Starting to work on your novel can be exciting. You are full of ideas; you have the perfect main character; the hero’s sidekick is a funny character who always supports him; and you know how the villain will challenge him and ultimately defeat him… but wait. Is this getting too overwhelming? Writing a novel can be challenging; you feel like you are getting lost in your own story. You may have a great story to tell but may struggle with consistency and cohesion when writing it because of the complexity and length of this literary work.
An outline can be useful to plan each chapter, develop character arcs, and maintain a natural pace throughout your story to ensure that nothing is rushed and your readers get a rich reading experience.
In this blog post, we will talk about how the outline can help you design your novel, introduce you to genre-specific novel outline templates, and explain how you can use an outline template to help you overcome writer’s block.
Understanding a Novel Outline
“A goal without a plan is just a wish.” Antoine de Saint-Exupéry.
A novel outline is a roadmap for writing your story. It organizes its major elements like character profiles, descriptions of key settings, and a breakdown of the story’s progression—often using structures like the three-act format.
To understand this better, let us explore these elements briefly one by one:
Character Descriptions: In a novel outline, you can describe each character in your story like their physical traits, backstory, motivations, goals, internal conflicts, etc. In a novel, you will see certain types of characters:
- Protagonist: The central character who takes the action forward in a story. For instance, the character of Pip in Great Expectations.
- Anatgonits: The character or force that challenges the protagonist. For example, Iago in Othello.
- Secondary characters: These characters add depth to the story and support the plot. They can be mentors, sidekicks, family members, etc. They are not as important as the protagonist and antagonist but play an important role in taking the story forward and creating a believable world.
- Genre-specific characters: There are some characters that are unique to the theme of a story. Consider the example of Mr. Darcy as the love interest in Pride and Prejudice. His relationship to the protagonist was crucial to the development of the plot.
Setting Description: Describing the setting of your story is important in worldbuilding. In an outline, you describe the place, the social and historical context and the mood where the story takes place. All these elements influence the world of the character and often explain how they will react. For instance, in the novel The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, we see the New York of the 1920s. The themes of ambition, greed, and disillusionment resonate with the atmosphere during that period.
Three-Act Structure: Most stories follow the traditional 3 Act structure, which breaks the plot into a beginning, middle, and end, as described by Aristotle when he analyzed Greek tragedies. The outline for a 3-act structure divides the plot like this:
- Act 1: Introduce characters and establish the conflict.
- Act 2: Develop tension, obstacles, and character growth.
- Act 3: Resolve the conflict with a satisfying climax and conclusion.
Why Should You Use an Outline to Plan Your Novel?
An immediate criticism of the outlining method is that it can stifle creativity. By following a strict framework, the writer’s spontaneity may make the process tiresome.
However, outlining is a popular technique for many writers in almost all genres. The reason is that novel writing is much more than having a brilliant idea. A novel is a form of literary work that relies on an engaging and layered story but also complex characters that are multidimensional. This not only requires intense focus but also discipline.
Besides this, since the novel is a lengthy narrative, you have the challenge of maintaining a cohesive plot while showing character development as the story evolves. To enrich the story, a novel requires not only the main character and the antagonist but several secondary characters also need to be created to create a believable world and for the progression of the story.
Novels also have many sub-plots that complement the main theme of the story and need to be developed in detail as well. Consider Boo Radley’s subplot in To Kill a Mockingbird for instance. It parallels the main plot about racial injustice, emphasizing themes of empathy and judgment. Scout and Jem’s evolving view of Boo deepens the novel’s moral exploration.
Thus, the complexity of this literary work requires a disciplined approach, and an outline offers the best remedy to have a consistent story progression, resolve plot holes, track character development, and keep the readers engaged.
In this comparison below, you can see how working without an outline can lead to several issues and a waste of time and effort as a writer.
Messy Draft or Masterpiece: See the Difference!
| Aspect | Messy Draft | Well-Outlined Novel |
| Plot Structure | Story lacks direction; events feel random, pacing is inconsistent. | Clear, logical progression with planned plot beats and balanced pacing. |
| Character Development | Characters are inconsistent, flat, or disappear without explanation. | Each character has clear motivations, growth arcs, and meaningful contributions to the story. |
| Subplots and Themes | Subplots are underdeveloped or overshadow the main story; themes are unclear. | Subplots enhance the main plot; themes are consistent and well-integrated into the narrative. |
| Writing Process | Writing feels overwhelming; constant rewrites to fix major plot holes and pacing issues. | Writing flows smoothly; fewer revisions are needed because the structure is solid from the beginning. |
| Reader Engagement | Readers may lose interest due to confusion or slow pacing. | Readers stay engaged, enjoying the twists, turns, and well-paced story progression. |
Using a template for a novel outline saves time and provides a structured framework for designing the novel. They help you organize your plot points, character details, and all ideas in one place and avoid missing key elements.
In the following section, we introduce you to our genre-specific templates that are specially developed to help both seasoned and aspiring writers.
Genre Specific Outline Templates
At WordLayouts, we have developed several templates that are specific to various literary genres: Fantasy, Romance, Character-driven Novel, Hero’s Journey, and Mystery. Besides this, we also have a Universal Novel outline template to support writers in their creative writing endeavors.
In each of these templates, you will find sections to describe the Setting of the story, Character profiles for the Protagonist, Antagonist, and Secondary Characters, and a 3-act structure outline.
What makes this collection so useful is that in each template, you will find genre-specific prompts and instructions to guide you in structuring your ideas and introducing the elements relevant to the genre.
Each genre has specific elements that readers expect, and using a template ensures your plot aligns with these conventions. Similarly, character growth is essential in all genres, but the focus shifts based on the genre. These templates guide this evolution and make sure that character arcs align with genre-specific expectations.
Creative Novel Outline and Plotting Template
This template provides a complete framework for writing any type of novel. It is thoughtfully developed to act as a guidebook and support you at each stage of your writing journey.
It addresses key elements of storytelling and helps you shape your story from the beginning to the end. With instructions and explanations in each section, you will easily be able to use it to develop your ideas into a memorable story.
The template is divided into the following sections to give you a comprehensive view of your novel and make the process more manageable:
- Story Premise
- Setting
- Main Character/Protagonist
- Antagonist
- Secondary Characters
- Story Development
- 3 Act Structure
- Story Beats
- Snowflake method Checklist
- Story Timeline Tracker
- Novel Chapter Outline
With the comprehensive structure of this template, you will be able to easily write the story premise, describe the setting of your novel, create character profiles, and divide the story into 3 acts. Moreover, the sections for story beats, the snowflake checklist, and the timeline checker make sure that you address each aspect of storytelling and avoid any plot holes.
This template is versatile and suitable for any genre or writing style.
Fantasy Novel Outline Template
A fantasy novel is set in an imaginary world with little or no reference to the real world. This template is designed specifically to guide you in developing a fantasy novel. In this template, you will find sections for Setting, Main Character, Antagonist, and the 3-Acts.
The genre-specific sections are Magic and Companion. To introduce the magic elements in your plot, you can write Types of Magic, Important Artifacts, Source of Magic, Key Practitioners. The companion or sidekick is a character in fiction who supports the main character. There are various sections in the template to guide you in focusing on various aspects of the companion’s character.
Writing a fantasy novel requires great skill and imagination. With this outline template, you will be able to create a novel that offers your readers plenty of magic-ladden moments, great action, and an engaging storyline.
Romance Novel Outline Template
Romance novels explore the emotional journey of characters as they navigate love and relationships, with the central theme often being the transformative power of love. A popular example is Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell, in which the central character Scarlett O’Hara’s love for Rhett Butler affects her personal growth.
In this template, you will find structured sections describing the character arcs for both the central character and the love interest. The section for the antagonist is designed to create a versatile antagonist who can be a person or social element.
In the sections for writing the three acts, you will find built-in elements to guide you in writing an emotionally charged love story. For each act, you can describe the emotional turning points, such as the First Meeting, Developing Relationship, Calm before the Storm, etc., to create an engaging plot with proper rhythm and pacing.
Whether you are writing a contemporary romance or a love story set in the past, this template can be used to tell heartwarming love stories that your readers will cherish for a long time.
Character Driven Novel Outline Template
A character-driven novel focuses on deep character development, where the central theme revolves around personal struggles, self-discovery, and internal conflicts. Raskolnikov’s moral dilemmas and his quest for redemption in Crime and Punishment is a classic example of such a novel.
Considering the unique requirements of this genre, the template for writing a character-driven novel is designed to emphasize character development and internal conflict. You can describe the internal conflict of the protagonist, the confrontation, and the resolution of the conflict as it unfolds in your story.
With the help of this template, you can weave a story around a character’s personal journey and show the transformation they go through as the story evolves. This template can be used to show a protagonist’s journey and emotional growth, whether you are writing a coming-of-age story or a Bildungsroman hero’s journey.
Hero’s Journey Novel Outline Template
A hero’s journey is a timeless plot structure where the main character goes on an adventure and, during the course of his journey, faces challenges and hardships.
A hero’s journey, or monomyth, is a story in which the protagonist embarks on an adventure, overcomes obstacles, and transforms before returning home. Homer’s Odyssey is a classic example of this type of storytelling.
In this template, you will find all 12 stages of the hero’s journey as analyzed by Joseph Campbell in The Hero with a Thousand Faces. After the sections describing the setting of your story and developing the main character, the template follows with details of the 12 stages divided across three acts.
Mystery Novel Outline Template
A mystery novel is one where the central character solves a crime, uncovering hidden truths, or navigating a complex, unexplained event. This popular genre features works of Agatha Christie and the Sherlock Holmes series by Sir Arthur Canon Doyle. The emphasis in such a novel is on creating an engaging plot and building tension and suspense at the right moments.
This template is specifically developed to help you organize the mystery’s key elements, like clues, suspects, and red herrings, and maintain a logical progression. The story elements like Suspect Confrontations, Escaling Dangers or Personal Stakes, etc. ensure that the introduction of the crime, a gradual buildup of clues, and a resolution where the mystery is solved are properly presented.
This template will help you organize your ideas for any kind of mystery novel and guide the progression of your story at the right pace. Write an intriguing page-turner by using this outline template.
These templates are available in multiple formats, including DOCX, DOTX, Google Docs, and ODT. You can easily print them or use them online. Though they were created with genre-specific requirements in mind, you can easily modify the sections to fit your story’s particular needs.
Can Outline Help Me Overcome Writer’s Block?
The main reasons for experiencing writer’s block are a lack of inspiration, difficulty in articulating ideas, and distractions. An outline template can easily help you overcome these challenges by breaking the writing process into manageable steps and helping you stay focused without feeling overwhelmed.
In a well-designed template, you can immediately see the logical progression of events, from character development to key plot points. And because of this structured format, you can stay organized and focused and overcome writer’s block.
Final Thoughts
You may have a beautiful story to tell, but a disjointed plot, weak characters, and an unfulfilling ending will make your readers lose interest. With an outline, you can create a cohesive plot with well-developed and multidimensional characters that will capture your readers’ imagination.
Outlining does not limit your creativity; rather, it frees your mind by providing organized guidance for each stage of writing. With these genre-specific templates, you can define the setting, the character arcs, and the shape of your plot without being overwhelmed.
Use these templates to create a novel that readers will not put down until they have reached the last page.
