Outlining revisited

[khiemtran]

Just when I thought the "deep outlining" method I've been trying was getting nowhere, the pieces are starting to fall into place.

It's been fairly frustrating not being able to dive into the prose too early and having to deal with one knot after another without the gratification of wordcount. Even now, nearly a month after I started, I still don't have a completed outline that I'm happy with. I do recognize though that the outline I have is much much stronger than the one I started with.

I still have some plot problems to solve, and I don't even know if they're solveable (soluble?) at all. That's another frustration, although I guess it's better than finding out after the first draft. Or maybe it isn't. At least when I'm churning out wordcount I have some positive feedback to keep me motivated.

I keep wanting to just jump in and write the damn thing, but the longer I stay in outlining mode, the more problems I find.

Comments

[zornhau.livejournal.com]

I like "deep outlining" - though that's the first time I've heard it called that. Do you use Word Outline View?

[khiemtran.livejournal.com]

No, I'm just using TextEdit (the bundled text editor on the Mac). And what's left of my brain after work and son have finished with it.

[zornhau.livejournal.com]

A pity. Outline View in Word is almost made for this.

[green-knight.livejournal.com]

I much, much prefer to use AppleWorks (also bundled) which rocks when it comes to outline functions. I find the function in Word boring because it won't allow me to colour-and-font-code my text, and I find that those two elements just make outlines easier to view.

http://beyond-elechan.livejournal.com/8319.html gives you an idea...

[houseboatonstyx.livejournal.com]

I like doing it too, though my outlines tend to grow so large that I can't fill them in and the trellis collapses before bearing any fruit. :-)

[khiemtran.livejournal.com]

I'll finish this experiment, but I think, on the whole, it's not for me. I like to do some outlining, but this is just a bit too much. I'm looking forward to getting back to regular wordcount again, even if it means throwing stuff away.

[karinfromnosund.livejournal.com]

This sounds almost depressive to me. I'd like to try outlining, but so far, it hasn't worked.

[green-knight.livejournal.com]

I'm glad I stopped trying to outline and just went to write the story - it acquired several layers of complexity, and the characters are much more alive.

It's just not for everyone.

[brownnicky.livejournal.com]

I only get very basic logic through plotting in advance.
The spirit of the story is always discovered by the way. Plot problems
come and go in the act of writing. Although I know what's going to happen
I don't understand how or why or in what way till I get there.
Maybe you are trying to micromanage a story which, when written, will develop
a life of its own ?

[heleninwales.livejournal.com]

I can outline in a general sort of way. In fact I need to know the end and a couple of key points en route before I can start producing useful words, but trying to outline in detail too far in advance just doesn't really work for me.

I do a kind of rolling outline; that is, I know in a general sort of way what will happen, but I don't worry about the nitpicky details of how exactly it will happen until I'm just a few scenes away. As you say, stories and characters develop a life of their own and I find they sometimes refuse to do what in theory I think they ought to. And sometimes they come up with something far better than I could ever think of using my logical planning brain.

[khiemtran.livejournal.com]

Possibly, but I've deliberately experimenting with a different method which involves outlining to a much greater level detail than I'm used to. The idea was partly to help me get used to spotting and fixing problems at the outline level (especially structural problems), and partly to help me write productively with only limited amounts of time (due to work and other commitments).