Composing the outline for your book

By Dennis Mellersh

Writing an outline for your book can make the writing process easier.

But if you overdo the amount of detail you put in the outline, and the time you spend on it, particularly if you are writing fiction, you can lose a lot of creative energy that might be better used in the actual book writing process.

The writer Georges Simenon wrote the outlines for his detective stories on a large-size envelope, thus limiting the amount of time, space, and detail, he devoted to the outline process.

Once the book’s outline was complete Simenon virtually locked himself in his study, or writing room, for two to three weeks, writing extensively every day, until the book was completed.