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Outline Your Novel
Uncover the secret power of outlining! Outline Your Novel can help any writer take their story from concept to a finished draft! Instead of getting lost in the middle or never finishing, let Outline Your Novel show you how structure works and how to use that structure to make and follow an outline. In this book, you’ll learn: Outline Your Novel offers a guided approach to outlining and as always, author Scott King, plays along, making sure to do the assignments in the book so you can learn from his successes and mistakes. Stop letting your novel kick your butt and beat it with the help of Outline Your Novel!
- GenresWritingNonfiction
208 pages, Paperback
First published January 24, 2018
94 people are currently reading
80 people want to read
About the author
Scott King
24 books43 followersScott King is an author and photographer. He was born in Washington D.C. and raised in Ocean City, Maryland. He received his undergraduate degree in film from Towson University, and his M.F.A. in film from American University.
“DAD! A Documentary Graphic Novel,” King’s first book was published in Fall ’09. He is also the creator and writer of “Holiday Wars.”
King is a game photographer based in Texas. His most common shoots are for websites, online stores, and for other marketing needs. He also produces an annual calendar that highlights board and other hobby games.
King was first introduced to the entertainment industry in high school when he was hired as a production assistant on “Runaway Bride.” At the time, he served as a reporter for the school newspaper and although another student was assigned the article about the movie King was determined to write it. He snuck into a press conference where Gary Marshall was meeting with local media, so that he could out-scoop his fellow student. Durring the meeting King asked a few questions about how the movie would affect bus routes and local businesses. The next day he was hired and he’s been working in the entrainment industry ever since.
“DAD! A Documentary Graphic Novel,” King’s first book was published in Fall ’09. He is also the creator and writer of “Holiday Wars.”
King is a game photographer based in Texas. His most common shoots are for websites, online stores, and for other marketing needs. He also produces an annual calendar that highlights board and other hobby games.
King was first introduced to the entertainment industry in high school when he was hired as a production assistant on “Runaway Bride.” At the time, he served as a reporter for the school newspaper and although another student was assigned the article about the movie King was determined to write it. He snuck into a press conference where Gary Marshall was meeting with local media, so that he could out-scoop his fellow student. Durring the meeting King asked a few questions about how the movie would affect bus routes and local businesses. The next day he was hired and he’s been working in the entrainment industry ever since.
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
May 27, 2021
An useful primer for story creation. I am an avid plotter so not all of the contents were new to me, but this was a concise and helpful overview of all the elements to consider before penning a single creative word of a novel. I have begun to create a master list from much of this book's contents, to refer back to for any and all future projects.
September 21, 2018
Full title: Outline Your Novel: The How To Guide for Structuring and Outlining Your Novel by Scott King.
I have a confession to make: I am a pantser from way back. I’ve written 100,000 words stories by the seat of my pants based entirely off a strange dream I half-remembered in the morning.
However, as I progress in my writing career, nitpicky little things like deadlines and required submission of synopses and blurbs have started to crop up, and I have no choice but to learn to plot… and then stick to that plot and not let the random story gremlins run away in many different directions.
Therefore, I’ve been looking for methods to help me create a plot from a basic idea, expand it out to a full outline and continue to expand out, chapter by chapter.
Outline Your Novel contains that method. Scott King writes in a humorous, fun style, but he also lays out clear and simple methods to plot a book of any size and any genre from beginning to end, taking in all the major turning points and elements of a traditional three-act structure. It starts small, with a concept or blurb, and then encourages you to add more by including all the major events you want to occur in your story, in no particular order to begin with, but later sorting them out into the plot structure. King also covers character development and arcs, introducing small and large mysteries for the reader to become invested with, and plenty of methods to dig yourself out of plot holes.
Demonstrating the method by describing the process he went through to write a major fantasy novel, King discusses word building from scratch to a fully realised second world populated by multiple major and minor characters, and how to make even minor characters fully realised. His methods are sensible, clear and easy to follow, and at the end of the book he includes links to some free worksheets you can print out and work through yourself to create your own plots.
I’m definitely going to be giving this method a go, though writing in the romance genre some of the advice isn’t really applicable to me, so I guess what I mean is I’ll be incorporating some of Scott’s methods into whatever method I finally work out for myself to use. I’d recommend this book to anyone who wants to learn more about three-act structure, how to apply it to their own work and how to build a fully-realised plot from nothing more than a vague concept.
Five stars for a supremely useful read which will hopefully help this life-long pantser become a skilled plotter!
I have a confession to make: I am a pantser from way back. I’ve written 100,000 words stories by the seat of my pants based entirely off a strange dream I half-remembered in the morning.
However, as I progress in my writing career, nitpicky little things like deadlines and required submission of synopses and blurbs have started to crop up, and I have no choice but to learn to plot… and then stick to that plot and not let the random story gremlins run away in many different directions.
Therefore, I’ve been looking for methods to help me create a plot from a basic idea, expand it out to a full outline and continue to expand out, chapter by chapter.
Outline Your Novel contains that method. Scott King writes in a humorous, fun style, but he also lays out clear and simple methods to plot a book of any size and any genre from beginning to end, taking in all the major turning points and elements of a traditional three-act structure. It starts small, with a concept or blurb, and then encourages you to add more by including all the major events you want to occur in your story, in no particular order to begin with, but later sorting them out into the plot structure. King also covers character development and arcs, introducing small and large mysteries for the reader to become invested with, and plenty of methods to dig yourself out of plot holes.
Demonstrating the method by describing the process he went through to write a major fantasy novel, King discusses word building from scratch to a fully realised second world populated by multiple major and minor characters, and how to make even minor characters fully realised. His methods are sensible, clear and easy to follow, and at the end of the book he includes links to some free worksheets you can print out and work through yourself to create your own plots.
I’m definitely going to be giving this method a go, though writing in the romance genre some of the advice isn’t really applicable to me, so I guess what I mean is I’ll be incorporating some of Scott’s methods into whatever method I finally work out for myself to use. I’d recommend this book to anyone who wants to learn more about three-act structure, how to apply it to their own work and how to build a fully-realised plot from nothing more than a vague concept.
Five stars for a supremely useful read which will hopefully help this life-long pantser become a skilled plotter!
January 31, 2020
Three stars is generous.
Interesting at times but probably more so for a beginner than for someone who read a couple of books about creative writing already.
The guy seemed obsessed with screenplays and how are screenplays written and usually when writing screenplays you would do this and that... Dude. Just go and teach about screenplays.
Also a SOLID part of the book is spent talking about another book of his - one that has kinda lame notes should I add in a way i didnt find super constructive. Instead of using classics as example (and you *can* find books that most people will have read or at least have a good enough knowledge of), the guy uses a couple of movies (okay thanks but that's once again screenplays) and then his own novel over and over again.
So... meh. I liked the unassuming tones and some ideas are good, it's just that I read them a few times already.
Interesting at times but probably more so for a beginner than for someone who read a couple of books about creative writing already.
The guy seemed obsessed with screenplays and how are screenplays written and usually when writing screenplays you would do this and that... Dude. Just go and teach about screenplays.
Also a SOLID part of the book is spent talking about another book of his - one that has kinda lame notes should I add in a way i didnt find super constructive. Instead of using classics as example (and you *can* find books that most people will have read or at least have a good enough knowledge of), the guy uses a couple of movies (okay thanks but that's once again screenplays) and then his own novel over and over again.
So... meh. I liked the unassuming tones and some ideas are good, it's just that I read them a few times already.
March 29, 2018
I've read all of Scott King's books on writing so far, and once again he delivers an excellent guide. If you've already got a great outlining process you might not find this book that helpful, but then again you probably won't be looking for a book on outlining in the first place. Most of the ideas I've seen before, but there are some great original ideas.
the 100% best part of this entire book, is that Scott King chose to write in a conversational style. It feels more like you're reading an email sent to you alone, rather than the typical academic book on writing which invents terms to be unique. If anyone asks me about outlining this is now the first book I'll point them to.
the 100% best part of this entire book, is that Scott King chose to write in a conversational style. It feels more like you're reading an email sent to you alone, rather than the typical academic book on writing which invents terms to be unique. If anyone asks me about outlining this is now the first book I'll point them to.
January 6, 2020
Helpful
This is a very helpful guide for beginning writers who've got the whole story ready to go in their heads but can't quite get it going on paper. As the author says at the conclusion, writing a novel is hard and it's a complex process. This guide will definitely help beginning writers find their own approach and get them moving forward.
What kept distracting me while reading this book were the many typos and errors I kept tripping over. The author mentions an editor a few times. Unless that editor is a figment of King's imagination conjured to make the book sound more legit, he or she should be fired and replaced by someone who knows what they're doing.
This is a very helpful guide for beginning writers who've got the whole story ready to go in their heads but can't quite get it going on paper. As the author says at the conclusion, writing a novel is hard and it's a complex process. This guide will definitely help beginning writers find their own approach and get them moving forward.
What kept distracting me while reading this book were the many typos and errors I kept tripping over. The author mentions an editor a few times. Unless that editor is a figment of King's imagination conjured to make the book sound more legit, he or she should be fired and replaced by someone who knows what they're doing.
November 29, 2018
I learned so much from this book. I think it will turn me from "writing by the seat of my pants" into a plotter.
Scott King adds a sense of humor to this nonfiction book. His explanations helped me understand the terminology that I've seen over the years.
If you are an author who has struggled with your work, read this book and see if it will help. If you are learning the trade, I feel certain that this book will be a building block in your education.
Scott King adds a sense of humor to this nonfiction book. His explanations helped me understand the terminology that I've seen over the years.
If you are an author who has struggled with your work, read this book and see if it will help. If you are learning the trade, I feel certain that this book will be a building block in your education.
March 15, 2019
A good primer for plotting
The process outlined here is unlikely to be used by every writer for every book. Some will find it too detailed or cumbersome. But for those first trying to wrap their heads around story structure, or those stuck mid-process not knowing where this story is going wrong, this could be an invaluable tool to help them figure out how to tell the story that's in their head.
The process outlined here is unlikely to be used by every writer for every book. Some will find it too detailed or cumbersome. But for those first trying to wrap their heads around story structure, or those stuck mid-process not knowing where this story is going wrong, this could be an invaluable tool to help them figure out how to tell the story that's in their head.
March 13, 2018
I liked the straightforward language he uses to describe the three act structure, story beats, and character arcs. I'm still not sure I could outline to this extent, but that's on me. Nice information on reader expectations and adding a hint of mystery to your book, even if it's not a mystery. Book includes a link to worksheets for creating a story pitch, which is helpful.
April 9, 2022
I found this very helpful and it’s short, which is also a plus. I could have done with fewer beats from his own book during the explanation of beats (he went on forever when a few examples from each act would have sufficed), but overall, I have used these exercises and they have already helped me move forward with my outlining.
May 21, 2018
A lot of useful, if pretty obvious information. The third act fails a little in that it very suddenly appears poorly edited. This book offers useful tools for people like me who know story structure very intimately but have a hard time turning knowledge into adequate planning.
May 23, 2018
Great book to break down the steps for book outlining. From macro level (pitch and story beats) down to micro level (sequences and scenes). It helps clarify how to go from outline to draft.
August 19, 2018
Useful and entertaining
Lots of examples, well explained and with not-over-the-top humor. I read it using my kindle unlimited but might buy it to have it permanently in my library.
Lots of examples, well explained and with not-over-the-top humor. I read it using my kindle unlimited but might buy it to have it permanently in my library.
September 19, 2020
Scott does an excellent job of outlining what makes an outline work. Stick to his simple system and the "daunting" outlining process will be streamlined to perfection.
April 15, 2021
I loved this book.
It does a good job of pulling would-be writers through the structure of the writing that is adhered to in bestsellers. He differentiates by genre to a certain extent, too.
It does a good job of pulling would-be writers through the structure of the writing that is adhered to in bestsellers. He differentiates by genre to a certain extent, too.
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews