How to Plan a Novel Using the Snowflake Method
If you've always wanted to write a novel but weren't sure where to start, or if you've written a novel that needs an extensive plot overhauling, you may want to consider using the snowflake method. More than just an outline or a few summaries of your story, the snowflake method for planning a novel enables the writer to focus on and figure out big-scale issues that get in the way of some novelists and enable them to have a clear view of the goals and motivations of all characters involved. The snowflake method doesn't just help a novelist prepare a draft, it provides several options to use for a synopsis in a proposal. If previous plotting methods haven't worked, or you just want a proven plotting methodology, look to the snowflake method.
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Instructions
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1
Summarize your novel in one sentence of less than 15 words. Don't name any characters but give them descriptive tags, such as "vampire with a soul" rather than the name Angel. This sentence is much like the thesis of an essay or the topic sentence of a paragraph: It helps set the stage of what the text contains.
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2
Transform your single sentence into a paragraph. The first sentence should serve to set up the story, the next three should tell the disasters (if you're prescribing to three-act structure) and the final sentence should tell you the ending.
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3
Summarize each main character in a page that tells their motivation, goals, conflicts and the result of their growth in the story. Lay down the basics of their character arc throughout the novel.
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4
Return to your paragraph in Step 2 and expand each sentence into its own paragraph. The result should be about a page overview of your novel.
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5
Write character synopses of one page for major characters and half a page for all other characters. These synopses should tell how the story happens from their points of view.
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6
Expand the page from Step 4 into four pages. Each paragraph should now become its own page. This creates a full synopsis of the entire novel.
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7
Create character charts and complete histories using your previous character work. Try to create real characters with histories, friends, hobbies, fears, dreams and everything that makes a character more than a cardboard cutout.
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8
List the scenes you'll need to complete your novel in a spreadsheet using the synopsis you created in Step 6.
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9
Describe the entire story in narrative. For each line of your spreadsheet, you should have several paragraphs that describe what will happen in your scene.
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10
Draft your novel.
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Tips & Warnings
Don't feel like everything you write must be perfect and true right away. You will invariably change many things throughout this process and should stay true to what seems best for your story.
