SPA Girls Podcast – EP270 – From Great Idea to Sellable Story

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You’ve had a great idea for a story – now how do you turn it into a workable outline?
This is a “live action” recording where the SPA Girls take a “great” idea – an Elf who hates Christmas – into a workable outline! Probably NSFW, you’ll hopefully find this episode informative and a lighthearted break from holiday stress! And don’t forget to visit us on facebook and let us know which story you think we should write!

Included in the tips we discuss …

figure out wordcount you want / how many chapters. list the chapters and just start filling in what happens in each chapter
snowflake method -The Snowflake Method is an approach to writing that encourages starting with the simplest premise possible. From there, you systematically expand it to include plot and character details.
don’t feel you have to outline the whole thing at the start
write the blurb and flesh it out more from there
keep raising the stakes for characters
know what genre you’re writing from the start – same for heat level and character ages

Resources mentioned:

How to Write a Novel Using the Snowflake Method (Advanced Fiction Writing Book 1) by Randy Ingermanson

Gwen Haye’s book Romancing The Beat

Jami Gold’s site Romance Beat Sheets