Outlining Kills Spontaneity!

Or does it?

Have you been to that place, Wavers? That place when you start to outline the broad strokes of your script when suddenly all the gears in your brain start whirring and you keep getting sidetracked with details like one line of dialogue that would be cool in some scene you haven’t yet written? Like silver fish darting in the depths of the ocean, Cool Bits are elusive and we fear that if we don't net them now - we'll lose them. And the truth is, we might. So what do we do?


Something I often tell my clients is that they need to remember to eat their vegetables. Five servings a day, how you doing on that, Wavers? No, what I really mean by that is that screenwriters get really excited about those GREAT setpieces, lines of dialogue, action sequences in super slo-mo or super romantic moments. But you cannot forget the brass tacks of the story. I resisted outlining for many years but it was after bitter and painful experience that I learned that outlining is my lord and savior. Metaphorically speaking. Oh Jesus, now I'm going to offend somebody. And Wavers - would it be the Rouge Wave if I didn't use about a thousand mixed metaphors daily? No. It wouldn't. Fish, vegetables, brass tacks, Jesus. It's just another day at the Rouge Wave.

But. Outlining is a good thing, let's put it that way. In fact, I would never, ever, write a script without an outline. Your outline is your net.


So what about the Cool Bit Silver Fish? Doesn't outlining quash the creative process? Isn't it boring? Won't you forget that little silver fish that swam briefly into your line of vision while outlining the second act and said - write this! This is a cool bit! Wavers, those little silver fish of spontaneous creation are part of the wonder and the mystery of writing. But they are also distracting as all get out. Follow the silver fish of Cool Bits at your own peril for soon you will be like Nemo, lost in a murky sea of silver fish - with no structure in sight.

Is there a compromise between our right and left brain impulses when writing?

WWBD? The answer lies, as Buddha said, in the middle road. The details, the cool bits, the lines of dialogue that come to us when we’re driving or in a meeting or listening to how our partner's day went or folding socks should not be missed. Nor should they distract. There is a way to net the silver fish.

Think of your outline as your fishing net. When you are working on your script, whether you are in outline stage or actually into pages, it’s helpful to buy index cards for just this purpose. Note at the top of the card, which act or sequence the Silver Fish goes in, then jot it down. Keep the cards in order by act or sequence and put a rubber band around them. Carry them around in your purse or back pocket so they are available when inspiration strikes.

And when you’re working on your outline and feel the urge to jot down a cool bit – go ahead and do so. Jot it, label it and file it. Get that silver fish in the net before it swims away. Then get back to that outline which is the shape that will not only hold the silver fish but also give the whole script its shape.

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