Invest significant time developing your outline and fine-tuning it. Don’t be afraid

to move portions of your outline around and add or delete sections until

you’ve created a document that can be used as a foundation for writing the

actual manuscript. Here are some other tips to help you polish your outline:

-

 Consider adding actual chapter titles and section headings and subhead-

ings to help you create a more comprehensive overview.

-

 List specifically where elements of your manuscript go, such as side-

bars, interviews (quotes), photographs, examples, references, statistics,

illustrations, graphs, charts, and checklists.

-

 Think about how many pages of your book you want dedicated to each

chapter, topic, or section, keeping in mind the total number of pages

your manuscript needs to be when complete.

-

 Try to keep your manuscript well balanced. All your chapters should be

equal in length. This rule isn’t steadfast but helps with the book’s flow.

This concept applies to fiction as well, although with fiction, it’s more

important that your story flow smoothly and engage the reader.

-

 If you’re writing fiction, list what happens in each chapter, what plot

twists you introduce, and the relevant details about characters.

Find a handful of people who are also knowledgeable about what you write

and have them review your outline and provide feedback. Obtaining someone

else’s perspective may help you develop a more thorough outline. The more

work you do now in terms of organizing and choosing the content for your

book, the easier the actual manuscript writing process is.

As you’re writing your manuscript, place a checkmark on your outline next to

completed sections. During the actual writing phase, you may determine that

a change to your outline is appropriate. Unlike the Ten Commandments, your

outline isn’t etched in stone. You’re free to make changes as you go.

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