The thing is, it doesn’t really matter. At some point, regardless of whether or not you are a plotter or a pantser, you will have to outline your book. It’s just a matter of when.
Plotters outline up front. They figure out in advance what they want the story to do and where they want it to go. It can be a way to save time during the writing and editing because they already have a plan in place. (I confess that I am a firm plotter. I know, it’s hard to believe what with my fly by night and loosey goosey attitude towards life in general. Oh, wait. That’s literally anyone else.)
Pantsers do still often need to outline, they just do it after the first draft. That’s when they sit back down, read through, and see if there manuscript is working the way they want. They have beta readers see if they story seems to flow the way it should, and if (or when) it doesn’t, that’s when they outline their existing story to see what they may be missing.
In the end, whichever kind of writer you are depends on what works best for your mood and temperament. I’m a tried and true plotter. That’s just the way it is. But however you write, you will at some point need an outline. Fortunately, I have the thing for you.
While still working on my story planning masterpiece, Story Slices, I came up with the following outline:
So which is it? Are you a plotter or a pantser?
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