Fourth Book: 10 Fun Facts About the Outline
As I noted in Monday’s entry, I began work on my Fourth Book this week after finally completing Trezka’s second draft.
I began with a quick blurb—about a third of a page—describing the overall conflict, the most basic series of events, and the protagonist’s general motivation. This was only two paragraphs long.
From this, I expanded my ideas into a more fully realized outline—this one about two and a half pages. This segmented the two paragraphs above into generalized chapters and offered more detail, while isolating the more momentous moments and shaping the story into four nearly-distinct “acts.”
Expanding further, the outline grew to its present five page form. Though it isn’t complete by a long shot (there are several sentences bolded for emphasis that require more research while I may split some chapters and consolidate others as I decidedly insert additional details), it now presents a fully realized story arc and is paired with an additional two pages highlighting characters and settings.
I must say, I’m quite content with it thus far. Though I think it needs more _______. Then again, maybe not. I’ll be taking another week or more to finalize the outline before jumping head-first into writing the narrative, so we’ll see what I decide.
But what have I decided and learned from this outline so far?
I began with a quick blurb—about a third of a page—describing the overall conflict, the most basic series of events, and the protagonist’s general motivation. This was only two paragraphs long.
From this, I expanded my ideas into a more fully realized outline—this one about two and a half pages. This segmented the two paragraphs above into generalized chapters and offered more detail, while isolating the more momentous moments and shaping the story into four nearly-distinct “acts.”
Expanding further, the outline grew to its present five page form. Though it isn’t complete by a long shot (there are several sentences bolded for emphasis that require more research while I may split some chapters and consolidate others as I decidedly insert additional details), it now presents a fully realized story arc and is paired with an additional two pages highlighting characters and settings.
I must say, I’m quite content with it thus far. Though I think it needs more _______. Then again, maybe not. I’ll be taking another week or more to finalize the outline before jumping head-first into writing the narrative, so we’ll see what I decide.
But what have I decided and learned from this outline so far?
- There are more named characters in this book than in any of my previous novels.
- There are more individual set pieces in this book than in any of my previous novels.
- This is the furthest into the future any of my novels are set, though it will feel less futuristic than Trezka.
- This novel, like Trezka, is set in a location I have never personally been.
- This is the first of my novels told entirely from one character’s perspective.
- There is only one main protagonist in this novel.
- This is the first of my novels with children as main characters.
- This novel was set up in both The Nobodies and Trezka.
- This novel continues Trezka’s storyline, though not directly.
- None of the characters from any of my previous novels appear in this one.
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