Behind the Story: How I Plan a Series

A practical outline for explaining my step-by-step approach to planning a multi-book story

Note: I’m including links to the templates I use. I’ve built them over the last several years. You’re welcome to download them and use them yourself.

Pantsers hate this, but I plan thoroughly because I get most of the hard work done before I even start writing. I never have to cut a chapter because it doesn’t contribute to the story, and I edit faster because I work out every fine detail before I start my first draft. By the time I write the story, I have a formulated outline that looks much like the skeleton of a screenplay (basic scene description, actions, and dialogue).

Start with Characters and the Story’s Core

The first five steps of my writing process are where the story is born. I start with a character, and the rest of the story develops around them. I try to start with three characters. The main character, the one who supports them throughout the story, and the main antagonist.

Step 1: Character Motivation

This is where the characters are born. I fill out the Character Motivation Sheet for each character (each character has their own folder on Scrivener, and I separate them into protagonists, antagonists, and supporting characters). I also make an events folder, create a folder for each character there, and add an event (using the corkboard in Scrivener) for each thing I write in the character motivation sheet. The events only need one or two sentences explaining what’s happening or what the character is thinking. Keep the characters separate at this point. If you’re writing an epic, you’ll add more characters anyway before you get too far into the process.

Note: These sheets only get filled out for the POV characters in your story.

Step 2: The Hero’s Journey

I only fill in the Hero’s Journey Sheet for the main character if they’re following this type of character arc. Otherwise, I just skip it. If you’re not familiar with the hero’s journey, the mythologist, author, and teacher Joseph Campbell developed it. Check out the sheet for an idea of what it’s about.

Step 3: Character Transformation

If you couldn’t tell from the name, this is where you plan the transformation your characters go through. I fill out the Character Transformation Sheet and plot events in each character’s event folder.

Step 4: Characterisation

The Characterisation Sheet is a little different. This is all about who your character is. I don’t always fill in every detail on this sheet. Sometimes, the information comes to me as I work on the books, but I fill in as much as I can. I don’t plot these things in until later, anyway.

Step 5: The Whole Story

The Whole Story Sheet helps you plot out the tagline you can use for teaser promos and the like, and if you really like it, you can put it on your cover. I often update it as I work through the steps because things can change.

Build Each Character’s Chain of Events

Step 6: Set the Chronological Order of Events

This step is easy. I go through all the events for each character and put them in chronological order. There will be massive gaps at this point. That’s okay. We’ll deal with that in a bit. Don’t combine the characters’ events yet. That’s much later.

Step 7: Set the Narrative Order of Events

This step is a little involved and almost seems unnecessary, but believe me, it’s not. First, I duplicate the events folder and rename it “Scenes”. Then go through each character’s events. If it’s something you want to happen before the story starts, label it as a flashback. If it’s something that is going to be in a dream or prophetic vision, label it as such. Then move all flashbacks and dreams/visions to where they occur in the story.

Step 8: Fill in the Holes

Now, I go through the events again and fill in the gaps with new events that show how I get from one event to the next. Again, I keep them to one or two sentences at this point.

Step 9: Group the Events into Scenes

The characters should still be separated at this point. This is where I group events into scenes. Some events might be a scene in themselves. Other scenes might have two or three events. Then, I set a POV character for each scene. If there’s only one character, then that’s obviously the POV character for that scene. If there’s more than one character, I choose which one will be the POV character for that scene.

Turn Scenes into a Series Framework

This is where it begins to look like a story. It’s also where I get eager and want to skip ahead. Don’t… really, don’t.

Step 10: Create a Title for Each Scene

The scene titles won’t appear in the story, but they’re necessary for building the timeline. The titles should be short and describe what the scene is about. If more than one character shares a scene, I give them the same title.

Step 11: Create a Timeline

Creating the timeline is easy at this point. I’ve already got everything in order. Now, I just need to work out where each character’s scenes fit with the others. You don’t have to invent a new calendar unless you really want to. I just label the first event as “Day 1” and go from there.

Step 12: Separate Scenes into Books

I create the folders in the manuscripts section first and then copy everything over. I’ve worked out my own system for doing this, but everyone is different. Essentially, estimate how many words each scene will have, then how many words (approximately) you want each book to be. Then average about half of that per book. For instance. If each scene is 5,000 words and you want your book to be 100,000 words, you’d want about 10 scenes per book (because you’ll be adding more scenes). I’ve worked it out to be about 40 scenes per book. I also mark on the timeline where each book begins and ends.

Step 13: Develop Plots and Subplots for Each Book

This is where it can get a little complicated, so I’m going to number each step and explain it.

Decide on POV characters for each book: I don’t want more than 4 or 5 POV characters in each book, so I pick the ones with the most scenes. If a character has one or two scenes alone, I will make them flashback scenes for a future book or remove them completely if they’re not that important. Also, the main protagonist, their main helper, and the main antagonist will always be POV characters in each book (unless they disappear for a while).
Go back and do Steps 1–10 for each book: You’ve mapped out the overarching story for the series. Now, each book needs its own story, and each POV character needs their own subplot. The good thing is you only need to do the sheets for the POV characters for each book. Sometimes, you’ll find that characters never make it in as POV characters. That’s fine too. They just become support characters.
Add each new scene to the timeline and the manuscripts section.

Make the World Concrete

Step 14: Draw Maps and Floor Plans

Your readers are unlikely to see these, but I find they help me keep the world straight in my own mind. Whether it’s travelling from one place to another or getting around a building, I know exactly how long it will take. No guesswork involved and no trying to remember details later.

I make a list of every region, city/town/village, and building the characters will visit.
I draw maps or floor plans for each and label them accordingly. If the building is really large, I do floor plans only for the rooms the characters visit, plus the routes from the entry points to those rooms.
I map each character’s route (or the group’s route if they’re travelling together) and estimate how long it will take.
I readjust the scenes in the timeline and manuscript to reflect travel time. Sometimes, I’ll add travel scenes if it takes more than a day and they support the plot or character development.

Expand Scenes into a Working Outline

Notice I haven’t even created chapters yet or started worldbuilding? I get to that soon. I’ve included worldbuilding sheets at the end of this article. You’re welcome to download them if you want to use them. So far, when I come up with worldbuilding ideas, I add them to the appropriate sheet, but I don’t go out of my way to think about the wider world yet.

Step 15: Write the Outline

Now, I write the outline and create sheets for new information as I go. I don’t worry about naming new characters, places, objects, etc., yet. Instead, I use placeholders (like “little boy #1” or “special ability #4”) and keep each one consistent. I write the outline in a screenplay-like format, just without the scene headings and formatting. I keep it to a basic description of the setting, action, inner monologue, and dialogue.

Step 16: Name and Add New Supporting Characters

This is where I name all new supporting characters and fill out a Supporting Character Sheet for each. Then, I use the “find & replace” feature to replace the placeholder with the character’s name (which is why you need to stay consistent with the placeholder).

Step 17: Name and Add Worldbuilding Features

Then I do the same with all the worldbuilding features. The links to the sheets for these are at the end of the post (there are a lot of them).

Step 18: Write Notes Where Info Needs to be Added

Here is where I start making notes for each character and worldbuilding element that needs to be added to the outline. I also review each character’s characterisation sheet and add relevant information where I want it in the story.

Step 19: Add information to the Outline

Now, I go through and add those elements to the outline, noting how I’ll bring them into the story, whether through exposition, action, inner monologue, or dialogue.

Step 20: Group Scenes into Chapters

Finally, I group the scenes into chapters. I like to keep the word count consistent in each chapter, between 3,000 and 5,000 words. Sometimes, they end up shorter or longer, but I avoid that when I can. After writing the outline, I have a good sense of how long each scene will be, which makes it easier to group the chapters. Some chapters may have only one scene. Other chapters may have two or more. I keep them separate and use a divider in the final draft. I also try to keep each chapter to one POV character, so it doesn’t confuse the reader.

Draft and Revise in Layers

Step 21: Write the First Draft

The best part is that most of the work is done now. Writing is so easy at this point, and I don’t even get writer’s block anymore. Writing this way has made this part the easiest part of the entire process. I don’t worry about going too deep. I still keep it pretty simple unless something comes to mind.

Step 22: Do Rewrites

Rewriting is tedious. Every writer who has been doing it a while knows this, but if you want a good story to be great, it’s absolutely necessary. Still, I’ve tried to make it simple for myself. I go through the entire manuscript, one chapter at a time, and make notes on everything that needs expanding, showing, and details that need to be added for characters and worldbuilding elements that haven’t been added yet. Then I go back and rewrite all those sections. You can do this chapter by chapter or make all the notes first, then rewrite. I go back and forth to keep it from getting too monotonous.

Step 23: Add Senses

Now, I do this for each sense (taste, smell, touch, hearing, and sight). This is tedious and time-consuming, especially for a long series, but it’s what brings the world to life for your readers.

Step 24: Do Final Read-through

In the final read-through, I read it out loud. If I trip myself up, I rewrite it until it flows more smoothly. Also, if I suddenly don’t know what I’m talking about, I rewrite it. If it doesn’t make sense to me, it probably won’t make sense to the reader either.

Step 25: Check Grammar and Structure

This step is simple. Just run it through whatever editing program you use. I use ProWritingAid now because it does so much and integrates with Scrivener.

The Final Touch

Step 26: Decide on Titles

The final touch is the titles. By now, I usually already have a title for the series because it comes to me when I create the characters. Now, I have to come up with titles for each book, which I do using keywords from the loglines I wrote.

Now, it’s ready for beta readers and your editor. While that’s going on, I do the cover design and marketing plan for the books. My plan is to write them all at once now, so I can release them three months apart and keep the momentum going. When the first book launches, I’ll offer the next as a pre-order, then do the same for each book in the series.

Make the Process Your Own

Planning a series might look like a lot of work when you see all the steps together, but I don’t have to hold the entire story in my head at once. I just need to know what comes next. Each stage gives me something concrete to work on, and by the time I start drafting, I’ve built an outline I can rely on. That’s what makes this process work for me.

You don’t need to use every worksheet or follow every step exactly as I do. Take what helps, change what doesn’t, and build a process that suits your energy, attention, and storytelling style. The goal isn’t to make planning another obstacle between you and your story. It’s to give yourself a clear next step—and keep going until the story is ready to share.

Links to all Worksheets

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