G – goal—what you want to achieve with your writing

R – reader or audience—the most important part

I – idea or thesis—what you’re trying to say in one complete sentence

P – plan or outline

Creating an outline is the biggest favour you, as a writer, can do for yourself.

A lot of writers say they prefer writing “by the seat of their pants.” I’ve learned that approach wears out a lot of pant seats.

Other other approach is a plan or outline. This helps you make sure that you have covered everything you need to cover in your document, whether it’s a memo, a report or a novel.

An outline is like a road-map: it show you, at a glance, whether you’re getting toward your destination or resolution, what are the obstacles in the way, and whether there isn’t a better route to follow.

I have tried writing both with and without outlines.

Once, I interviewed a very interesting typeface designer. I thought he was fascinating, and I even thought I had a great lead. So immediately after the interview was over, I turned on the computer and dove right in. I wrote about a thousand words when I realized I could not logically go any further, and I had not written anything important, or even readable.

So, I deleted everything and started over. I wrote a new lead and another 400 to 500 words. Got stuck. Deleted. Started over again. Eventually, I realized that I needed to figure out what I wanted to say with this article, and in what order. I moved away from the computer, took out a pen and a piece of paper and wrote a thesis statement and an outline.

You don’t have to write down an outline; if you can remember a lot of different ideas in the right order, you can do it in your head. But you still need an outline.

Why create an outline

The time required to write an outline plus a good document is less than the time required to write the same quality of document without an outline.

An outline helps you:

• make sure you include everything you want/need
• organize your ideas
• weed out content or ideas that don’t belong.

How to create an outline

I start with a solid, concise thesis statement, or main idea. (See Step 1: The Idea). Then I review all the ideas, information, facts, quotes, and whatever else I’ve gathered in my research, and jot it down (on paper or on screen) in the order I think of it. Someone else a long time ago called this the “scratch outline.” You might call it brainstorming, except that it involves just one person (usually).

Write everything down. Some of these ideas are gold, and you don’t want to risk losing them.

Don’t write whole sentences. Just write or type single words or short phrases. You’re trying to get the ideas down as quickly as possible, while they’re still fresh and hot in your mind.

Once you’ve run out of steam and can’t think of anything else to write down, start looking for links. Play the Sesame Street game: “some of these things belong together.” Look for similar ideas and linked facts, and for categories as well as items within those categories. You’ll probably need to make another list after this.

Once everything is grouped, start looking for a logical order to put them in. Here, you have a lot of choice: chronological (for an incident report, for example), or most important to least important (like a newspaper article). Proposals often use the “problem-solution” approach: describe a problem, explain why it’s a problem, then show the solution and its ultimate effects. Advertisements do this, too: “Does the opposite sex run away from your bad breath? You need Moosebreath Away!”

Word processing software usually has an outlining tool or view that makes creating and rearranging your outline easier.

Your outline doesn’t have to be a list. Many writers like to draw diagrams of their plot, using arrows and lines to link elements, or use mind mapping to figure out the structure of their document.

Don’t worry about making it perfect. Just try different arrangements of ideas and facts. Move them around and imagine the sentences you can craft around the short phrases in your outline. You can fill them in now, if you think of something particularly good.

Don’t be afraid to add new ideas that you realize you had left out, and be even less afraid of taking things out if it seems that they don’t belong.

Changing your mind

As I stated, you should begin your outline after you’ve figured out the main point, or thesis statement. But I often find that organizing the research and other material prompts me to change the thesis statement. After all, your argument should fit the facts, right?

However, a complete thesis statement is a must for a finished outline.

UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES GO BEYOND WRITING YOUR OUTLINE UNTIL YOU HAVE DECIDED ON YOUR THESIS STATEMENT.

Think of it this way: if your outline is your road map, then the thesis statement is your destination. You don’t start a journey without deciding where you’re going, do you? Okay, so do I, sometimes—but when it’s something as important as writing, don’t do it.

Summary

Start with knowing your goal, identifying your reader, and writing your thesis statement (although it may evolve). Then, make a plan for your final document.

Make a scratch outline

• Brainstorm.
• Generate lots of ideas.
• Jot down short phrases or single words.

Organize the final plan

• Play the Sesame Street game: “some of these things belong together.”
• Group similar ideas.
• Look for general categories and specific items within categories.
• Organize the ideas and information into a logical order that’s easy to follow: chronological, problem-solution, geographical, etc.

If you’re having trouble deciding on which order to use, go back to the first questions: what are you trying to achieve, who is your audience, and what is the main idea you want to tell them?

Fiction

I firmly believe in using an outline to write fiction. You need to know your characters and setting, and you need to know where your story is going. Otherwise, it doesn’t go anywhere and your beautiful prose does nothing but bore the reader.

Kirsten Lamb agrees with me (although she may not have heard of me). She has devoted several recent blog posts to the idea of structure of novels. “Novels have rules. When we don’t follow the rules, bad things happen. Just ask Dr. Frankenstein.”

You have to know where your plot is going and why your characters are going there. I’ve read a lot of wannabe writers’ blogs, where they say they let the characters lead them. I don’t know if any of them have finished, let alone published a book.

Having an outline for your plot allows you to spot those plot holes, figure out your characters’ motivations and pace your plot developments so they don’t bore the reader, nor leave them breathless.

It also allows you to adapt your story, to add details like a character’s back-story. And it lets you figure out where the end is.

Remember, even if it existed only in your head, it was still an outline.

In future posts, I’m going to put in some exercises on outlining. In the meantime, I’d love to hear from anyone who has been happy with the result of their document, whatever it may be, that did not have some kind of outline at some point.