Getting to a first draft—using (or not using) outlines
About half the published authors I know use outlines when they write. The other half don’t. As for me, I have yet to start writing a novel with one, but I do find them useful when I revise.
I usually begin with one or more characters whom I want to get to know, and the germ of an idea for a story. I flesh out the characters by writing a series of scenes that reveal to me what they are like. If I have a general plot in mind, I will try writing the first few chapters. If I don’t, I interview my characters. In either case, I continue to write until I have a sense of where my characters are and where they are coming from. What I discover will generate the story.
Then comes the actual composing. By now I have an idea for a beginning, a few more for the middle, and something vague about where I’ll end up. Still, I don’t chart my course because I keep learning more things about my characters each time I put them through the wringer. This forces me in turn to twist the story to keep up with who they are becoming. It isn’t until the end that I really know who they are.
Circular, right? Create characters. Put them in a story. Grow the story from the characters. Grow the characters from the story.
The process is messy, and, predictably, the result is messy, too. But I do end up with a rough draft—not a novel but something that might eventually become one.
It’s at this point that I create an outline: it helps me figure out my structure. Does my beginning start at the right place? Is a character whom I thought was minor, really another main character I need to bring in earlier? Have I balanced the action so that the reader both wants to keep reading, and gets breathers after something harrowing has occurred? Does the whole thing work?
Once I’ve figured out the structure, I revise. The outline will guide what I do, but I’m not wed to it—I’m still governed by what makes sense given the nature of my characters. I invent new scenes, combine others, and add new twists to the story. The revision will take me about as long as composing the rough draft, but it’s an easier process because I am now working with fully formed people, and I know what will happen to them. My job is to tell their story in the most engaging way possible.
The final result is a first draft—which, of course, isn’t final at all. There’s still much more work ahead, but at this point I am confident that I have created a novel.
Tags: Bauer on writing
June 16th, 2011 at 10:35 am
“The process is messy, and, predictably, the result is messy, too.”
Yes! My editor made me feel better about this recently – she said that she thought messy drafts produced the best books. In your case, I know she’s right!
June 16th, 2011 at 9:03 pm
Thank you, Debbie. [blush]