I know there are some writers who struggle to come up with plot ideas for their books. They think of one, write it, and then agonize over what to work on next. I don’t have that problem. I’m always coming up with new ideas. In fact, I come up with so many that a few years ago, I realized I needed to organize my ideas. If you’re like me and overwhelmed with everything you want to write, here’s how I get everything in order.
Start a New Excel Document
I’ve been using Excel for years, but if you like another program, feel free to use it. I call mine my document Novel Ideas.
Create The Categories
Column number one is the title of the book.
Column number two is a list of the tropes.
Column number three is a one sentence description of the plot.
Fill It Out When You Have an Idea
When you come up with an idea, put it in your document. Easy peasy. And then all your ideas are organized together.
Add More Details in a Word Document
If I’ve brainstormed more details of the plot, I’ll open up a Word document and get them down so when I go back to work on the book later, I’ll be even closer to writing an outline.
And that’s my whole process.
Couldn’t be more simple, right?
The key, of course, is to customize your document to your tastes. Maybe you don’t want the pressure of having to think up a title right away. Maybe you don’t want to think of the tropes so soon. It’s really up to you.