Building a story or series from the ground up with the help of templates!
This is how I approach planning. It covers what I do up to the point of opening a blank document and typing the first word.
Despite the tags this isn’t going to be ‘how to’ or advice based because who am I to tell you how to plan a story? This is only an option:) I engourage you to steal liberally but also question whether or not this method will work for you. If you don’t vibe with something, throw it out!
*you don’t have to answer these questions in order.
Genre/Sub-genres: Picking a genre can help you find ideas/tropes faster. If you’ve written or read a book before you probably know the types of stories you like.
Age Category: This can help you find themes for you story. I like to sepate genre and cataegory since you can have a young adult or an adult romance.
Point Of View: Pick who will tell the story. Will there be more than one?
Tense: First, second or third person? Past or present?
Formatting: How will the story be split up? Through chapters or parts. I also like to put whether or not I’ll have a playlist, any quotes or epigraphs, prologues or epilogues, anything like that.
Tone: Will your story be serious, light hearted, sad, satirical...etc
Atmosphere/Color palette: I like to use this for when I’m writing description. Using specificities to elevate your writing can bring a world together and make it feel real.
Overall Concept: As vague as you’d like it to be! I usually give a few sentences.
Comparison Titles: I love to use comparison titles in the beginning when nothing has been solidified. It helps me know what came before me while still generating lots of inspiration.
Series Title: I usually base it off the first books title or a significant thing that links all the stories together.
Number of stories you want: I don’t always know how many stories will be in a series but it’s good to have a rough esimate of how many you’d like to write.
Number of stories realistically achievable: But we all know that sometimes an idea just isn’t sustainable for a 10 book series but works rather well as a trilogy instead.
Story that will kick off the series: All of your stories should fit a purpose in the series but this book will take the roll as a set-up (not to be confused as ‘filler’) for the rest of your series. It’s just something to have in mind when planning. This way you can plant twists and foreshadowing for the rest of the books.
Story that will close out the series: This story has big shoes to fill since you’ve probably been amping everything up to an explosive finish but at the end of the day it doesn’t matter if it’s bigger and better than what came before, it only matters if it’s a satisfying close to the whole series.
Story # 1 summary ...you get the idea
Timeline: I like to know what year the series starts and when it will end. It might sound complicated but it’s so helpful. You don’t want a character to be pregnant or something for three books if the the stories have spanned more than nine months.
Spin-offs: You might find that you’ve got some ideas that don’t quite fit in with the others but they have some common elements. A spin-off is a cool way to explore those other ideas.
Naming conventions: I like to name my individual stories similar things to keep a theme. Example: J. R. Wards Black Dagger Brotherhood series has book titles with the word ‘Lover’ in them. There’s also naming conventions like the ACOTAR series by Sarah J. Maas that go “A Court of Blank and Blank”
Historical Background and Events:
What might the town be hiding to the average passer-by?
*You can definitely add more questions depending on your story. I write mostly within our world but I do like to create fictional towns.
* Again, you can add any more questions you’d like to. These are just the ones I like to use to get going. Some of them are super vague, so in Daily Life I’ll put their living arrangement, transportation, pets or anything like that. I also add loads of stuff in their Description such as sexuality, how they dress, tattoos or scars, etc.
*this is for anything like a fictional club, cult, company, evil organization or something like that.
Council Members (include roles):
Other Members (include roles):
Working Title: Sometimes I use something concrete but if I need to get it out of the way I’ll put something like Project Black.
Estimated Length: Word or chapter count you’d like to achieve.
Order: Which book in the series is it?
Premise: I like to refer to this as the summary’s skeleton.
Story Theme Song: This is just for fun but sometimes it really helps me capture what the whole story might be. I can also use it when I’m low on inspiration.
* I’d recommend googling an explanation of story beats or purchasing Blake Snyder or Jessica Brody’s book on Save The Cat beat sheet. But on the other hand, you don’t have to use a beat sheet at all. And if at any point during planning you feel like you’re ready to write then go for it!
Opening Image: An image that catapults your audience into the look and feel of your story
Theme Stated: Typically the theme of the story is communicated by someone fairly early on. This is dialogue spoken to the protagonist that he doesn’t quite grasp yet.
Set-Up: Show the protagonist in their “old world.” Let the audience know what the status quo is for them, then hint at the adventure that follows. This is also a time to introduce secondary characters.
Catalyst: Sometimes called the “inciting incident,” the catalyst is the event that disrupts your protagonist’s status quo. But they’re not ready to make the choice that catapults them into the story just yet.
Debate: This is where the protagonist has doubts about setting out on their perilous journey.
Break into Two: Inevitably, your protagonist will overcome their doubt and make a choice to set out on their adventure. This is the choice that sets the plot in motion. Your beat sheet will be filled with obstacles and twists resulting from making this choice from here on out.
B Story: A subplot ensues. Some would say that this is usually a romantic subplot.
Fun and Games: Plot structure requires a stretch where your protagonist wields their new power, and does cool stuff with it. I’ve also heard this referred to as the Promise of The Premise. So in Hunger Games by Susanne Collins this would be Katniss actually fighting in the games.
Midpoint: At some point, your protagonist will either get what they’re after... or not. But there will be consequences either way.
Bad Guys Close In: After your protagonist gets what they want, or not, there will be consequences. These forces will tighten their grasp, and throw the protagonist off balance.
All Is Lost: The dire circumstances your protagonist endures will lead to an inevitable loss. Which can be anything but it most commonly a character death.
Dark Night of the Soul: At this point of the Save the Cat beat sheet template, your protagonist has lost hope.
Break into Three: In plot structure, this is where your protagonist claws around in the darkness, only to find or remember something useful.
Finale: Treat the finale as the Act 3 summary. The Save the Cat beat sheet template is at its end, so it’s time for the protagonist to take on their foes. Armed with new tools and self-discoveries, the protagonist often synthesizes what they've learned (in Act 2) with values they've always had (Act 1).
Final Image: Along with the opening image, the final image creates the bookend that encapsulates the journey. This is the last thing the audience is left with.
*Closing thoughts: I have never used just a beat sheet because they don’t resonate with me for every story. I always add stuff or take away. I think there is a special beat missing between the Finale and Final image and that is where the characters slow down, take a breath and reflect on everything they’ve experienced. I also think Romance is the hardest genre to use the beat sheet with but I do a hybrid of the Beat Sheet from Save The Cat Writes A Novel! By Jessica Brody and Romancing the Beat by Gwen Hayes for the most part.
I hope this was helpful in some way or another! DM me or reply with any questions or for clarification. I have many more posts I’d like to create (on my process) but if you have any ideas or topics I should make posts on let me know.
Good luck and happy writing!
