Ahead Quote by Nick Petrie

The way that I write novels in particular is I don't usually outline; I just write. Part of the fun is discovering what's happening…

— John Scalzi

I hate outlines. I have a broad sense of where the story is going; I know the end, I know the end of the…

— George R. R. Martin

At the time I begin writing a novel, the last thing I want to do is follow a plot outline. To know too much…

— Elmore Leonard

I plot as I go. Many novelists write an outline that has almost as many pages as their ultimate book. Others knock out a…

— Clive Cussler

I never plan my novels because if I know what is going to happen, it bores me rigid. I let the story tell itself.

— James Herbert

With a novel, you have to have a story. It's much more important to have it matter to the reader what happens to people,…

— Dave Barry

I don't start a novel until I have lived with the story for awhile to the point of actually writing an outline and after…

— John Grisham

When I write my novels I don't really have a huge plan beforehand; I don't have the whole plot and architecture, so the story…

— Michael Ondaatje

I make extensive outlines before I write a book. I usually know what will happen. I know the characters, and I know what they…

— Amor Towles

I've never written a book with an outline or a predetermined theme. It's only in retrospect that themes or subjects become identifiable. That's the…

— Susan Choi

When you get ready to write your novel, outline it first. There's nothing worse than getting halfway through and realizing you've painted yourself in…

— Janet Evanovich

I never know what's going to happen in a novel. I don't have a plan or an outline.

— Donna Leon