I’ve come to really love outlining. It makes the process of writing more manageable. It does not work for everything. I cannot outline short stories. I can’t see taking a scene and breaking it down to more elements than what happens in that scene or slice of life. I suppose in a longer length story–say 8k? I could find some space to break it down, but shorter works like the 3-5 I tend to work in don’t have that space. Instead I save the outlining for longer projects like the novel and the RPG writing, which beg to be outlined. In fact, I am outlining today… after I grade and do the rest of the doldrum work that is required of me. Of course, the latest schedule has me calling it quits an hour and a half from now, so we will see what actually happens. I will probably push off the school work and let the writing take lead. It is summer, after all.
Some Thoughts:
- Yoga artists call a collection of moves a flow. I feel like I move into flows of writing in that same fashion, shifting from project to project by finding the connective points that trigger specific parts of my imagination and intellect in sequence.
- I’ve been using Lewis Jorstad’s The Ten Day Outline as a guide. A writer is never too old or too good to learn from others. I’m here trying to learn.