I am a big fan of keeping outlines flexible, so that there is room for the story to write you. This allows for creativity while there is still room for containment. I recommend using the outline technique created by Steven Pressfield called the Foolscap Method.
The goal of this method is to write your entire outline on only one sheet of paper. I recommend doing this by hand to really engage your body and intuition.
How it works:
Step 1: Divide your page into three parts: Act I, Act II, and Act III.
Step 2: Determine your narrative device. What genre? How do you want to tell your story? Through whose point of view? And in what time frame? [for ex) In real time vs. in recollection.
Step 3: Decide on your story’s theme. What is the story about? This is usually surprisingly simple. For ex) My novel is about a woman learning to love herself after betrayal. My personal development book is about learning how yoga helps us heal from trauma. My memoir is about how to uncover the voice after creative burnout,,
Step 4: Determine your story’s inciting incident. Defined as ‘the moment when the story/ book really begins.’ This is also considered the hook. How is the reader going to be drawn in immediately to your writing and story?
Step 5: Determine your story’s climax. This is everything that the book has been building up to, no matter the genre, what have you been inviting us to learn that we now understand through this moment in writing?
That’s it friends! Super duper simple. This outline gives you flexibility without having to predict the entire direction of your book. That said, if you are someone that LOVES super templated outlines, I have that for you too. ; )
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