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You can now download the outline for
Off The Grid. Take a look at the writing
process. Buy at Amazon and Barnes and
Noble (soon).
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“How did you come up with your
ideas and turn them into a book?”
This is the question I get asked
most often from aspiring novelists – which recently seems to be just about everyone I
meet. I dig that. You should want to share your story. It doesn’t do you any
good inside your brain.
The answer to how I turned my ideas
into a book is simple and rather boring. I outlined, outlined and outlined the
novel – several times. As a full-time worker bee, I don’t have the luxury of
writing all day and rewriting later. If my daily word count goal was to get
completed, I needed a roadmap; otherwise that blank white page would remain
just that.
I named my blog “A Few Hours at A
Time” because my novel was written with that in mind. I grabbed a few hours at
night or 45 minutes in the cafeteria at work or three hours on a Sunday morning
– wherever I could concentrate on my work. I reviewed my outline first then
filled in the words. Yes, that sounds simple, but when a lot of the
brain-busting plotting and foreshadowing work is done, I could just write.
It’s easy to become distracted if
you’re not sure where you are going with your writing. My outline helped me
stay on task. My kindergarten teacher would be so proud.
I can’t really answer the “idea”
part of the question. That just happens when it happens. Maybe it’s on the
drive to the gym or when you’re out walking the dog – that’s all you and I
can’t help you there. My advice is to capture your ideas when they strike and before
they blow away forever. I carried around a little brown journal and scribbled
illegible notes about various subjects before, during and after writing the
book.
Now that the book as been released
for two months and I’m pretty happy with my sales, I’d like to offer up a
little more insight into the book for those who have already read it – my full outline.
Today you can download Off The Grid: Author Outline. The outline includes a condensed rough sketch, character profiles, plot-point outline, deleted scenes, a full timeline and sneak peak at the finished novel. Download at Amazon and Barnes and Noble (soon).
The biggest misconception about
outlines is that they are restrictive. “Outlines take away my ability to be
creative,” some say. That’s bull. You can see when you download my outline that
I veered off course many, many times, but returned to the goal of my story by
getting back to my outline.
My share-fest isn’t totally
selfless. In order to figure out what the heck my outline is talking about, you
need to read the finished novel first. Otherwise it’ll just look like a bunch
of rambling run-on sentences that have no discernable, underlying connection.
I hope that by seeing my personal
process for outlining & writing Off The Grid, you will be inspired to write
the story inside you. (If this guy can do it, then so can I!) The
outlining process might not be your cup of tea, but you won’t know until you
start writing, right? So get moving.
Download Off The Grid: Author Outline at Amazon and Barnes and Noble (soon).
