Ingermanson and the Snowflake method for outlining

Randy Ingermanson came up with the "Snowflake method" for outlining novels. It is an analytical approach to plotting, based on iteratively refining ideas for the novel. I will give this method a try. Given that I am quite analytical myself (Ingermanson is a doctor in Physics), maybe his method will suit me well. I will not explain the method here, but I give a link at the end.

I was listening to an interview with Ingermanson and there are three particular points that thought of sharing:

1. The one-sentence summary. The first step of the snowflake method - there are ten steps in total - consists of writing down a one-sentence summary of the novel. This is actually pretty difficult to do and, therefore, easy to get stuck there. Ingermanson recommends dedicating just one hour to this process and then moving on to the next step. This is not a problem because after each step we can revise and update the previous ones, so this one sentence will evolve during the process.

I like this attitude. I feel that sometimes what stops me from writing is wanting to have a perfect idea of the novel. After all, if I am to write a novel, shouldn't I be capable of writing that one-sentence summary? Paradoxically, no. Creative processes tend to be iterative - we can go to the next step without having the perfect one right now. If we do not see it this way, we get stuck, like a fish biting its own tail: we need to write to clarify the ideas in our heads, but we feel we cannot write if our ideas are not clear.

Getting rid of this need for "perfect clarity" is what I need - which for a mathematician is sometimes tough, because in our work we need to do things with absolute clarity, completeness, and precision. But it is true - at the same - that we only write like that at the end of the process. To begin with we have to explore the subject by making assumptions, leaving holes in the argument. The difference is that it always feels that we know what we are doing during this process, because we know what we want to achieve - it is a bit like knowing the end of the story and understanding why that ending is important. When writing fiction, the ending and its importance are not clear without the story itself. 

2. Writing habits. After applying the snowflake method, we get an outline of the novel and we can start writing the first draft. Apparently, going from outline to first draft is a bottleneck for many authors. Ingermanson recommends doing the '500 words challenge': simply write 500 words every day (around 20-30 minutes of work). It is a small amount, but the challenge is to do it every day. 

I can see why that would work very well. It is actually one of the reasons why I am doing this blog and I try to post every day: it is a reachable goal that stimulates more writing and creates a writing habit.

3. Seeking help. Ingermanson mentions that he suffered from panic attacks before public presentations. He resolved them thanks to therapy. It is great that he shares this experience: in our society, it is not so common to get professional help, however, there are many issues that may be handicapping our life for which there is a solution. I have seen many people around me suffering, but they were adamant about seeking help. Ingermanson is a good example that it works!

Here is the link to the interview (very good questions from the interviewer):

This is the webpage of Randy Ingermanson on the Snowflake method: https://www.advancedfictionwriting.com/articles/snowflake-method/