I generally end up adding material when I revise (I draft bare-bones and bulk it up afterwards), but I know I’m unusual in this, and this article’s advice is good regardless. Basically: Outline what you’ve already written, and it will show you what’s unnecessary and what doesn’t fit.
I’m part of an online community where we critique each other’s work, and the critique I find myself offering most often is that the story lacks clarity. Outlining so you can figure out what the story actually is will help you to solve this problem.
(I have a technique I call the “rich outline,” which isn’t just about plot events, but any aspect of the story you want to work on: imagery, language, character, setting, emotional beats. It’s a general fix for a number of story ailments.)
I draft bare-bones too. I’m always surprised to remember how rare it is.
I draft bare-bones too. I’m always surprised to remember how rare it is.
Me too. It seems natural to me.
Me too. It seems natural to me.
so i am going to attempt this on my scrambled memoir-thank you
so i am going to attempt this on my scrambled memoir-thank you
If you ever write a post on the “rich outline”, please let me know!
I tend to think in “story threads”… anything that I need to follow through the story. So story threads would include all character arcs, the plot events, environmental changes… basically anything that flows through the story that I need to remember to resolve in some way. But I don’t have a technique for it… it’s just how I process stories.
If you ever write a post on the “rich outline”, please let me know!
I tend to think in “story threads”… anything that I need to follow through the story. So story threads would include all character arcs, the plot events, environmental changes… basically anything that flows through the story that I need to remember to resolve in some way. But I don’t have a technique for it… it’s just how I process stories.
Interesting….
Interesting….
C. J. Brightley, if you put all those story threads down on a spreadsheet or a big bit of paper, that’s what I call a rich outline.
C. J. Brightley, if you put all those story threads down on a spreadsheet or a big bit of paper, that’s what I call a rich outline.
That would require actually writing them down. Generally I just let them stay tangled up like spaghetti in my brain.
And then I wonder why I’m a slow writer.
That would require actually writing them down. Generally I just let them stay tangled up like spaghetti in my brain.
And then I wonder why I’m a slow writer.