Brandon Sanderson's 9 Step Outlining Method

This information is so helpful I get so distracted when writing and these tools (guidlines) I know will be so helpful thanks

I just found this video while scrolling through videos on writing in between writing spurts, and I have to say I was blown away by the idea of bullet points and using them to fulfill A, B, and C arcs. I just wrapped up my first novel, but after editing and pushing it out, I'm definitely doing that idea for my next one.

Your first VIDEO!? I know this is old, but just wanted to let you know what an incredible way to launch your channel!

beautifully presented. also love when creators are understanding, you can always just tell. much love everyone

What makes a character secondary rather than main or minor?

great video man!

Thank you Yarn

The sun/star turned off because of iron. Once a star makes iron, it shuts down fusion. Well, you did ask. ;)

Im literally writing a story where the sun turns off

Damn dude this is great, thank you so much for an excellent, compelling, and also extremely CONCISE video.

this video is two years old but i just stumbled upon it and i am, in fact, here because i'm writing a story where the sun turned off.

Huge coincidence, but your surname is my main character's surname!

Found your video 2 years later, impressed that this is your first, your production setup is pretty good. Can't wait to dig around your channel and see what else you've got 😊

So helpful, thank you so much!

Your wording is wonderful, such as the wording you use when cautioning the viewer to not view the steps you discuss in this episode as those that the viewer needs to follow.

I have literally been... "writing" a novel where the sun mysteriously turned off one day for a year at this point. (I say "writing" because I have commitment issues with my projects and have made truly abysmal progress on this novel for a year's worth of process lol)

Here's the summary of a short story I wrote 20+ years ago: The sun disappears one day and mankind panics. Shortly after the Gods return and Helios (Apollo at the time... cause I was 13) resumes his post as the sun. The sun was stolen by alien gods. The rest of the story is a heist. The main character is the right combination of small, skilled, and not a literal child to bypass some obstacle. The Secret: The Gods' had stolen the alien's sun thousands of years ago so they could slack off work. Natural suns are RARE. Most of the stars are actually alien sun gods. Solar theft is THE most common Intersolar crime.

nice job with the video. if you haven't, you might want to link to sandersons writing lectures from BYU. there's a playlist he made. i am not into his genre, but other types of fiction. his lectures are wonderfully practical, and excellent for guidance and troubleshooting.

You have explained it even better than Brandon Sanderson in his lecture! Wow

Suggestions on where to learn more about plot archetypes?

I always under write. I started out write scripts and that’s encouraged so it’s painful to change.

the Stormlight outline xD!!!

Wow. If this was your first video it was done very well and I found the content very helpful and succinct. Thank you!

Funny enough: in my current project the sun is kinda turning off.

Had to giggle at the “Kaladin: is a sad boy” plot point.

I'm a bit late to the party but this has been the key video I needed to stop just thinking about how wonderful it would be to write a novel and actually starting writing things down. Besides the content of the video, your way of communicating is amazing, and as a not native English speaker your way of speaking is so clear that even without a high level I could understand every single part. Im surely checking your other videos, so I hope you don't stop doing what it seems you enjoy. Thanks a lot!

Very professional! And concise -- I so much appreciate that. A lot of great information! Thank you so much! Wonderful work!

This was excellent. I am in the middle of a story that was beginning to wander. Now I know how to fix it.

Good gravy this is some good stuff!

Damn, I didn't expect this to be your first video. Nice job!

I've just arrived after you have had your year long break. The sanderson outline video was well done. I also like the mistborn chapter one insights. Are you planning on more videos?

17 seconds in and you tell me your text is more important than your audience. 🤦🏻‍♂️

Step 10: ghost writing

Doing this in reverse seems like a very good method of taking notes on books.

This was very helpful. I've been outlining a story for a year now and still haven't gotten to chapter 1! Really need structure and guidance.

Yes. The punishments apply to Andromeda, too.

This is the first outline method ive found that doesn't leave a huge gap between "plan your characters and jot down some key plot points" and "now you write a book". The dot point methodology from steps 7-9 are the piece of the puzzle my ADHD brain has been needing to get my stories from disconjointed scenes in my head to becoming an outline of a cohesive story. Credit to branden sanderson for his method, but thank you for the video. After years of wanting to create stories and researching what makes for good writing, i finally feel not just motivated to try, but actually prepared to do so.

Ps. I did tweak it a little, i felt that "whats stopping your character from achieving their goal" was a bit... Eh. Heres what i listed down:

Main characters:
•who are they?
•what do they want?
•what do they need?
•what do they lose along the way?
•what do they gain along the way?
•How do they get there?

Secondary characters:
•who are they?
•how do they serve the story?
•what impact do they have on the main characters?
•what do they want and what do they get?

Minor characters:
•who are they?
•how do they serve the plot?

Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir... Its about the sun turning off...

I literally-literally screamed when you mentioned a plot involving the sun mysteriously turning off because that's just as literally (and in the literal-literal sense) a major plot point in a narrative I've been working on for a couple years now. Thanks for that coincidentally very targeted joke and cracking me up 2 years later :D

Hey! This was so helpful. Thanks and congratulations on your wonderful first video.

Wow great video

i feel like a better writer already

Appreciate this! It's a great start.

Great video as always. I’ve my character rolled up and ready to play solo.

i used to outline, but i never stuck to it. my stories (characters) would always drive themselves in different directions, so i stopped doing it. it just doesnt work for me. my pre-writing prep work involves knowing the premise, knowing my characters, and knowing my ending. the rest tends to write itself.