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A Road Map For The Writing Process, and Life

I’m hearing a lot of writers question the “How” or the process of plotting a story. So, today, for the sake of this Blog Post, I’ve borrowed a process I came across recently. I’ll be honest—I don’t always follow it! But I believe in it and wanted to share it.

Everyone approaches writing a story, or a business plan differently. My hope is this road map gets you going in the right direction.

The first stage comes from the heart. This is where you throw spaghetti at the wall to see what sticks. It’s the brainstorming, the free writing with your internal editor turned off-for now. This is where you experiment, have fun, and be messy! Sometimes, we need to sit with this first draft and churn out everything in our soul before we share it with anyone. And when you do, share it with those readers or advisors you trust. This is your baby.

This next stage is where you take a closer look at the draft, or plan, with a keen eye focused on the plot, characters, and cohesion of what’s now on peper. What are the main plot points? What do you want to accomplish? Have you set high stakes to keep the tension and narrative moving? Are your characters fairly well developed? Do they have their own narrative arc? Is there a takeaway? Do you know what their internal and external wants are? Here’s your chance to fill in the holes, add new threads, streamline scenes, and layer emotion. It will take multiple drafts at this stage. But with each round, I promise your story will evolve and get better. Be open to where the story wants to go and what the characters tell you. Trust the process. Be patient. Sometimes, it’s best to let it breathe until the answers come to you. Take a walk, a hot bath, a shower, make a batch of your favorite cookies. Let your subconscious be your behind-the-scenes friend.

Here's the stage you’ve worked so hard for: the polishing stage. This is where you select the finest fabric and the finest fixtures (if your story was your dream house) with each word hand selected. Examine your sentence structure, your paragraph structure, and chapter structure. Fluff it up with exquisite word choices; less is more. Have you left enough white space? Look closely at patterns that don’t serve the story, no-no words, repetitive words, or over-used words. Read it out loud to yourself, your dog, or a trusted friend. This is your chance to revise the work for variety and balance. And don’t fall into smoothness! Don’t be uniform. Is your unique voice coming through that you, and only you, can bring to your story?

And finally, have you tested your title? Ask a friend, your critique group, or in social media writers’ circle. Another question to ask yourself is, does my first line grab the reader with interest? Does it make a declaration first thing that raises a question for them to keep reading your story? Does it set the tone and establish the voice? Now, here’s the hard part. You need to let the work sit. Go on a cruise, take a road trip, visit a friend in Italy. Your brain needs a break before you sit down with your story, or plan again to extract the essence of your book into a query letter.

You should be proud of yourself for writing or planning out what’s in your heart. You have a finished draft! Someone is waiting for your story, so don’t let anything stop you.

I’m cheering you on!! Please feel free to leave me a comment. I’d love to hear from you.

Bonus: Here’s one of my favorite sites for tools and support for writers from planning to revising: www.onestopforwriters.com Check them out (if you haven’t already)

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Best Wishes,

Kate