While I am aware that finding the right words to use in a chapter or a paragraph might be daunting, I also know that the work of a writer doesn’t limit itself to producing pages and pages every day. It actually starts way earlier and it is not by any means easier than crafting a first draft. You need to take into account hundreds of different factors: characters, stakes, plot, concepts, and many more elements that play an equally crucial role in the overall final product.
I have been through it myself countless times. Getting a general idea for a book isn’t too hard per se, but outlining an entire novel is a different kind of task. Through this step-by-step guide, I hope to give you a chance to tackle this seemingly unclimbable path in the most efficient way possible, by dissecting every element in the story and giving it an order. I will use my current work in progress in order to give you a more concrete example of what I am going to present to you.
I will start from scratch, then gradually build up to your very first draft, offering you the chance to outline your book down to the chapter if you deem it necessary.
Without further ado, let’s get started!

Finding inspiration

This is probably the broadest and most personal point on the list because inspiration can come from literally anything. You may find it in another book, a TV show, a place you visit, a song you listen to. It would be redundant to list all the possible sources of inspiration here, but stay tuned because I am going to delve into that in another article.
During this process, you will have to let your mind roam free. It doesn’t matter what your creative brain will focus on, don’t keep it on a leash and allow it to give shape to an idea. You won’t even have to consciously look for a muse, she will come to you before you even know it. And trust me, it will be riveting to wait and see what she may offer you. Sometimes she will hand you a plot-point, a concept or even a setting.
In my case, she almost always gives me the gift of a character. It happened when I got the idea for my current project, too. I was looking through hotels room to go on a trip I could never afford, and there she was, standing on top of a building in all her glory. My protagonist, Lucy Tanaka. I already knew her name, her nationality, her occupation, everything. And that’s how I took my first step into the realms of the draft sitting on my shelf right now.

Creating characters

I must say that this is my favorite part of this whole process. Most of my books are character-driven and they couldn’t exist without a well-developed cast. I would like to divide this process into four steps:

1) Background: think of where these characters come from. Their nationality, their upbringing, past trauma and experiences. You can absolutely let your imagination roam with this one, because you’re not only creating a protagonist, you need to apply this to each one of your characters, even the side ones. To give you an example, my character comes from Japan but she has been raised in the States, where a traumatic event occurs. This gives a character more depth and it helps readers understand their actions better.
2) Goals: what is the objective that makes them get out of bed in the morning? What are they doing it all for? Or, perhaps, who are they doing it all for? Think of something that gives your characters purpose and meaning, so that readers know what they are striving towards. My main character is on a mission and that is what drives the whole plot forward.
3) Development: characters can’t simply exist for a single goal. That would be too static and we don’t want stagnant figures, we are working to create believable individuals with a path and a journey that changes them. You need to bring them from point A to point B, not only plot-wise, but also concerning their personalities. In my case, the protagonist of my book has the power to decide between two outcomes of her mission, after being faced with numerous moral dilemmas. Which path will she choose? That is all to be discovered while reading the book.
4) Distinctive traits: now, mine is certainly not the first story about morally questionable characters, but have you heard of one who is afraid of spiders? Or one who likes to have their towels warm when they get up? Or one that’s allergic to seafood? These are not actual traits I decided to give my character, but they all prove the point I’m trying to make. They may have great motivations, an intriguing arc, but it’s the personalised traits that make them seem more realistic and therefore memorable. You should give them skills, flaws, fears, strengths, and even small quirks your readers can discover through dialogues and descriptions. Just remember, every element is crucial when you want to turn a few words printed on a page into living individuals.

Crafting the setting and choosing the genre

Why did I put this point after creating the characters, you may wonder? Well, first of all, it all depends on the kind of inspiration you found. This may be the first point for you or even the last, but in my case I decided to make it the second point on the guide. My process usually goes like this: I ideate a character, I find their occupation and their motivations and then I build a world around them. It may be a post-apocalyptic world, a dystopian society, a fantasy realm, or just the real world. It all depends on the journey you want to take your characters on and the events you want to put them through.
In my case it can be a futuristic sci-fi scenery, but your idea may as well be set in the Victorian Age, in a small village in England. It’s all up to you and what your characters require. You are free to play around with both time and place. Future, past, existent, non-existent, noting is against the rules because you make them.
However, it is not always easy to settle on an idea for a fictional world, therefore selecting a genre can be a surprisingly great help. For example, if you want to write a fantasy novel, you most likely will have to craft a world outside of our time and space. That doesn’t exclude the idea that you might want to set it in our real society to see the consequences of magic, to cite an example, but it may lend you a helping hand when it comes to narrowing down your options. In addition, choosing a specific genre is essential in order to remain coherent with your plot and themes.

Outlining the main plot points

While your goal is to delve deep into your characters’ minds, you also need to take into consideration the importance of the events you put them through. As I have previously mentioned, your characters need to go on a journey, to move from one situation to the other. So how do you do that? It’s actually quite simple. You outline a series of plot points that pave the way to the exact destination you want to lead them towards. If you want your character to be braver, you will present the with situations in which they will have to step up to saved a loved one, or force them to take a leap of faith from time to time. Some events may give them the opportunity to get closer to your final goal and others may derail them and make them take a few steps back. In either case, it’s the beauty of storytelling. You never know what may happen and how. Keep your readers on the edge of their seats and let the plot serve you as a device to make your characters grow, not only as a series of occurrences without a clear aim.

Clarify your concept and premise

Here we are. You know your characters, your genre, your settings and plot. You are now ready to have a clearer take on your general concept and premise of the book. When ideating my books, I like to have a big, sometimes philosophical question in mind in order to find a concept to center my novel around. I have briefly mentioned mine before, but I will reiterate it just to be more precise. The main debate at the basis of my book is: is redemption possible or is it too hard to get out of the darkness once it becomes all you know? That is what creates conflict and leaves you wondering whether Lucy will decide to stick with what she know or take on more difficult moral dilemmas.
Once you’ve managed to pinpoint all these elements, you have your premise. Let me explain: a premise is a concise summary of the core elements of the narrative. You know you have a good one when you could potentially recap your story into a single sentence. Check it out:

“A morally questionable girl (central character) has to accomplish a mission (main conflict) by going on a journey to a different state (setting).”

Tackling themes

This is a particularly delicate point. When you generate an idea for a book it is important to point out the general topics you want to tackle. Nevertheless, it is not a simple task to accomplish without putting in at least a little bit of research. I do not personally believe in “writing what you know,” I prefer “knowing what you write.” You can touch on all the themes you want for as long as you do it respectfully and with the awareness and necessary knowledge to understand what you’re talking about. If you know your story requires some scenes concerning racism, you will have to listen to people who are going through that or read the experiences they have had. It’s important to know what you’re saying so that you don’t spread any false information or wrong principles. Other themes may come up as you write, but the same process applies to them.

Outlining the story

After working on more abstract ideas, it is time to finally put pen to paper and give these elements a place in the story. At first, I would like you to simply think about story structure, without focusing too much own characters. In this section you will just have to put plot-points into order. Before you jump into it, I will give you different story structures, so that you may choose which one best suits you. And remember, don’t be afraid to mix them up or create your own, I’m just giving you a few options to get inspiration from. Here it goes:

-In medias res: the story begins with the main event and everything unravels through flashbacks, flash-forwards and digressions.
-Cyclical structure: the story ends where it began, creating a loop, perfect for conveying themes of repetition.
-Traditional structure: initial situation, rising tension, climax, resolution.
-Episodic structure: series of events that may be more or less connected to one another.
-Multiple narratives: parallel storylines run concurrently and may or may not intersect at some point.
-Experimental structure: this method is highly personal and it involves streams-of- consciousness, digressions, and other untraditional techniques.

Combining character arcs

Now that you have every character in mind and a plot outline, it’s time to combine the two things together. This is a rather arduous task. You will have to take every character into consideration, to remember their goals and motivations and place them in the story in a coherent manner. To make things a tad easier, look at the outline you wrote and imagine how each character would react, what that occurrence means to them and whether it takes them closer to their ultimate transformation or presents itself as a setback in their story. You get to choose how many details you want to implement and you also have the power to choose how many of these arcs will connect and which ones will stay separate until the end. Plus, remember that the way characters react to a plot-point determines the consequences it will have upon the story, so be open to modifying your outline if it fits your narrative better.

Dividing them into chapters

This is a step that not everybody want to follow and I understand that. Personally, though, it helps me orient myself better in the story and it gives me a helping hand when I’m not sure how the narrative should procede, so that I can be more consistent with pacing and have a lead to follow in general. Again, it can be more or less specific based on your needs. First of all, you will have to take a look at your outline and decide which events you want to cover in a single chapter. You can choose whether you want longer sections or chapters that are just a few pages long. Just make sure you have a rough idea of what you want to include in every part of your book.
After that, you may decide whether if you want to go further and write a small outline of every small detail you encounter in the chapter. Some people like to be specific and that’s absolutely fine, but I like to go with the flow once I know more or less what I am going to be covering. Still, you can do as you please and, for as long as it gets you writing, you can use any method that suits you best.

And after that, writing is going to be the most fun part. Just stay consistent and you’ll have first draft sooner than you may imagine. I decided to write this article mainly because once you have a solid idea and outline, it is hard to lead yourself astray and fall into the trap of your own insecurities. I’m not saying this is never going to happen, because it will, but the well-crafted idea you created will be the perfect anchor ready to stabilise you whenever you need it to.

I will give you one last recommendation: be flexible. Be open to changes and modifications. I know this article is tailor-made for those who want to have a chapter-specific outline that is sturdy enough to last throughout the entire writing process of the book, but one can never be sure that the initial idea is the absolute best. Go with your gut and if your heart tells you to change a small passage or even a major plot point, don’t be afraid to listen to it. It may just lead you through the best path for you and your characters.

That being said, I am positive this article will give you a thorough guide to rely upon and I wish you the best of luck with your work in progress or the idea you want to give shape to. I am certain you will do a great job and I hope you’ll stay tuned to learn more about the book I’m currently editing. There will be more sneak-peeks soon!