Your Scene List

When I’m writing a novel, one thing I’ve got to have is a Scene List. Without one, I’m lost. With one, I always know what to write next, which massively boosts my motivation to sit down and actually write. And a lot of other novelists also need a Scene List.

And yes, there are plenty of writers who just write by the seat of their pants. They don’t need a Scene List. They just write. I have no problem with them. I don’t believe they are “doing it wrong”. They’re working the way their brains are wired.

Different writers are different. There’s no moral high ground here. If your brain is wired to use a Scene List, then use one. If it isn’t, then don’t. Simple as that.

What is a Scene List?

A Scene List is not “just a list of scenes.” It’s a list of story ideas. Because every Scene is a story. (This is a point I make several times in my best-selling book How to Write a Dynamite Scene Using the Snowflake Method, which walks you through the process of writing a scene.)

When I add a Scene to a Scene List, I focus on three basic aspects of that Scene. If it’s a Proactive Scene, I want to know the lead character’s goal at the beginning of the Scene, the conflicts that prevent them from reaching the goal, and the setback at the end of the Scene, if there is a setback. If it’s a Reactive Scene, I spell out the lead character’s emotional reaction to the setback from a previous Scene, followed by the dilemma they need to work through, and ending with a decision on what they’ll do next.

If you’ve worked out those basic elements for every Scene, then each one is guaranteed to be a story. It’s not guaranteed to be a good story. It’s not guaranteed to fit in with the rest of your novel. And it’s not guaranteed to go the way you planned. When you actually write a Scene, you’re in a different place than you were when you planned it, and the Scene may take an unexpected turn. In fact, it probably will. Writing a novel is not like turning a crank and getting noodles out of a machine. Writing a novel is a creative process, and weird stuff is going to happen, and that’s OK.

How Do You Create a Scene List?

Before writers used computers, they often made Scene Lists by writing out ideas on 3×5 cards. Then they could spread the cards out on the table and move them around until the order seemed to fit. If they wanted to change things later, they just moved cards around, or added cards, or took them out, or scrawled more stuff on them.

When I started writing, most writers had computers with spreadsheet programs. So I wrote a few novels where I made Scene Lists using Excel. Then every Scene was one row in the spreadsheet, and I could easily move Scenes around or delete them or insert new ones or edit them.

Later on, I created a wildly popular program called Snowflake Pro that had a tool for making a Scene List as the eighth step in the Snowflake Method that I invented. A lot of writers still use this program, and I hear from them occasionally by email. Snowflake Pro works and it gets the job done, but at a certain point in my life, I decided that I couldn’t continue to support it, so I worked with Cameron Sutter, the programmer who developed Plottr, to add several templates for the Snowflake Method to his software. Plottr has some very nice graphical tools for creating Scene Lists. (And for those who prefer the simplicity of Snowflake Pro, it’s still available on my website and it still works. I just don’t plan on making any updates.)

How Do You Use a Scene List?

I’ll repeat what I said earlier. Some writers don’t need a Scene List, and those writers should not use one. But if you’re one of those writers who is wired to need one, then here are some tips that I’ve found useful:

Remember that your Scene List is provisional. You can change it at any time. Your story is not fixed in stone, it’s a living thing that will grow as you write it.
If you feel a need to write your Scenes in order, then do so. Your brain is wired to write them in order, and you’ll get in trouble if you write them out of order.
If you feel a need to write the next Scene that’s calling your name, then write it, even if it’s not the next Scene in your Scene List. Your brain is wired to develop your story in the order of the Scenes that are emotively strongest. You’ll get in trouble if you try to write them strictly in the order they appear in your Scene List.
When you sit down to write a Scene in your Scene List, ask yourself first if your notes for that Scene are enough to make a story. If not, then jot down more notes until you know the beginning, middle, and end of the Scene. Then write the Scene, and try to get it all done in one session. (You don’t have to, but I promised to tell you what works for me. Your mileage may vary.)
If you find your novel drifting away from the story you envisioned when you wrote the Scene List, you may find it helpful to make a new draft of your novel, even if you haven’t finished the draft you’re working on. I typically name each draft of my novel with the very clever names “Draft 1”, “Draft 2”, etc. Each draft goes in a different folder on my computer. When I realize that the story has drifted significantly away from the vision in my Scene List, I create a new folder for the next draft, make copies of all the files in the folder I was working on, and then edit those copies in the new folder, starting with the Scene List.

How Do You Know if You Should Use a Scene List?

If the above discussion of a Scene List has aroused in you a desire to make a Scene List, then your brain is probably wired to need one. Try making a Scene List and see if your life improves. You can always throw it away if it disimproves your life.

If the thought of making a Scene List causes you to have violent thoughts against me or humanity in general or yourself in particular, then your brain is probably wired to not need one. Don’t make a Scene List. Instead, write your novel your way. You will still find the above discussion useful, because you undoubtedly know other novelists, and some of them will need Scene Lists, and now you know enough to talk intelligently about their writing process. I hope you can each give the other person the respect they deserve as writers, even if you use radically different processes.