#192 Outline v. Free Flow

Been reading articles from established writers who discuss outlining a project before writing it.  The simplified points of view are as follows:

Outlining:  Gives a writer a full sense of the story.  Forces the writer to think things through so that he or she doesn't stall in the middle of the first draft.  This is all about organization.  Mapping out in broad strokes where a story begins and ultimately where it will end.  There is comfort in the organization.  A writer can sit down each day and check off the mile markers that will lead to a desired destination.  The main negative I read is this:  outlining has the potential to confine a writer's imagination and can cause problems when characters reveal they would not do what has already been preplanned by the outline.


Free Flow: A writer begins with a good character and a concept, but allows the story to unfold organically as it is being written.  Characters are given the freedom to act as they should, which gives an air of unpredictability to the project, even for the writer.  At the end of the story, things fall into place because the characters stay true to themselves instead of being forced to confine to an outline.  An issue with Free Flow surfaces when a writer spends months writing in one direction only to discover the story has bogged down or become less interesting.  Free flow can sometimes end in a project being abandoned because it has written itself into a dilemma the writer no longer wishes to address.

I have written three novels with the outlining approach and three with the free flow approach.  I conclude that one is not universally superior to the other.  Good writing and good storytelling result from a writer's confidence.  Different people gain confidence in different ways.  A writer must understand how he or she works.  What makes him or her confident.  Writing a novel takes time, energy, and patience.  The goal is to chip away every day at a project that could take months or years to complete.  The confidence to do this cannot be achieved by a formula that works for everyone.  A writer must understand what it takes to sit and write everyday.  Some people work better with a map.  Some work better getting on the road and figuring it out as they go.  Neither is right or wrong, as both processes have the ability to get someone to his or her ultimate destination.

For me, I have honed in on a process that uses attributes from both approaches.  I like having a general idea of where the story is going, but I allow my characters to dictate how the story develops.  Sometimes the story ends how I originally intended.  Oftentimes it goes in a completely different and unforeseen direction.  The key is having enough confidence in what you are doing to sit each day in front of blank pages, slowly filling them up one sentence at a time, while also having the confidence to allow a story to change if it needs to.  The only way to figure out what works best for you is to write.  Write everyday and pay attention to what works and what doesn't.