The Need for Structure

Beginnings are Easy

For years I wanted to move from writing technical documents to writing thrillers. Even though writing non-fiction had paid the bills, my heartstrings are pulled by the desire to pen entertaining stories and novels.

As it turned out, I found I could complete short stories with ease, but novels—not so much.

I wrote exciting first chapters that contained all-important hooks, followed by second chapters that fleshed out the characters. In time I completed and edited the first six chapters of four promising spec fiction novels, but that’s where each story bogged down. Although I liked these stories and their characters very much, completing a book-length manuscript was out of my reach.

After thirty to forty pages, my ideas faltered, the flow dried up, my characters lost their perkiness, and actions felt contrived. When I couldn’t figure out how to proceed, I stuffed the notes and pages into a file and put the projects aside.

Within several years of writing fiction, I had published and won awards for short stories but had not completed a novel – not even close. To realize my publication dreams, I needed to learn how to do this.

No Table of Contents

Completing large tech manuals is a straight-forward process. From various pieces of information about complicated systems, tech writers design the backbone of every tech manual: the blessed Table of Contents. With that intricate outline in hand, the author explains every aspect of the system until the subject has been exhausted and the manual is complete.

I wanted freedom from that rigid structure and sought to find it writing fiction. Here at last I thought I’d have the freedom to write without stringent boundaries. I envisioned allowing my imagination to flow unfettered onto a page, having started with little more than a character and a vague idea where the story was headed.

In short, I dreamed of writing without a regimental TOC. I wanted to be a pantser.

To Plot or Not to Plot

It took a while to learn that being a pantser works for writing flash fiction and short stories, but often fails when trying to pen a novel. Stephen King has claimed to be a pantser, but for many of us, this approach doesn’t work for book-length fiction.

Reluctantly I had to admit that my wannabe novels came to a disconcerting halt because they lacked structure… the very thing I had tried to escape. Did this mean I had to give up pantsing? Yikes. For short fiction—No, but for novels—Yes. I hoped this didn’t mean I had to return to long, detailed outlines. Perhaps selling hamburgers for a living had more appeal.

Leaving heel marks in the carpet, I sought information about constructing plots.

Plotting When You Don’t Want To

I watched videos about plotting on Udemy and YouTube. Although they were interesting, they failed to convert me. I trusted my characters to lead me where they wanted to go, then I would follow them and document their journey. How could I create a plot when I wasn’t sure what the characters would do next?

Back when I wrote about widgets, I knew exactly what they could and couldn’t do. I faced no unknowns. But that hasn’t been the case with my characters, who surprise me on occasion.

In desperation I searched the Internet for “…how to plot when you hate outlining” and found this gem: “Plotting When You Hate Plotting” by Dale Lehrman). Hooray, Dale understood my dilemma. We both felt that plotting what a character would do twenty chapters in advance was akin to placing them in a strait jacket. We liked our characters to lead us.

At last I decided to take Dale’s advice and open a dialog with a main character.

Structure Works

From my archives I pulled a YA spec fiction work-in-progress I put aside two years before (at 31,000 words). I began to question the hero, asking what he planned to do after he pulled out of his current situation and what he would do after that, including how he planned to get back to what he did best. And what about that girl?

Within days the questioning process gave me working titles for the remaining chapters. I didn’t have much more than the chapter titles, but they provided enough structure for me to continue the novel. Reluctantly I had to admit that knowing where I was going helped a great deal.

I finally understood why so many writers could complete their novels while I couldn’t. I had forgotten the importance of embracing Structure, no matter how scant.

Happy writing!