Certain writers, I’m
informed, sit down and write a novel without an outline, making it up as they
go along. I am not one of them. I require an outline before I undertake the
labor of writing a novel. I need blueprints for the structure I’m erecting.
Obviously there is no single right
method, no holy writ of writing. But here are a couple of reasons I find
outlining indispensable.
1.
A novel involves sequences of
elevation and resolution of narrative tension, building a structure of linked
plot points. An outline allows me to construct, move around, and tinker with
the plot points before I begin the first draft. That way I’ve dealt with most
plot problems before they arise and I’m not required to discard or revise tens
of thousands of words once I’ve written myself into a corner, or realized I’ve
neglected to lay some essential groundwork. It’s no fun redoing the work and
it’s no fun tossing material you’re actually rather proud of, just because you
neglected to introduce a character or describe an essential motivating event.
2.
I am not a full time writer. I
have a career and a family. My writing time is constrained. Regular, but
constrained. A writer with the time to put together a first draft in two or
three months might maintain the complete picture and narrative flow in mind for
the duration. But when it might require the better part of a year to finish the
first draft, some things will slip through the cracks of memory. Without an
outline I’d need to spend large chunks of time re-reading what I’d already written
in order to recall (if possible) what I’d intended next. One step forward, two
steps back. And even that presupposes being able to devote the entire time to a
single project. I usually have more than one project in progress at any one
time, allowing me to move on to something else in between drafts. For example,
I reached the ten-thousand word mark on a new novel when I received editor’s
comments on Under Strange Suns. That
required setting aside the current work in progress for the weeks necessary to
revise Under Strange Suns. With an
outline, I know what happens next. I’m able to pick up where I left off.
And that is my
two-worn-and-tarnished-cent’s worth on the age old panters versus plotters
issue.
//////////////////////////////////////////////
Title: Under Strange Suns
Genre: SF
Author: Ken Lizzi
Website: http://www.kenlizzi.net
Publisher: Twilight Times Books
Read Chapter One
Amazon / B&N / OmniLit / Twilight Times Books
About the Book:
In the tradition of Edgar Rice Burroughs’ John Carter of Mars, Under Strange Suns brings the sword-and-planet novel to the twenty-first century. War is a constant, and marooned on a distant world, former Special Forces soldier Aidan Carson learns there is nothing new Under Strange Suns.
About the Author:
Ken Lizzi is an attorney and the author of an assortment of published short stories. When not traveling – and he'd rather be traveling – he lives in Portland, Oregon with his lovely wife Isa and their daughter, Victoria Valentina. He enjoys reading, homebrewing, and visiting new places. He loathes writing about himself in the third person. Connect with Ken on Facebook and Twitter.