Friday, February 10, 2012

To Outline, or Not To Outline?

Some writers fully outline their entire book before they start writing, others just start with an idea, and start writing from there. There are certainly advantages and disadvantages to both.

Personally, when I write, I just start with an idea of the story that I want to tell, but I don't sit down and write out an outline first. I usually just sit down and write. Without the rigid structure of an outline, I feel that the story flows more freely and naturally. I let the characters and the situations determine what happens next.

One disadvantage to not having an outline, however, is that the story can get too far off track. Sometimes that can be a good thing, and sometimes it is bad. It can be fun trying to decide how to get the story back in the direction that you want it to go. Or you can just go with the new direction and see what happens. But there are times when the story goes off track, and you just can't get it going in the direction that you want it to.

So, I tend to write without an outline, or if I use an outline, a very loose one which allows more freedom in my writing. What about the rest of you authors out there. Do you use an outline or not?

1 comment:

  1. I never outline when I start, but usually halfway through the book I write down a list of major plot points and sort of transform those into chapters. Good to know I'm not the only one who doesn't outline!

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