To outline, or not to outline!
One issue I struggle with each time I sit down to start a new short story is whether or not to put together an outline first. There isn’t much guidance from the writing community either, as some writers swear by detailed outlines while others say outlines only stifle creativity. What is a writer to do?
In my own personal experience, if I write a piece of short fiction without some kind of rough outline (even if it’s just bullet points), the chances of that story never being finished increase by a factor of ten. At the very least, I try to write down major plot points (beginning, middle, end), character names, and other parts of the story I deem important. This gives me something to work with and I can fill in the details as I write.
If you have pondered whether or not an outline is beneficial, here are some pros and cons to consider:
Pros of using an outline
- Organizes your story and lets you concentrate on the actual writing.
- Helps to avoid writer’s block.
- Forces you to think of major details before you sit down to write.
- Can be flexible, so the outline changes as your writing progresses.
Cons of using an outline
- Story might sound contrived and forced.
- You might get too caught up in the details of your story, instead of letting it unfold as you write.
- Much more time consuming.
- Finished product might be quite a bit different than your original outline (this happens to me a lot).
- Writers should just write! No outlines needed.
Okay, so I threw that last one in there just to see if you were paying attention, but I think you get the idea. Outlines can be very useful, especially if you have a hard time with endings or suffer through frequent bouts of writer’s block. They are not for everyone, though, and it’ll take a bit of experimenting to find what works best for you.
I don’t write an outline for all my writing projects. And when I do write an outline, they are usually pretty basic and do not go into a lot of detail. As I said before, everyone is different so you will have to experiment a little.
Related posts
- 5 Benefits of writing without a plan
- More on writing without an outline
- 5 tips to organize your writing
- Why writing fiction can be so complex
- Don’t be afraid to write!
Read More: Writing Tips
