4 Steps to Writing a Novel in 2 Weeks
I don’t know about you, but I have to plan out every inch of my manuscript. For me, outlining a work in progress is a four-stage process. First, there is the spider outline. Second comes the murder board. Third, comes the Book Bible. Last, but not least, is the chapter outline. These steps help to flesh out the concept, theme, and characters. The spider outline is fairly simple. In the middle I layout the main character and answer a few questions. Who are they? What’s their name? Where do they live? Do they have a significant other? Then I create those other characters and branch them to the main character. For instance, in my latest book, Onyx, the main character is Raven Sinclair. She has a girlfriend named Grace Trudeau. They live together in a brownstone in Brooklyn, New York. So, I would string together Raven and Grace’s bubbles. I repeat that step with all the characters in the book. The murder board is key when writing a murder mystery or thriller novel. I use a dry eras