Must I Outline my Plot?

There’s plenty of advice out there about the importance of creating a plot outline before putting pen to paper. I tried doing that once, in 9th grade, back in the halcyon days when my fiction writing was unrestrained and prolific; so much so that the novel I had been working on at the time had metastasized and grown directionless, necessitating the imposition of some order. However, the minute I created a list of scenes I needed to produce a coherent narrative, I discovered that I couldn’t write another word. I lost interest, I gave up and abandoned the hundred or so pages I had already handwritten. That particular venture died and was never resurrected.

I tend to associate outlining with joyless writing such as work-related writing where structure is necessary to construct a succinct and coherent product. I create a formal outline before embarking on a work-related project otherwise I flounder. But I find my creativity sputters—if not extinguishes—when I force a certain sequence of events on a story, especially when the story’s contours are still amorphous. For me, I learned that I have to remain open enough to the strong possibility of a story deviating from my original vision while still finding a way to maintain control over its direction.

This doesn’t mean I don’t outline at all. I do (try) to keep track of plot but usually as an ongoing side-by-side activity while in the thick of the writing/editing process. Of course, this means that it takes me a lot longer than it might take others to complete a project but remaining inspired, remaining flexible and open and walking that tightrope of balance has permitted me to complete two books (without the benefit of a classroom or workshop structure). I should add that the story of those books bears little relation to what I had originally envisioned five years earlier, when I penned my first scene.

So, resist the pressure to construct an outline before you start writing if that doesn’t work for you or if it feels too constraining. Happy to hear others’ thoughts.