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An agent has requested to see a chapter-by-chapter outline of my novel, but I'm floundering. I'm trying to do a mini-synopsis of each chapter, but it's ending up too long. Does anyone have any suggestions for where I can look for a model (either on the net or in a book) on how I should structure this beast? I've only been able to find one model; I'd like to see more to see if I can figure out what I'm doing wrong....
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I don't have an online source, and I hope someone will confirm this, but here's what I think is wanted: tell your story, remembering to show the *significance* of the events, but being willing to leave out vast chunks of detail, even entire story threads if they're not crucial to the overall plot. I'm pretty happy with my outline, in which I did this, but it wasn't to be chapter by chapter. I guess you could add this.
When I've looked over other people's outlines (and I'm no expert), the biggest problem I saw was: lots of detail, and the outline-reader doesn't know why he should care.
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Um... I'd like to see an example too, because when I tried to do this it was pages longer than it should have been.
Posts: 2195 | Registered: Aug 2006
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While I do not know of any specific examples built for this purpose, I do think you might benefit from reading a tv guide or something. They are able to summarize a sixty minute episode into one-two sentences with fairly good precision in hitting all the main points. For example:
Prison Break - Episode 41 - Sweet Caroline - An unlikely alliance forms between Bellick and Sucre while Michael is determined to face the president. T-Bag gets into some trouble when he loses his luggage and C-Note faces major consequences after some of his actions.
Two sentences and I know all the important points in that episode. I don't know anything specific, but if your agent wants more than you can add more.
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Sorry if this is a make-work idea or one that won't work for you, but have you thought of trying to take a favorite book that you know really well and write an outline of THAT first? Try the exercise on someone else's work, perhaps you'll find there are strategies you can use.
I say this because, and I've been mocked by my husband mercilessly for this, I have wanted to outline the HP book 5 since I read it (just a few months ago, I've recently rediscovered my love of books.) I'm really curious what scenes they're going to cut from the book to make the movie work. I figure if I outline it, I'll have a better sense of the story's "bones" and then be able to pick out the key thread that I think the filmmakers will follow. It's just a game for me, I'm intensely interested in the process of going from book to movie. But anyway, it's an example.
Good luck! Would you like help with a chapter? I'd be happy to volunteer to give a try at a chapter summary. What are you thinking, a few lines per chapter? I'm not a brief person, so this would be a good exercise for me too.
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I'm writing a chapter outline for a book that I'm about to write, right now. I'm up to Chapter 10, out of approximately 20 chapters. I'm not expert either, but I'm shooting for 1 to 3 paragraphs per chapter, myself. It feels about right when I look back at the chapters I've written. (After this, I plan to expand it with a more full outline, I think. I'm not sure how much needs to be done before writing a book. I've only done Short Stories thus far.)
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I hesitate to answer because I've heard anything from an agent but "no thanks." Still, I suggest you do an outline that is just a sentence or two for each chapter first. Then expand. I always do this while I'm writing in case I make a change in a later chapter and need to update it in an earlier chapter. Having said that, let me say Whooo-Haw. Talking to an agent. Man-o-man. That is encouraging to know that they can do more than send out form letters.
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Thanks for all your suggestions, everyone. I'm going to try them. I like the idea of practising on someone else's story, KayTi. And I like your advice, Kathleen, of trying to take a more 'list' approach. I've been trying to incorporate the language and 'feel' of the novel but I think I'm bogging myself down too much. One article I found today said to go scene by scene and show how each scene goal is resolved and furthers the plot, but I think that would be way to much detail (as you say, wbriggs).
If you want to give a go at the prologue, KayTi, I'd be happy to send it your way. You can e-mail me, if you want.
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