Friends! I was listening to the Stories are Soul Food podcast today, and when author ND Wilson shared how he structures the drafting of a novel, it really resonated with me. His process is similar enough to my own style, but with a couple features that I think would keep me moving forward. I’ve decided to try it out on my current project, and I thought I’d see if some of you wanted to join me. (SAY YES!!!)
First, a little background.
I’m working on my very first historical mystery, and I’ve been struggling to pin down a way forward. The book is meant to be a timeslip novel, with two timelines unfolding for the reader. One timeline is set in the current day, while the other is set in 1906. Two eras, two protagonists/narrators, two story problems, two inciting incidents, two of everything really.
And while this might not be a problem for writers who outline their novels, I’m a discovery writer by nature, and I find outlining in great detail a deflating prospect. But I desperately need some kind of map to follow or I’ll be writing for centuries. SO! WHAT TO DO?! How do I tackle this project?
It’s a question I’ve been wrestling with even as I’ve started drafting chapters, and today, I genuinely feel like I can see a way forward. Thank you ND Wilson!
Okay, so! Here’s how he does it.
- Wilson plans out five beats to his novels: a beginning, a middle, and an end, as well as the middle of the beginning, and the middle of the end.
- Wilson then does the same thing for his chapters, plotting them out in three to five beats: a beginning, a middle, and an end, and sometimes the middle of the beginning, and the middle of the end.
Straightforward, yes? My favorite part about this method is that it gives me a solid enough skeleton to build upon, but it doesn’t require me to plot out each chapter before I begin. I can do that as I go, leaving me enough freedom to discover great chunks of story as I write. If I’m not discovering, friends, I get bored. And being bored with your own work is TRAGIC!
That’s why I think this will work so well for me.
For my historical, I’ll need to plot out five story beats for each of my narrators, and while that will require a good old fashioned brainstorming session or two, I’m looking forward to having that clarity and making progress on a story I’m super excited about.
How about you? What are you working on? Do you think this method is a tool that might come in handy?
This is my last blog post before we break for the summer, and I’m hoping to use these months to give Wilson’s method a test run. Come September, I’ll report back, and I’d love to hear how drafting a novel in five beats is working for you.
Tell me! How is your writing going? Want to give this a go with me?
Shannon Dittemore is an author and speaker. Her books include the Angel Eyes trilogy, a supernatural foray into the realm of angels and demons, as well as the fantastical adventure novel Winter, White and Wicked. Its sequel, Rebel, Brave and Brutal is due out January 10, 2023.
Shannon’s stories feature strong female leads grappling with fear and faith as they venture into the wilds of the unknown. She’s often wondered if she’s writing her own quest for bravery again and again.
It’s a choice she values highly. Bravery. And she’s never more inspired than when young people ball up their fist and punch fear in the face.
To that end, Shannon takes great joy in working with young writers, both in person and online at Go Teen Writers, an instructional blog recognized by Writer’s Digest four years running as a “101 Best Websites for Writers” selection.
For more about Shannon and her books, please visit her website, Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest.
Hi Miss Shannon! I love this post of yours. I have found out that I too am a discovery writer, but if I don’t plan out at least some of it I am going to meander around with everything, plus I am constantly saying “what if” and changing things around to explore a new idea without finishing the old one. And then being overly critical of my work doesn’t help. Because of these problems, I have yet to finish my first draft that I have been working on and off for the last two years, since my story is constantly evolving. Recently I have forced myself to outline (very generally) my story and not go back and change, edit or fix anything until the whole messy thing is finished! It’s been going really well like that and I am within sight of the finish.
However I have become discouraged. Ideas I had thought were new and fresh that I had come up with myself I discovered have now been used, even more brilliantly than I could ever dream, and to continue my story just seems like I would be copying someone even though I thought of it before I ever read their book. See, I read Gillian Bronte Adams’ Of Fire And Ash ( one of the most amazing books btw), and the powers her glorious elemental steeds are very similar to the powers of my characters. Characters I had created years before I even read that book. And since I know Miss Gillian personally, I especially don’t want to seem as if I am copying her work. That being said, my characters no longer seem as special as they once were to me, because I created them to be unique and their powers to show that, and now I feel as if they aren’t. What would you do in my situation? Can you give me any tips on first drafts for discovery writers? Thank you so much!
I have some fantastic news for you: Most every idea has been done before. Truly. The goal is to be authentic, not necessarily innovative. You can and should put your own signature on your creations, but don’t stress over similarities to other books. Instead, focus on the fact that you can use Gillian’s book as a comp title if you ever end up pitching your book to agents and editors. DO NOT BE DISCOURAGED! FINISH!
Thank you so much!
Oh my word! This sounds like a fantastic idea for a plantser like me! I’m definitely going to be giving this method a try on my current project!
That’s what I thought when I heard it! I wish you luck and I can’t wait to see if it worked for you.
I’m definitely a discovery writer as well – I love meeting new characters and weaving them into my plot. Recently I’ve been trying to do a little bit more planning, so I just thought through the section of my book that I’m in, and I named a goal for each chapter. I like the simplicity of the five beat idea, though, so maybe I’ll give it a try. 🙂
I hope it’s a handy tool for you! I’m wishing you all the luck as you work.
I am beginning a new story and this sounds like a perfect process for me! I’m going to take a listen to that podcast and try it out. Like you, I think I’m more of a discovery writer but I always get lost if I don’t have a skeleton of a plan. Thanks for the info!
Hooray! I hope you find it useful.
I love this idea! I’m definitely going to give this method a shot. I have a tendency to overplot to the point that I either never start the story or get bored halfway through haha
Oh yes! Boredom is a huge problem for me. I am really looking forward to brainstorming this out.
So do I! (Lol…same here…) I’ll have to give it a shot as well 🙂
This post was super helpful thanks! I finally found what I think is my “winning” idea, but of course, I only have like a few major plot points and no clue how to get there!
I’ll definitely try out the five beat method.
Cheering you on, Naya!
This is such a cool idea! I actually sat down and immediately used it to plot out my newest WIP, and it worked so well it surprised me, haha. Thanks for sharing! I’ve never been a plotter, but this is one method I feel good about. 🙂
Alexa
Oh hooray! Hoping it keeps you moving forward!
Ooh, what an interesting way to do it. I’ll have to try it out!
Good luck!
This sounds really interesting. I always have trouble plotting my stories, so I’ll definitely have to try this. Thanks for the post!