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Appreciation post: Starting with an outline vs. just winging it on page one
I used to sit down and try to write a story cold, just letting the words flow. Then a buddy in my critique group told me to spend 15 minutes on a rough outline first. I tried it for a short story set in a diner off Route 66 and finished it in half the time. Doesn't an outline kill the creative spark or does it actually save you from rewriting the whole thing three times?
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troy_palmer7611d agoMost Upvoted
Used to be a full on pantser myself, thought outlines were for people who couldn't write on the fly... then I hit a wall on a mystery novel around page 80 and spent a whole month untangling it. What you said about finishing faster really clicked with me, I tried a basic outline for a scene and it was like having a map in the dark. The outline doesn't kill the spark for me, it just points the spark in a direction that doesn't burn the whole house down. Better to have a rough guide than to rewrite the same chapter six times because you painted yourself into a corner...
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blair_green11d ago
Man, that's the thing once you see it you can't unsee it. What you said about the map in the dark is spot on @troy_palmer76, it reminds me of how people plan big trips - you can still take detours but you don't end up sleeping in a ditch. This whole outline vs pantser debate always felt like arguing about training wheels, when really tools are just tools for different stages of the ride.
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