Since the dawn of time humanity has debated over whether or not authors should use outlines. There are some novelists who have gone so far as to say that “real” writers never outline their stories.

Personally, I think this debate has a fairly clear cut answer: If outlines help you meet your daily writing goals use them. But if you spend all day writing incredibly intricate outlines that record your character’s eye color and favorite poodle breed but never actually finish any writing projects then you’re probably not using them effectively.

At the end of the day it doesn’t matter whether or not you outline as long as you are producing potentially publishable material (or at least material that makes you happy).

That being said, there is a lot more nuance regarding how outlines can be employed, because on one hand they can be a very effective tool in organizing your story but on the other hand they can be a major time suck. The topic is so complicated I could spend several posts solely focused on how outlines can either help or hinder your writing. And that’s exactly what I intend to do.

PART I: What you outline should come to you “organically.”

Let’s say there’s a sequence in your fantasy novel where the heroes reach the Swamp Castle where they must battle the Sludge Demon (I’m just using generic examples for simplicity’s sake). Because the Swamp Castle chapters are already so vivid in your mind you jot down some notes before you forget them. So you start outlining, and the more you outline the more the story comes to you (working your imagination is like exercising a muscle). You suddenly realize you not only know what your heroes will do when they reach the Swamp Castle, you know how they’ll escape the Sludge Demon and how these chapters will benefit the overall story. IN FACT you now know how they’ll reach their next destination where they’ll face the Thunder Troll. The only problem is you don’t know exactly how they’ll defeat this new monster so that’s where you….

There are a lot of writers who would sweat over their outline, pounding their head against the wall, trying to figure out how their heroes will defeat that darn troll. They’d refuse to move on until they have every single detail figured out. And to be honest I have been that writer at times (although I’d like to think I don’t do this too often).

But the thing is, now is not the time to figure out how the heroes defeat the troll. Now is the time to acknowledge that for the moment you don’t know where the story is going but to have faith that you will figure it out, the same way you figured out those Swamp Castle chapters. Now is the time to go back and actually write what you have outlined.

There are a number of reasons for this:

1. Writing potentially publishable material is more important than outlining. No one else is going to read your outline so why spend more time on it than you need to.
2. While you’re writing the swamp chapters you’ll probably figure out what needs to happen with that troll anyway. During those chapters you might realize one of your heroes has picked up a skill or item or clue as to how to defeat the troll. Outlines are just a road map, you’ll learn A LOT more while actually writing.
3. If you force yourself to find a solution it will most likely feel forced to the reader. There’s a good chance you’ll choose a relatively generic way to defeat that troll. On the other hand, the process of writing will most likely offer you a much more unique solution.
4. You might learn a lot about your characters and their situation during the Swamp Castle chapters. Therefore, whatever you outline regarding the troll might no longer be relative. You might learn that your heroes no longer need to even face a troll or one of them is half troll or has a crush on the troll. As I mentioned above, you might learn your heroes have skills or personalities that would alter how they go about facing this troll.

Your outline should be a tool you use to record ideas that are already bouncing around inside your head and to continue to record whatever ideas naturally come to you. However, one should avoid “forcing” out sections of their story that are not yet ready to see the light of day. If you are patient, and trust in the fact that you will eventually figure out those sections, then chances are you will save yourself time and produce a story that organically occurred to you rather than one that was created out of stress and frustration.