That writer's workshop in Austin back in 2019 changed how I outline everything

I went to this weekend workshop at a small bookstore off South Congress. The instructor had us do a timed exercise where we wrote a 500 word story with no planning at all. It came out messy but I got more raw ideas down than I do after a week of outlining. Now I do a quick 10 minute freewrite before I even touch a story structure. It helps me figure out the voice before I lock in a plot. Has anyone else tried ditching the outline for a rough draft first?

2 comments

2 Comments

gibson.robert8d ago

Didn't Neil Gaiman say something similar about just writing without a plan?

wendy_bell838d ago

Heard a podcast with a novelist who said outlines are just training wheels, and eventually you gotta take them off if you want to ride fast. That freewrite trick sounds smart because it forces your brain to stop second guessing and just put words down. Messy first drafts have a certain energy that polished outlines kill, honestly. Most writers I know spend way too much time planning and not enough time actually writing their way into a story. Maybe the problem isn't our outlining method but that we think we need one at all.