Outlines are important, don\u2019t let anybody tell you otherwise. They can keep you from making silly mistakes. Like having an article about outlining near the end of a writing month.<\/p>\n
Seriously, an outline can keep you out of all kinds of trouble. If you have even a basic outline beforehand, you can get a clearer sense of your own pacing, and of the story\u2019s overall flow. You can see where it\u2019s going and how it will get there. And you can be sure you didn\u2019t miss any steps along the way.<\/p>\n
Do outlines work with graphic novels? Absolutely! If anything, they\u2019re even more important for graphic prose than for regular prose, because you need to have an even clearer sense of how the story will break down. If you have the plot elements outlined, you can see where splash pages and close-ups and other visual features will fit without derailing the story or ruining the pacing. You can also get a sense of page breakdowns by going over the outline and seeing where action is fast and furious and where it\u2019s slow and careful, which will give you a better idea of when to do a standard grid page and when to do quick cut-outs and burst images.<\/p>\n
That means, of course, that you need to follow your outline once you\u2019ve written it. Otherwise it won\u2019t do you much good. I tend to keep my outline up in a separate window as I\u2019m writing, so I can refer back to it as necessary. I also use a clean copy of the outline as my starting document, so I can go from point to point and flesh each one out in turn, transforming the outline itself into the full text.<\/p>\n
This doesn\u2019t mean you have to follow the outline slavishly, however. Things change as you write. Characters develop in ways you couldn\u2019t have predicted. They do things you wouldn\u2019t have expected\u2014but that make perfect sense for them, given their personalities and situation. You could try to force them back to the details you already established, but that\u2019s going to feel stiff and unnatural and it will show. Instead you need to let them change the story as they work their way through it. It\u2019s their story, after all.<\/p>\n
Just don\u2019t forget to change the outline as well.<\/p>\n
Your outline needs to be a work-in-progress, an up-to-date microcosm
\nof your story. It has to shift and change as the story does. Some
\nsections will collapse together. Others will expand, as little throwaway
\n moments become sections of their own. Still others will utterly vanish
\nas the events that led to them change and branch off in a new direction.<\/p>\n
That\u2019s okay. It\u2019s allowed. You don\u2019t have to abide by the original
\noutline, as long as you make sure the working outline is in fact
\ncurrent. And, when you change things in it, look ahead as well. See what
\n else will change as a result, and adjust those details now. The more
\naccurate your outline is, the easier it will be to let the flow of the
\nstory carry you\u2014and your readers\u2014along.<\/p>\n
You can even use your outline retroactively. After you\u2019ve finished
\nyour story, sit down and go back over it. Compare it to your outline. Is
\n the outline still accurate? What\u2019s changed? Adjust the details so the
\noutline matches your final version. Then read through the outline itself
\n again. Does anything feel out of place? Are there any strange jumps, or
\n gaps in the narrative? Does anything come out of nowhere, or feel
\nimplausible? Chances are, if you notice it in the outline, that same
\nproblem exists in your larger text. Check and see what needs to be
\nfixed. It\u2019ll give you a stronger story in the end.<\/p>\n
And it just goes to show that even an outline\u2014or an article about one\u2014can be as useful at the end as it was in the beginning.<\/p>\n
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