Whether you're a blogger, a novelist or a non-fiction writer, you've probably heard about the importance of planning your work and structuring it
well.
But why do these matter?
Why not simply grab a blank page and see where the words take you?
Well, this sort of free writing can be well worth doing: some writers use it as a way to get past blocks, or to unload their thoughts at the start of their writing session. It can also be a lot of fun to explore a scene or character, or a non-fiction topic, without any real idea of where you're going to end
up.
The problem with this, though, is that it almost inevitably leads to a lot of material that you need to scrap. While I'm a firm believer that no words are wasted – everything you write is a learning opportunity – it can be really frustrating to spend ages writing something that you eventually realise you can't use.
Planning matters because it lets you figure out where you're going and it makes the journey easier. When
you have a plan for a blog post, the actual writing of it is relatively straight forward. When you've got an idea of the ending of your novel, plus key scenes along the way, you can be confident that you're not writing chapter after chapter that you'll later have to scrap.
You might start a plan with a mindmap or with index cards that you shuffle around on your desk: it doesn't have to begin as a linear list of key points or a
chapter-by-chapter outline.
Structure is closely related to planning ... but I don't think a plan guarantees a good structure!
For me, the plan is about the content itself (what key points will I make in a blog post, what crucial plot events will happen in my novel) and the structure is a framework for that content (introduction plus five subsections in a blog post, for instance).
Structure
matters because it shapes your content into a coherent whole. It allows for progression and pace; the reader won't feel like you're meandering through your points or your story in a haphazard way.
Structure is also repeatable: for instance, my blog posts tend to follow a consistent structure like this:
- Title
- Feature image
- Introduction
- Three to seven key points, each with a subheading
- Often (not always), a subsection for each
of those points – e.g. "Lessons Learned" or "Try It"
- A conclusion at the end to round the post off
- A "call to action" of some sort – e.g. I invite readers to leave a comment
This structure can work for all sorts of different blog posts covering a wide range of topics.
If you write fiction, you're probably following certain structural rules without even thinking about them (because you've read and watched so many stories in the
past). K.M. Weiland's book
Structuring Your Novel (
https://www.kmweiland.com/book/structuring-your-novel) is a brilliant look at the key structural points of a novel, with lots of examples from well-known novels and films.
I know not all authors are "natural" planners. I have to admit that I'm always tempted to launch straight in and see where I end up! I've found over the years, though, that having a plan and following a good structure doesn't inhibit my creativity: it gives me the framework
I need in order to do my best work.
If you don't normally plan, give it a try next time you sit down to write. Spend just 5 - 10 minutes planning whatever you're about to work on (I like to scribble a quick mindmap or jot down bullet points) ... and see if it makes a difference.
