The discussion of whether or not book outlines are necessary often turns into a debate amongst writers. Some writers swear by creating a thorough, detailed outline by following a specific book outline format before beginning their first draft, while others may find it confining. Creating a full book outline before you begin writing can feel like an unnecessary step, especially if you just want to get started.

Here’s our disclaimer: we’re big believers in book outlines here at Bonnie Book. BUT, we don’t think they need to be extremely detailed if you don’t want them to be. While we think having some sort of outline is necessary, we think the kind of outline you create is up to you. 

Ultimately, writing a book is both a structured process and a creative one. You can create a book outline that caters to both. 

Structured Process

In order to stay motivated while writing a book, you’ll want to create structure for yourself. This can include making a writing schedule and finding an accountability partner that you can meet with every month. Before you begin writing anything, we highly recommend doing these things. 

Once you’ve established your writing schedule, start brainstorming. Take your idea for your book and flesh it out a bit. Think about your characters – their motivations, their physical characteristics, their relationships with each other. Think about your plot – what specific plot points you want to reach, what you consider to be the climax of the story and the falling action. Use these notes to structure an outline. We’ve had clients go chapter by chapter and write a little summary of each. We’ve had some follow our tried and true template, or something more simple (you can find both in our guide). Whatever it looks like, the key is to write your book outline down. 

The reason we believe in writing a book outline is because we think they are key to staying organized while writing a book. When you’re two months into writing your book and you lose your motivation or have a bad case writers’ block – which you will – you can return to your book outline and use the structure you created to keep pushing forward. We’ve found that one of the most difficult parts of writing a book is getting through the first draft. A book outline is the most helpful tool in completing that draft. 

Creative Process

While we strongly recommend having a book outline written down in order to get through your first draft, we simultaneously believe that creativity is the most important thing for writing a book. If you’re following the structure of your book outline and you suddenly have a brilliant idea that you’ve never thought of – follow that idea! Even if it’s not in your book outline – write it. Being in your creative flow is one of the best feelings as a writer, and we believe you should not ruin that just for the sake of sticking to an outline. 

Create structure for yourself before you begin writing, but if you have new ideas while you’re writing, follow them. Writing a book should primarily be a creative process. 

So, long blog short, write a book outline. Flesh out your characters and your plot enough to fill out a template or even just to write short summaries for each chapter. Stick to that outline when you start and when creativity is low.

But, when you have that moment of pure inspiration, follow it. Your book outline is ultimately a suggestion. Following your creativity is most important.