Step Six: The Outline

What Happens When You Outline A Novel For The First Time?

Welp, throw me a party, friends, because I did it. I have outlined HER LAST NIGHT!

I don’t know if this process was easier because I spent so much time with the story before I started, having talked it out with my agent and editor for a few months, or because I’ve been so engaged with it while discussing it with you, teasing apart the littlest ideas to examine for their usefulness and salience, but no matter what, it happened, and happened quickly. There are currently 64 chapters, broken into 6 acts, in the actual order of how I envision them in the book.

When I told my agent I wanted to outline this book, she laughed and said, “Yeah, 30 books in, that’s when you want to change your process.” But the truth is my process has been evolving over the past several years, and the prep for standalone books gets a little more extensive each time, so it seemed like trying a full-blown outline was the logical next step. And, of course, this series wouldn’t be complete without a good old college try at the technique, right?

My 40 Scenes method is a kind of outline, sure, especially when you start applying writer math. But what I’ve done in the past is pull together all those scenes, put them in some sort of order, mostly by act, then never look at them again. No kidding. Once I’ve offloaded the scenes that have been floating around, they’re alive in my head, and I don’t need to look back unless I get stuck. My books tend to take on a life of their own as they’re being created anyway, which is so much fun that outlining has always felt like a constraint.

Photo by Nick Morrison on Unsplash