A Guide to Crafting Your Outline… From Ideas to Execution
The easy guide to outlining your book so writing is a breeze
This is a part of a series on how to write a SourceBook in 12 weeks using the writing you’re already doing. Catch up with previous articles here. And while you’re at it you should stick around…
Go Build Your Outline
The six phases of a SourceBook I just gave you and the checklist should be enough to get you going. To add a little extra flavor to the pot, I’m going to give you an example of an outline and how I’ve built mine. Use this as a starting point if you need to, but don’t adhere to it as a strict structure. Remember, Scaffoldings are Foreplay Fill in the Blanks are Cliché.
But!
If you’re already raring to go and you want to skip this bit, that’s fine. Before you go let me drop a couple nuggets of wisdom in your dome…
Nuggets of Wisdom
There are a few things I’ve found that make writing an outline universally easier. Think back to the section on laying out your book, and I mentioned two preliminary edits you should do: the Thinking Edit and the Curation Edit. Use them. They’re powerful tools that make writing much easier.
As you’ll see in the example below, every section or chapter of my writing gets the same bullet points to help me focus…
Headline options
Subhead options
Ideas
Quotes
Snippets
Headlines are the big ideas (Go Build Your Outline, Nuggets of Wisdom, etc.).
Subheads are the smaller ideas in the chapter to help your reader keep track of what you’re writing.
Ideas is where you put anything you’re thinking about writing about.
Quotes is where you put any good quotes about the topic
Snippets is my favorite section because it’s where you recycle your writing. Anything you’ve already written about the idea goes here. If you’ve written a lot, then your job is way easier.
Eight to Twelve Big Ideas
Another thing that will help you along the path is to have eight to twelve big ideas you want to talk about that relate back to your one big idea. Eight is usually the minimum for a quality book for two reasons. It allows you enough territory to roam freely and it gives your audience a wide enough look at your subject. Anything more than twelve gets unruly, and you should think about separating the ideas into two books.
Don’t wait until it’s done
I’ve said it before, but I want this in the fiber of your being. Don’t wait until you’ve got the perfect outline to write. Do your best, then get to writing. How long does the outline take? I’ll give you the worst answer… it depends. I wouldn’t spend less than a day on it and don’t spend more than a week on it. Considering you’re a busy entrepreneur, you’ve got other work to do.
You’ll probably do best spending two hours up front outlining and then revisiting it for 20–30 minutes over the course of a few days. That way you can fill in gaps and let the Muses help you along.
Example Outline:
I’m going to outline a book for someone who wants to teach weekend warrior fishermen to turn their hobby into additional income. I’ll be combining the Method and Implementation steps in this outline, because I think it makes the most sense for fish folk. And I’m going to quit at idea 4 because you’ll get the idea by then. You’ll be doing more if you use this scaffolding.
Does this already exist? Will I be making up facts and ideas? I don’t know, and probably. The specifics don’t count, look at the formatting…
Book Idea: How to build a business from your fishing hobby
Round Table: Any fisherman can build a fishing business in their spare time
Category: Fishing should be fun and make you money, here’s how
Audience: Hobbyist fish enthusiasts with at least five years experience and who fish once per week.
Introduction
Headline options
Turn your passion to profits
Fish aren’t just free food
Scaling with scales
Subhead options
Ideas
Be quick here, you’re talking to fishermen who don’t have a lot of time to read
Quotes
Snippets
Conversion story
Headline options
Think like the fish, not the fisherman
Subhead options
An extra $1000 a month is life changing
Ideas
My story and my friend Tom. How
Quotes
“I just love fishing, I never thought I could make money off of it.” Jason P.
Snippets
Idea 1 — spread the love
Headline options
Giving away fish is your best marketing strategy
Subhead options
Snag them with the first taste.
Ideas
Show them how easy it is to give fish away with a little flier about how you’re going to be offering fish in the future.
Everyone loves fresh fish, but it’s intimidating to go get your own. You’re the bridge between the two.
Quotes
Snippets
Idea 2 — Build your local audience
Headline options
Subhead options
Ideas
Social media
Farmers markets
Friends
School auctions
Quotes
Snippets
Idea 3 — Going from fish friend to fish seller
Headline options
What do you mean I have to pay?
Subhead options
Make the transition smooth
Ideas
Show them the process to lay groundwork so when they start asking for money the people who got free fish are ready to pay
Quotes
Snippets
Idea 4 — Build slow to go fast
Headline options
Scarcity is your best friend
Subhead options
You don’t have to sell it all
Oops, it’s gone, sign up for email alerts so you don’t miss out next time
Ideas
The pop-up idea so they can sell out each time they sell and keep the fish they want to keep.
Quotes
Snippets
Technical Bits
Headline options
Don’t make these mistakes
Subhead options
They’ll shut you down unless you follow my method
Ideas
How to sell fish without starting an LLC
Banking your fishing fund
Preventing food poisoning
Quotes
Snippets
Close
Headline options
Reel in the profits
Subhead options
You’re not alone
Ideas
Get them to subscribe to my newsletter for a checklist on how to make it happen
Offer a discount on my fishing course
Quotes
Snippets
Now that you have your outline, I’m going to show you how to use it so writing is a breeze…
Enough for now, go write something
-Kian