Last fall, when I wrote about writing a novel “scene by scene” as someone neurodivergent, I received a ton of interesting feedback. Most of it was a variation on these three questions:
- How can you possibly write out of order?
- How can you keep things straight when you write like that?
- I get hives even thinking about writing out of order!
I’ll give you my answer in a nutshell.
I don’t write out of order to be different or creative. I write out of order so I can finish books. When I wrote like all my writer friends – opening a Word doc and writing until the book was done – the book(s) NEVER got done.
Seriously, I had 13 unfinished novels and a truckload of self-loathing by the time I stopped banging my head against that wall.
I had to break a book down into tiny little pieces, or the process would break my brain and make me loathe writing. But, there are a few caveats to this approach. Even a disorganized ADD brain like mine had to implement a little bit of order.
Must-Haves for the “Scene Writing” Approach
You don’t have to have every one of these mastered, but it really, really helps if you at least have the first one. I tend to use them all when I get to the editing process.
You must have a good grasp of writing structure.
Otherwise, you end up with a pile of scenes, or “story blocks,” you can’t use. It also helps to know the 12 steps of the Hero’s Journey.
- Here’s a great link from Grammarly on the hero’s journey.
- I work with more with 3-Act structure because I can keep track of it better in my head.
Two words – conflict lock.
According to Bob Mayer, “If you don’t have a conflict lock, you don’t have a story.” He’s the author of Warrior Writer and co-founder of Cool Gus Publishing, and the Conflict Lock is a very cool tool. Here’s a blog from Shannon Curtis to tell you more.
Scene-dissecting tools like Margie Lawson’s EDITS system.
If you don’t have tools like the ones Margie teaches you, it’s difficult to figure out where you missed with a scene, especially if you’re a pantser. I really appreciated her EDITS system, because it is so visual.
My recommendation: Invest in yourself with classes or lecture packets from Lawson Writers Academy…you’ll be glad you did.
Understand your story’s DNA (theme) before you get too far.
I think hard about theme pretty early in my process for an important reason. If you have a strong visual of your story’s underlying message, I believe you will automatically write to it. That story DNA will inform every scene choice you make because it has to.
John August, the screenwriter for Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and Big Fish, says it much better than I do in this post.
Some Pros and Cons of Scene Writing
And yes, these are all going to be completely subjective. However, if you’re on the fence about your process, I thought it might be helpful to see why you might like or dislike this writing method.
The advantages.
1. It’s a great way to avoid writer’s block.
There’s always another scene to write or edit. Those scenes can jump start you back into any story that is stalled. You don’t even have to use it in the story…it can become a “throwaway” scene that you use as a newsletter giveaway.
2. I’m able to fall into the writing and stay immersed, because it’s “only one scene.”
3. Tools like Scrivener and Plottr allow you to store scenes separately and move them around.
4. The story theme is naturally interwoven when you write this way.
5. This method allows you to move between fiction and non-fiction pretty easily.
The disadvantages.
1. The biggest downside to this method is that I often need objective eyes to tell me when the story is “really done.” If you are focused at the scene level for a while, you might “lose the forest for the trees.”
FIX: If I’m feeling lost, I compile the whole thing into a Word document so Word can read it to me in that super-boring computer voice it uses. It’s far easier to spot the problems when you see or hear your story in a different medium.
A few other authors have told me that even changing the font when they read helps them catch errors.
2. Continuity edits are a must for long works. Sometimes, you need another set of eyes to check and be sure that all the loose ends are tied up.
3. Scene transitions bug the heck out of me (and I’m pretty sure I’m terrible at them). The story quilting method stitches those glorious scenes of yours together with whatever quick transitions you use to open a scene.
FIX: If you also feel like you’re not good at transitions, my solution is to find a writing pal who loves them and run the work by them.
Final Thought
My approach is certainly not for everyone. Believe me, I am super jealous of all you linear, organized writers.
There are times when going the “scene-writing route” is beneficial. Who would I recommend this non-linear method to?
- People with neurodivergent brains like mine that get paralyzed by too many details.
- Writers who feel stuck. In my experience, the best way through writer’s block is by tricking yourself into any writing. Writing short is a great way to do that. You can always use any extra scenes as marketing giveaways.
- Big picture thinkers, who see the 50K foot view, but have trouble zooming in close.
- Writers who get a story idea and want to write some scenes before they commit to a whole book.
I’m sure there are other populations of writers I haven’t even thought of here, so I’m going to turn this over to all of you. When do you think the non-linear approach could be helpful?
Jenny Hansen provides brand storytelling, LinkedIn coaching, and copywriting for financial services firms. By night, she writes humor, memoirs, women’s fiction, and short stories. After 20+ years as a corporate trainer, she loves this sit-down-and-work thing. As a co-founder of Writers In the Storm (WITS), Jenny has supported writers since 2010. WITS, recognized by Writer’s Digest as a top website for writers, offers weekly posts on writing craft and inspiration. Jenny is currently revising a memoir about her cancer journey, with a style described as “get busy laughing, or get busy crying.”
Love this! And you know that I sometimes write out of order as well. What I tend to do it skip ahead to a scene I know when I get stuck writing linearly. Oh, and I often write the climax early on so I know what I’m heading toward!
By the way, my way of knowing if I’ve hit my story arc properly is using the Writers Helping Writers timeline tool, dropping my scenes in with summaries, and then checking the structure that way. It’s really helped me to see if my puzzle approach to writing has left out any pieces or crammed too many in.
Thanks, Julie! And yes, I do use OneStop for Writers when I’m stuck for ideas, and it helps A LOT.
Hi Jenny,
Love the idea of getting text-to-speech to read you your outline to break the familiar/habitual and give you a different perspective. Great idea.
Thanks for the Plottr mention, too! Many members of our community are neurodivergent and find creating timelines and planning scenes helpful for focus and avoiding distractions while outlining.
Jordan at Plottr
Marketing Lead
Hey, Jordan!! Good to see you over here. Plottr really saves the day for us more “disorganized” writers. I love that I can drag and drop, and it gives me a different visual on the work. THANK YOU!!
I feel like I’ve found my tribe! As a newbie writer, I thought something was wrong with me because I couldn’t quite maintain momentum writing in a linear fashion. I do much better with writing as the scenes arrive (I figure I can sort it all out later). Thank you so much for this insightful post Jenny and for normalizing a process that departs from the “norm.”
Yvonne, my struggle is your gain! For years, I bashed my head against the linear wall and couldn’t get my stories finished. How to finish them is what you’ve got to learn — what we all have to learn — as writers. It’s just a teensy bit harder for the people who don’t do it “the normal” way. If you get the chance, you might find value in my story quilting posts. They’re more brass tacks on the HOW than this post.
And fist bump to finding your tribe!!.
Yessss, represent! ♾️
LOLOLOL. Thanks for giving me a big smile, Carrie!
Thank you for sharing your process and tips with everyone, Jenny. I know it’s going to help so many people!
I personally do best with linear writing…but every once in a while a future scene screams so loud, I need to pause and jot it down so I can move forward. Plus, it feels awesome when I hit that part and don’t have to try to remember all the ideas I had. It’s usually the ending or a scene with tons of conflict.
Anytime a scene screams, it’s a great day. At least it is in my book. 🙂 I get soooo jealous of you linear writers. We all want what we don’t have, right?
As someone who has never had any official diagnosis and has always felt different (In my thinking) to most other people I rejoiced reading this blog. I even did a happy dance. You give me hope that I may actually be on the right track with my ‘oh so all over the place’ novel. I’m TRYING to write linear, after reading this I’m just going to follow my Muse.
Jacque, that’s lovely to hear. The people who gave me “permission” were Janet Fitch (White Oleander) and Diana Gabaldon (Outlander). Oh, and Lorna Landvik (Angry Housewives Eating Bon-Bons). All of them write out of order. They write the story as it comes to them and figure out the order later.
Success as a writer in my book is being able to finish books reliably. How you get there is irrelevant…just do whatever works for YOU.
Happy Writing!!!
Wow – this is such a good look at how to write this way successfully, and why a person may wish to when other methods are not a fit. I can see why story structure would be so important, especially if you pants, and it sets you up for success.
Thanks, Angela! It was quite the journey for me to figure out what would work. I’m not gonna lie…it was stressful in the beginning. 🙂
I absolutely love this!! I can’t write linear. If I try, I become blocked. At first, I thought there was something wrong with me but have since learned that it’s my process. I have learned to embrace it. Of course I still panic if my editor asks for 3 chapters. I can send 3 they just won’t be the first 3. LOL!
You are my people, Carrie!!! All brains don’t work the same, and that is soooo especially true with writing.
I love your brain, Jenny Hansen!
Hahahaha! Thanks, Becca. It was a massive pain in the psyche to figure all this out. Thanks for giving my a space to share this with other writers who struggle.