody's book is a classic for a reason. A beat sheet can really put some pep in your story, and there's plenty to be learned from film about how to make a story flow together. Brody lays out several beat sheets for different genres, if you're in a rush, you only really need to read one or two to get the idea (though this book is still a great resource). I find myself returning to my beat sheet when I'm losing steam in the middle of the story to remind myself what needs to happen next.
Savethecat.com features a nifty beat sheet mapper where you put in about how long you want your novel to be, and it maps out how many pages your beats should take. The website will also walk you through the basics of what each beat means and has a ton of example beat sheets for familiar stories. Its worth poking around and exploring. Just remember that this is one way to make a story work, not the only way.
So that's the two goodies I have for you today. Do you have any others to recommend? If you are subscribed, you can leave a comment below. Or let me know @thatemilymunro on bluesky. I'll expand this list if I come across any other good outline tools in the future. Happy writing. ~EM
Image Credit: City room of the New York World, ca. 190. [Ca. 190] Photograph. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, <www.loc.gov/item/2007683023/>.
