I originally posted this on Instagram and TikTok, and it did so well there, I thought I would write something up here on my website that goes into a little bit more detail. So without further ado – this is “How I Prep for Drafting a Book: Extended Edition.”

The planning versus pantsing debate is live and well, and while I think everyone is entitled to create their own process, there are a couple things I’d like to point out. If you are a pantser at heart, but find that when you end up at the editing phase, you are overwhelmed by the sheer amount of fixing your draft needs… it might be time to consider giving planning a shot. Alternatively, if you are a pantser and find yourself hitting the dreaded 50k slump with no breakthrough in sight… it might be time to start planning things out.

The truth is: If you outline correctly, it won’t limit your creativity mid-draft.

Ready to give it a shot?

Step 1: Break it Down into Sections

The first thing you’re going to do is break your story up into the standard parts of a story. If you’re new to creative writing or haven’t spent an ungodly amount of time in undergrad studying literature (like me – yay for a LIT minor), these might be unfamiliar to you. Don’t worry, I got you!

What are the standard parts of a story?

Story Opening:
The story opening is the vague idea of where your story begins. It doesn’t need to be super specific and detailed, you just need to make a note of things like setting/location, characters, and action.

Inciting Incident:
The inciting incident is the event or idea that spurs your main character into thinking that something needs to change.

Call to Action:
The call to action is the event or idea that gives your main character the opportunity to act.

Rising Action:
The rising action is comprised of all the middle bits. It’s called the rising action because it leads to the climax (think the slope of a mountain leading to the top). The rising action usually makes up the largest chunk of your story, and is often where a lot of your subplot action will take place (if you’ve got one). For example, if you’re writing a romance, the rising action would be all of the flirting and dates that lead to a love confession.

Twist:
The twist of the story is the event or reveal that makes the main character realize things aren’t what they seemed to be.

Climax:
The climax is the pinnacle of your story. This is the event or goal that you character has been working towards for the whole story. In fantasy, this is often some kind of big battle or fight. In romance, it’s often the – um – climax, if you catch my drift.

Falling Action:
The falling action is how you wind a story down. Where does the character go after they win or lose? What do they do? If you’re writing a series, you might choose to forgo this and leave your book on a cliff hanger – that’s okay, too!

You must, must, must resist the urge to plan every detail. Over-planning is the killer of creativity. If you plan too much, or are too detailed in your outline, you may cause yourself to lock in on ideas that just aren’t working during the actual drafting stage. It’s important to leave room for organic ideas that pop up on the fly and might work better.

You don’t need to plan every chapter, you just need to know where the story is going.

Step 2: Add in the Emotional Beats

Now, go back through the notes you’ve already made and think about where you want your character to be emotionally at each point in the story. This will ensure that your character growth flows properly and doesn’t feel forced or rushed. This could also be considered your main character’s character arc, or in other words, the list of ways you want your character to change over the course of a story.

Step 3: Map Out the Conflict

The next step in your outlining process should be mapping out the conflict. For each beat (see: the standard parts of a story), ask yourself the following questions and make note of the answers:

1. What emotional obstacles will my character face here?
2. Why physical obstacles will my character face here?
3. How do these obstacles tie into the story’s major conflict?

Step 4: Make Note of the Subplot

For the fourth and final step, you’ll want to go back through each of the beats, and make a note of how you’d like your subplot to progress during this portion of the story.

Now, not all stories have subplots. If yours doesn’t, you can skip this step. But if you do have a subplot, limit your notes to a few sentences MAX, just to give you a vague idea of where you should be.

Just like in Step 1, you’ll want to avoid overplanning and leave yourself room to adjust and adapt as you write.

Having a hard time visualizing what this should look like? No problem! My newsletter this month will feature a PDF download of a worksheet that will walk you through each of these steps. My newsletter is completely free, and I don’t send spam – only updates and exclusives! Subscribe to my newsletter HERE to recieve your free worksheet when the newsletter drops on 8/20/2025.