Writing entire books is not for the faint of heart. You have a whole world in your mind you need to keep track of and it's full of characters, politics, and so many other things that you can't physically see or visit in order to keep your story straight. The chances of getting names, settings, or rules mixed up or entirely forgetting your plans for the next seven chapters are very high. Do yourself a favor to avoid the chaos and frustration that you don't need; Start taking notes!
One of the first things I do when I have a book idea is set up a notebook. I absolutely have to have my notes written out for me physically on paper. That way I can have them right next to me without pulling away from my word processing window. If you're a writer who is easily distracted or happens to have a lot on their plate, you'll know how dangerous it is to remind yourself that your computer screen can show you a lot more than just your work. I do everything I can to avoid seeing potentially distracting messages from loved ones, looking at my to-do list, or falling into a youtube rabbit hole while writing.
In terms of size or type of notebook, honestly, it really doesn't matter. I'd say as long it has a little more than two pages for every chapter you're planning on writing, you're fine. Most books seem to be around 25 chapters, so most authors are going to be fine with 70-page notebooks. But for real-don't overthink it. It's a notebook!
When you get your notebook, be sure to label it, especially if you're juggling multiple book ideas at once. Maybe give it a functional title, write "book idea with the swamp goblins", whatever. Just trust me, don't leave it unlabeled! You will get confused at some point if you don't. Mark my words!
The first section-Q's & B's
At the very front of the notebook, I reserve 2 pages for my inevitable Q's and B's, or Questions and Blocks. I put them at the forefront because I want to be able to get to this section without cluttering up the actual plotting sections and progression.
If I'm not sure if something's working or how to move a chapter along, I write it down. This helps me to see the problem and gives it space to occupy outside of my mind. If I can, I move on to the next scene and come back to the question or blockage later. Sometimes just writing about my hang-up helps me find the solution in seconds or minutes!
The second section-P's & T's
The next section I isolate is for the book's P's and T's or Point and Themes. What's the point of the book? You have to be clear on that to keep your story making sense throughout the chapters, especially if you're a busy person who has to take longer breaks from your WIP. Then there are the themes. What elements are present in the story? Does it have darker themes like cults, murder, secrets, and the like? What about lighter themes like friendship or rising up to your potential?
I recommend isolating two pages for this section. That leaves enough space for decent detail, but you don't need to write pages and pages detailing the themes. It's not meant to be literature report!
The third section-Characters
You've just gotta keep track of your characters. Names, ages, and where they're from are the most basic pieces of information that you have to track. Other details you might want to keep note of is their race (dwarf, human), personality, political affiliation, occupation, relationships, motives, and role they play in the story. Some people take the time to keep track of things like character MBTI types, enneagrams, astrological big 5 signs, and other details. These aren't necessary things to track, but they could help you to feel more engaged with the characters.
I'd reserve a minimum of 3 pages for your characters section. If you're writing a high fantasy or something that includes a large number of characters, consider increasing that to 5 or 6 pages. You'll want to be sure you're at least tracking your main characters and the minor characters who will be recurring for key parts of the plot moving along.
The fifth section- Settings
This will probably be the shortest section of your WIP notes. In terms of keeping track of your settings, you'll need their names, significance, who you might find there, and physical characteristics. I'd also break down settings from greater to smaller. For example, I'd first write about The Shire and its characteristics, Hobbiton and its characteristics, Bagshot Row, and Bag End. If you're writing a sequel that expands on a world you've previously established, you might need an extra page, but generally one page front and back will cover you completely.
The sixth section-Chapter Goals
Detailed planning and outlining of chapters doesn't always work for everyone, and you will likely deviate from the plan in some way or another anyway. A great alternative to getting into the details of the chapters is to simply write down your goals. I'd take about a page per chapter.
For example, chapter 1's goals will likely look like: "Introduce main character, roll into the first problem, establish character issues and stakes, get the character to this new location. I want to evoke this emotion and leave readers wondering about this and this other thing. I want this to establish a foundation for this future event and foreshadow this."
The seventh section-Chapter Edit Notes
This probably won't be used until you've got a rough draft finished of your WIP, but it's still something to keep handy. You'll again want one page per chapter.
This section is entirely dedicated for notes and organizing your thoughts as you examine each chapter and polish it for Beta-readers, secondary editors, and sending it off to literary agents (or straight to publishing). There are a lot of things to keep track of and feel for as you edit. I start with half of the front page as a checklist for quick notes of the basic things we're all looking for when editing a chapter:
Is the POV consistent?
Are we moving at the right speed?
Does this chapter enhance or move the plot along?
Who is here in the chapter and does it make sense for them to be in the scenes they're in?
Did you reach the chapter's goals?
What are your impressions of the chapter (gripping, anxiety-inducing, boring, was squirming trying to get through it)?
Did anything frustrate you about the chapter/did anything not work?
Darlings deceased (were there any things you really didn't want to get rid of but found that you needed to in order for the passage to make sense or flow better). Keeping track of your dead darlings gives you the ability to save them for a future chapter or book.
The rest of the page is reserved for important notes about the chapter. What changes did you make? Do you have editing ideas for the chapter that you need to remember? Any other relevant information for the editing portion is welcome here.
The eighth section-FYA
The very last page of your WIP notes is where I'd place your FYA/For Your Agent information. This is place for you to record quick facts that will be pertinent to your queries.
Information that you'll need for pretty much every query ever:
Plot summary (what's the book about and where is it going?)
Genre
Page count
Word count
Comp titles (try to keep these as relevant and up-to-date as possible!)
Unique Points of Interest
It's so important to know these things about your book. Where does your book fit in the market? What is your book actually about? Does the material justify the price that the publishers will need to sell it at? And why this book? Feel free to also write down your goals for the manuscript and what you really love about your book or the takeaway you hope readers get from what you've written. Any details that motivate you and get you excited about what you've produced.
The ninth section-Agents Queried
This section isn't a must-do, but it's certainly helpful. Keeping track of who you've queried, which agency they were a part of, and their policies (do they specify response time? How many submissions do they take at a time? Should you submit to multiple agents within the company they represent?). This is especially true if you are a writer who's always got another book you're writing on or if you're making a lot of submissions in a smaller timespan. It really does pay to stay organized!
The bottomline
There are so many ways to keep yourself organized while writing a book! I hope that my general outline and examples have helped you find a starting place to design your own system that works best for you. Truly, these pages are just as to do on google docs files and other electronic resources if you're the kind of person does best with that. The information prompts I've mentioned can easily be added to. Think about what your needs are, how you best function, and what would seem most inviting for you to use while you plan ahead and gather your resources. Best of luck organizing your WIPs and WIP notes!
Comments
Post a Comment