As I said in my last blog:

Plot is a series of cleverly arranged events that get your hero from where he is at the beginning of the story to the end where he either triumphs gloriously or fails miserably. If you are plotting a series that where each book can’t stand alone, your hero will need to succeed in some aspect of his quest, but fail in the major part of the quest so that he has something to go after in the next book.

The first part of outlining is brainstorming. I found the following YouTube video which will give you an idea of how to brainstorm.

Video HERE

This method of brainstorming is fun to do. For this type of brainstorming, DON”T BRAINSTORM ON THE COMPUTER. For some reason writing things down on paper gets the creative juice flowing faster.

1.      Get a big piece of paper. I’d suggest going to the grocery store and purchasing a roll of butcher paper. You can find it with the wax paper, aluminum foil and plastic wrap. Tear off a good sized piece—I’d start with one that’s 20 inches long.

2.      Get a fine pointed marker or a pen with a heavy point. (Don’t worry, I’ll give you a grocery list at the bottom of this post) As you saw with the video, write your main novel idea in the center of the paper and then circle it so that it stands out. I like to use a colored marker for my main idea—this is your story’s premise—its tagline—it’s what goes on the back cover so make it an important color.

3.      Don’t use a pencil because one of the rules is that you can’t erase.

4.      Everything that comes into your mind goes on the paper. Draw lines from the main idea to the ideas that relate directly to it. Then draw lines that relate to the ideas that relate to the main idea. Eventually your ideas will dry up and that’s okay because you got everything on the butcher paper.

I would suggest blocking out a good hour or more. (Turn off the phone and the doorbell, send your kids to the babysitters and your husband bowling so you won’t be interrupted.)

When I have a real solid idea of where I want to go with one of my mysteries—one that I’ve been thinking about for a long time, I’ll tear off a really long piece of butcher paper so that I have plenty of room to get all the ideas down. I’ve been known to put it on the kitchen floor and flatten it with books. (It’s a good idea to sweep the floor first, so the grit doesn’t tear the paper when you write on it.)

I’ve also taped the paper to my hall wall (my husband hates this because the tape can tear the paint off the wall.) I’m sure you get the idea, though, give yourself plenty of room to get all the ideas out of your head and on to the paper.

Grocery List

Butcher paper (the kind with the waxed paper works really well because the marker doesn’t go         through on to your writing surface, but it is a little more expensive.

Sharpie markers in colors—I got the set that had 14 colors. Don’t worry, you’ll eventually be using all the colors

Eraser—you won’t use it this week, but you will next week

Pencil and a pencil sharpener or a mechanical pencil—again you won’t use it this week, but you’ll save time if you get it now.

Colored Index card—3 x 5 or 4 x 6—I’d get 3 or 4 packages.

Glue Stick—get a big one or a set of three

Candy or trail mix for sustenance—I’m allergic to chocolate so I stock up on Tropical Dots

Something to drink

Your assignment for this week, it to brainstorm your novel. Get the ideas that have been rattling around in your brain down on paper. Don’t worry if you run out of ideas because I’ll be showing you how to handle this later on. Also, if you get some more ideas after you’ve finished your first brainstorming session, feel free to write those somewhere on the butcher paper.

Next post, we’ll get your ideas from the butcher paper into a time line. Once this happens you’ll begin to feel like a real writer. But the great thing is that you won’t have trouble with writer’s block. Your novel will flow and you’ll give your hero so many problems that your reader won’t dare put down your book until the very end.

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