Young Writers Society

...I do. It's true.

However, I've recently realized that outlining can be an immense help if you want to create effects such as foreshadowing. What to do?

Now, if you're like me, you see special events in your story playing in your head like little movie clips- or perhaps just special little moments that you just can't wait to describe- sort of like when you rent a DVD and find that it stops at one spot and starts playing at another. (Which is of course bad, because then you can't see the movie as a whole.)

So! Recently I was reading this article about a type of outlining called storyboarding. This is when you take all the events that keep playing over and over in your head and set them down onto seperate notecards- and then take these notecards and arrange them in some sort of chronological order. At first, it seems kind of cheap because the storyline doesn't make sense when you read it- there are a lot of obvious gaps.

[This is the cue for the lightbulb to go on. ]

After doing the preliminary stuff, I went back and thought up scenes to go in the gaps, and then transfered it into your basic Roman numeral outline:

1. THIS IS WHAT HAPPENS
----a. Detail #1
----b. Detail #2

etcetera.

And then the only thing I had to do was write.

The verdict? It's easy, painless, and kinda fun!

Also, if you can, sticky notes are fun to. What you do is get a large piece of carboard and attach a string to it so you can hang it up. Then you write the scenes on sticky notes and arrange it as you like on the piece of cardboard. When you're done, you hang it on the room. That way, you get a nice interesting decorative piece in your room that is also important to you, as a writer.

...er... guess who's been watching HGTV too much lately. XD

Yay! I just spent about an hour organizing the beginning of my novel on little sticky notes, then sticking them to the walls of my bedroom. Who needs stinking cardboard?

Haha. My parents are going to love sticky notes all over my walls.

Anywho, it is more fun than traditional outlining. But perhaps more costly? I already used up a pack of sticky notes...must buy more...

Great idea Sam! I've heard of that too...I should try it *runs to find stickynotes*

I outline schoolwork, but never recreational work. It tends to linit what I can do with a story. I prefer to freeflow. It helps me get my thoughts out there easier.