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Story Outline Construction Help Needed
DarrenForest
Registered User regular
Registered User regular
I'm trying to write an outline for a story I've been developing, but my thought processes and my mid-college creative writing course recommendations seem to be in an boldly-worded argument in my head (read: knife-fighting to the death and causing a really bad migrane). I'd like to try to find a format where I can summarize everything that happens in a chapter, allowing for:
I'm pretty sure the format I'm already using (read: the format everyone has probably used since middle or grade school) is simple enough, but I'd like to get some input on any possible means that may seem more efficient. Thank you for your help, and I hope to post the first chapter by the end of the year per forum-goer approval, after being satisfied with the outline.
...And no, it's not smut, fan fiction, or "a ideuh taht culd be n awsum PA komik storee lawlz," to alleviate any of those worries. It's (to my current literary knowledge) a relatively original work.
- names and appearances of noteworthy characters
- unique character quotes
- locations of interest
- detailed list of characters' 'talents'
I'm pretty sure the format I'm already using (read: the format everyone has probably used since middle or grade school) is simple enough, but I'd like to get some input on any possible means that may seem more efficient. Thank you for your help, and I hope to post the first chapter by the end of the year per forum-goer approval, after being satisfied with the outline.
...And no, it's not smut, fan fiction, or "a ideuh taht culd be n awsum PA komik storee lawlz," to alleviate any of those worries. It's (to my current literary knowledge) a relatively original work.
DarrenForest on
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basically trust your brain. think about the mechanisms of your story on the broadest possible scale, refine the necessities to as simple a list as you can, and just write, knowing that the best ideas are never lost - they just sleep until needed
Unbalance
Quest
Climax
New Balance
@bsjezz: You do not understand my problem. I literally FLUNKED a college-course class about note-taking. Therefore, as freakish as this sounds, I don't think I can trust my brain for the task. It works fundamentally different from the average reader's brain. I fear that if I continue in this path, the only ones who will enjoy the story are the ones that make fun of everything insipid and convoluted. Allow this simile to be the example, one I originally intended as my full reply to your post:
This isn't just about taking notes on what I want to happen for character development and theme conveyance, but also about arranging these strangely shaped pieces of information into a puzzle that doesn't look like I took a hammer to the pieces I couldn't get to fit right, resulting in the final product to look like a magic eye picture and/or dark abomination of madness.
Please note the fact that said simile is ONE sentence. That obscure thought process is what I have to work with in crafting a tale I want a sizable demographic to understand. To hell with "thinking outside the box," I think outside the Furthest Ring of Normal Consciousness. However, I will do my best to follow your advice. At the least, I appreciate the recommendation and thank you for trying to help me think more normal-like.
@Improvolone: Oddly enough, that's the exact format for the story I was going for. So either my idea is so unoriginal I've looped back to being unique, or I need to stop going to tvtropes so often...
@TychoCelchuuu: At this point, I'm doing exactly that, but I feel that I'll end up just writing the outline INTO my story rather than using it as a guide. The grid idea might work though; tracking the locations of characters and their interactions during each chapter would be useful. Thanks!
I think they're called bibliography managers, wikipedia seems to list more.
That's the format for every story ever.
If the plot is all twisty, and your trying to keep track of it, sweet. Start at your beginning, figure out your end, and then work backwards step by step. As you lay out your story piece by piece, chapters generally mark each significant event. Like paragraphs on a larger scale. Once you have a series of events, you can make a few (brief) notes on how to get from the beginning of that event to the end of it, and who needs to be involved.
Keep your character notes separate from your story. Your character bios are thier own thing, and are really just there to be the rest of the iceberg. In the story, your characters are what they do. If they've got back story, keep the details to yourself as much as possible. You dont want to get stuck telling us about your character, you want that character to show us who they are by the things they do.
Keep it as simple as you can. It will grow of its own accord, and become more complex naturally as you work on it. With this in mind, boil away your plot until you have the minimal number of plot points needed to get your story across. Then start writing the story. You can return to slash and burn and poke and twist.
Anyone who seriously writes will tell you that the most important part of writing is the part where you actually write.
Boy is lonely, boy meets girl, boy falls in love, girl leaves after boy does something dumb. Climax is boy and girl meet up again, something happens that's interesting or unexpected. Denouement is they stay together or don't.
Such an outline is to keep things straight in your writing so you are moving towards the goal -- the goal being finishing the story. Yes, you are technically supposed to flesh out your outline so it's in the story, because the outline is supposed to be the underlying movement of the plot. After all, hopefully your outline is what someone repeats when asked, after reading the story, "so what's the story about?"
Names, places, fine details -- that's an index for yourself, and a different type of tool. That's so you're consistent. But it's not an outline.
And more importantly, it's OK to change things as you go. Just make sure you update your other notes and are consistent. If you find yourself changing a lot of things, it might be worthwhile to reflect on your outline again, but it is definitely worthwhile to edit the work when you're finished.
...and... You'll note that I do not plan on PUBLISHING the story, seeing as how I don't want to be reamed by PETA.
Holy crap, that is brilliant. But one step at a time, I've gotta WRITE the damn thing first.
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