I am an outlining writer. Even as non-outlined as this novel is — my outline consists of 2-3 sentences per chapter — it’s still somewhat outlined.
I’ve always known that while I may outline, I still discover things along the way, and that makes the journey interesting for me, and keeps me writing.
What I’ve realized in the past few days is the nature of my discovery. I know the action arc. I know the things that happen. That’s what the outline shows. What I’m discovering while I’m writing is the emotional arc of each character. And this, truly, is why I ended up having to write all three novels at the same time: I didn’t know where the emotional arc of these character would end. I knew they had to end up balanced. I didn’t know what that looked like.
This morning I resolved the action arc, got that figured out in my head (how they’re going to take down the bad guy.) I’m still struggling with the emotional arc for this character. He’s always been the most difficult character for me. His magical ability is passive. I make him active by having him make decisions but his core essence is passive. Somehow he has to accept his role. I’ll get there.