When composing a narrative there are several methods available. Two of the main (and hotly debated) methods are using an outline or allowing the story to unfold organically. People tend to argue about the artistic merit of one over the other. Personally, if its good writing and an engaging story, I don’t care how it was put together instead choosing to enjoy the work at face value. I’ll breakdown the approaches as best I can and let you decide for yourself.
Outline
For some reason this tends to be the bane of a lot of writers. Mostly the artsy ones sitting around twiddling their thumbs and waiting for the muse to show up, but a lot of everyday writers as well. Could be from their incessant use during high school/college English classes, leaving a bad taste in the mouth or it could be from those in love with the romanticized idea of being a “writer” and feel this method isn’t real writing. Whatever the rationale, it tends to get a bad rap.
As much as we love writing, there are days where the ideas just aren’t sparking, the normal flow isn’t there and it feels like work. When this occurs, waiting for the next epiphany is going to lead to many unproductive days. A way to keep progressing, in spite of your neural misfirings, is to create a blueprint for your fiction in the form of an outline.
The outline is a very simple concept. Write out a loose series of points that make up the overall structure of your tale. Make sure it all works, then fill in the missing bits. Eventually you’ll build out your story to completion. This isn’t the best method for every piece, but for those looking at this as a profession, it can seriously streamline the entire process.
Short stories can usually be written in one fit of inspiration, so they don’t always benefit from this technique. Novels on the other hand are marathons, not sprints. They can greatly benefit from the use of an outline, especially for first time writers. The concept of a novel can be quite daunting, but breaking it up into manageable pieces, ironing out the flow and plot, then writing it up, can lead to a much higher degree of success than just staring at a blank page.
Pros: Plot structure and issues can be ironed out more easily; Having an overview of the entire story can simply the writing process; Makes larger stories more manageable
Cons: Structure can sometimes inhibit spontaneity; Could result in “formulaic” stories; Reminds you of high school
Organic
When in the heat of inspiration stories tend to flow easily from your fingertips. Everything locks into place, going from one scene to another until the entire thing reaches a satisfying conclusion. A lot of times this writing is when you’re in the zone and its a state of mind all authors love.
A story that progresses in this manner tends to form whole cloth from the author’s imagination. In other cases, the characters themselves reveal the story to you as you furiously try to keep up or the plot’s momentum keeps things moving smoothly. Flash fiction, short stories and even some novelettes fall into the former category. Novels tend to be in the latter.
Stream of conscious narratives are extremely organic showcasing the instinctive nature of this method while also prominently displaying many of it’s pitfalls. James Fry’s “A Million Little Pieces” shows many of its failings while Jack Kerouac’s “On The Road” shows much of its beauty.
Pros: The direction a story goes can still surprise you; Being in the zone is incredibly satisfying creatively;
Cons: Can lead to writing yourself into a corner; Writing can become stagnant when inspiration isn’t around; Lack of structure can make it difficult to understand
Having written in both manners, I tend to do longer pieces via outline and shorter pieces organically. This isn’t a strict rule as I recently did an outline for a short story. It all depends on the needs of the narrative and being flexible enough to employ either approach gives you a better chance of finishing the piece. Using them in conjunction can help you overcome hurdles that would otherwise stymie your output.
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