Intimidated by the thought of plotting out your book or planning a character arc? K.M. Weiland has the answers and they’re all neatly compiled in Outlining Your Novel: Map Your Way to Success.
This book is chock full of great advice, pithy tips, and expert analysis of what makes outlining work.
One of my favorite additions to this writing how-to book were the author interviews at the end of each chapter. K.M. Weiland asked the same questions of ten different authors. They each gave different answers, proving that the writing road looks different for everyone. What gems of knowledge are found in this book.
My absolute top favorite part of the book are the checklists found at the end of each chapter. I’m a big fan of to-do lists and having the author provide detailed but doable goals to work toward helped cement in my mind what I’d learned.
I recommend this book to all my writing friends. Even those who may not think outlining is for them. Outlining Your Novel is not just about outlining. It’s about understanding story structure and character journeys and making sure you’ve hit all the checkpoints found along the path to a successful novel. I can tell I’ll be returning to this book again and again!
About the Author
K.M. Weiland is the author of the historical western A Man Called Outlaw and the medieval epic Behold the Dawn. She enjoys mentoring other authors through her blog Wordplay: Helping Writers Become Authors, editing services, and her instructional CD Conquering Writer’s Block and Summoning Inspiration. She lives in western Nebraska.
Find K.M. Weiland
Wordplay // Facebook // Twitter // Goodreads // Pinterest // Google+
Read my review of Structuring Your Novel.
Disclosure: The author provided me with this book in exchange for an honest review. This post contains affiliate links. Read my full disclosure here.
She's intrigued me for a while as well, Tarissa. Have you happened to check out her blog, Wordplay? It's excellent. Oh, and her monthly newsletter is an excellent resource worth subscribing to.<br /><br />Aww, that's so sweet! I enjoy participating!
I've been interested in K.M. Weiland's books for a long time now. It was great to be able to read your thoughts on it.<br /><br />Also, I just wanted to say that I'm glad you enjoy Sharing Our Bookshelves. I enjoy seeing your links every time!<br />~ Tarissa
Jill, I highly recommend it! This is probably exactly what you're looking for!<br /><br />K.M., You're most welcome!<br /><br />Julia, I could bring my hard copy with me in June. It is a very flip-worthy book and might prove helpful to us as we toss ideas around. ;)
Great review! :D I'm working my way through it… seems to be taking me a long time. :P Been so busy, for one thing, and for another I wish I had this book in hard copy to flip through… ;) Apparently I'm an ink-and-paper gal.<br /><br />~Julia
Thanks again for the review, Rachelle! I'm so glad you enjoyed the book.
Thanks for this review, Rachelle! I have been looking for a good book to help me construct a novel. I will be sure to check this out!