Create Your Outline - Full Guide

Create your outline - full guide

Here’s my quick and easy run-down on how to create a full outline for your projects — all the plot beats your story is meant to have!

The only thing you should really have before you start plotting is your character arcs.

Why? What happens if you don't have them?🤔

- Your plot is way more likely to feel unfounded

- You're going to lack change through the story

- You'll be writing for plot only, and lose any deeper meanings

- Your outline could feel decent to you, but when you start writing you will quickly lose interest

📌Remember this one important thing before we start.📌

Plot & world building are just tools to tell your characters' story.

👉ACT 1

Here are the beats you should hit in the first 10-20k words.

STATUS QUO - Your protagonists current situation, with all its faults and potential.

INTERNAL CONFLICT - Most important one!!! You have to paint the start of your character's arc (preferably on page 1), by hinting at their fatal flaw, misbelief, regret, or something that holds them back.

INCITING INCIDENT - The event that pulls your character out of their comfort zone and makes them debate.

DWELLING AND ACCEPTING - Your character's first actions: do they refuse the call? What makes them finally accept it? This is where you form a clear external goal.

Are you ready for the murky middle?

👉ACT 2

Beats to hit in the murky middle.

NEW WORLD - The character finds themself in a new uncomfortable place they need to learn to navigate.

A FEW CHALLENGES - What's the external goal they're working towards? What are the steps they can take to get closer to it and what challenges do they find along the way?

MIDPOINT - Plot twist! They've reached their goal but it turns out not to be what they expected. Introduce a higher stakes goal.

THINGS TURN SOUR - Your hero's thrown off their rocker and they can't keep up with the blows.

BIGGEST HIT - Your hero experiences the worst hit in the whole story, and they give up. They go back to their status quo, defeated.

Is the middle feeling a little less murky now?👀

👉ACT 3

Beats to hit in your final stretch.

THE LIGHTBULB - What breaks your hero back out of their darkest moment? What makes their little brain cogs turn again? ...or who?

THE NEW PLAN - How do they decide to deal with the whole mess they've created?

EXECUTION - How do they tackle it, and does everything go smoothly, or do they face one final challenge that forces them to reconsider some things?

THE TRANSFORMATION - They complete their character arc, they've finally learned their lessons.

TYING UP LOSE ENDS - They resolve any remaining open questions, and showcase the change from who they were at the start.

I teach you this and so much more inside my Academy. You'll start from the really important stuff, so you know the purpose behind your book, and your full character arcs. That's when the outline snaps into place.

Join 200+ students inside the academy today, but be fast, prices are going UP at the end of the month!

Join NPA through the [link here] or below!

the-plottery.com

Novel Plotting Academy

Self-paced online writing course that provides all the tools you need to plan your novel, and teaches you how with fun, easy-to-follow video

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writing tips writing advice

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___

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Rating: Not Rated

Archive Warning: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings

Categories: F/M, Gen

Fandom: Spider-Man (Tom Holland Movies)

Relationships: Michelle Jones/Peter Parker, Michelle Jones & Peter Parker, Ned Leeds & Peter Parker, Michelle Jones & Ned Leeds & Peter Parker, Happy Hogan & Peter Parker

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