The WDC NanoLounge

Have you tried the phase outline?

I'd never written an outline either, but I really wanted to have something down for my novel and this has worked well for me. Basically you write 30-40 words of a "phase" of your story- a brief summary that can quickly be expanded to something larger. For example:

Phase 1: Phone rings, Barbara answers. It's a female police officer, smokes alot, says she has some bad news. Barbara thinks of her son at boarding school. But the news is about some guy named Mark she's never heard of who's dead. (40 words)

Phase 2: Officer hangs up before Barbara can say that she has the wrong number. She wonders what to do, thinks "thank god it wasn't about my son. But I don't have any relatives named Mark, do I?" Decides to go to the police station to sort things out. (47 words)

Phase 3: At the police station they are insistent that they had the right contact info...

And so on. It seems a little involved, but I'm finding it really helpful to have all my ducks lined up in a row -so to speak- for my story. That way I know where I'm going next and can add or subtract as I need to, but I always have something to start with. Until I get to the end, and then it will be the end!

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