A. Maybe I’m not that
organized, or maybe my brain doesn’t work that way, but really, I don’t think
it’s necessary. I tend to develop ideas after I first put pen to paper rather
than plot out an entire book in advance. I don’t think one way is necessarily better
than another. It all depends on the author.
In my case, sometimes I wake up
with ideas and run to my office to type them out. Sometimes they come to me
when I’m walking my dog or sitting outside on my deck. As long as I can write
“and then…” and come up with a narrative to move my story along, I don’t need
to have it outlined all the way to the end.
I will admit to this: Sometimes
I get to the point where I have written the beginning and the end and I need to
fill out the middle that connects those two dots. At that point, I’ll make a
list of the things that need to happen or the questions that need to be
answered before the end of the book makes sense.
When I do that, I will
retroactively list all of the chapters I have written with a summary of what’s
in them, and add a chapter for every plot point that I need to insert. This is
usually when I complete my calendar and double-check my chronology to make sure
the story has the proper timing and flow.
If that’s what you consider an
outline, then yes, I’ll do that sometimes. I’d call it more of an “outline
after the fact.”
Next: When did you know you wanted to be
a writer?
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