PSA: I chose a linear outline over a mind map for my fantasy novel

I plotted my whole 80,000 word draft using a strict chapter-by-chapter outline instead of the freeform mind maps everyone in my writing group swears by. It felt rigid at first but I finished the first draft in 4 months with no major plot holes. Has anyone else gone against the popular method and had it work out better?

2 comments

2 Comments

wyatt_green23d ago

Outline works if you know your story structure. I did the same thing with my last fantasy novel. Blocked out each chapter with like 3-5 bullet points. It felt boring at first but it saved me from those dead ends where you write yourself into a corner. Mind maps just got too messy for me, ended up with threads going everywhere and no real direction.

lisa83923d ago

Man, outlines feel like homework sometimes, right? Like you're writing a to-do list for a book instead of actually writing the dang thing. But honestly, bullet points are the only reason I haven't given up halfway through a chapter and started a completely different story about a talking dog or something. I tried the mind map thing once and ended up with a diagram that looked like a conspiracy theorist's corkboard, no actual plot anywhere. So yeah, boring outline over chaotic brain dump any day, at least I know where I'm going even if it's not thrilling.