I Tried to Shortcut the Writing Process—Here's What Happened

Boost creativity and beat writer’s block with brain-based outlining that helps you craft powerful, page-turning stories.

When I Almost Sent an Uncreative Story Outline

I almost submitted a thrown-together outline for a book I was contracted to write—just to meet a deadline.

I mean, it technically had a plot in there. But it was stuff happening for its own sake with no real purpose, meaning, or a reason for readers to actually care. No soul.

And if I’d hit “send”… I would’ve had to commit to forcing a story that never would have worked.

And here’s the thing: I used to think structure and templates would kill my creativity. But brain science—and this experience in particular—actually shows the opposite is true.

When you outline strategically to work with your brain’s processes, you don’t limit your creativity—you make yourself more creative.

The Shape of the Problem

Let me explain exactly what happened when I tried to shortcut the writing process—and what finally clicked when I stopped fighting the outline and let the story emerge the way my brain actually needed it to.

So here’s what was happening…

I was working on an episodic chapter book series, and design needed to get the illustrator started well before my contracted outline due dates—meaning I didn’t have enough of these stories figured out yet to know what the illustrations should even be.

Schedules were just on different tracks. It happens. Anyway, my editor started nudging me to get enough together to hand over to design. For all four books.

But if I tried to outline four different stories at once—before I’d even finished drafting the first one—I knew exactly what would happen.

I’d fall back into what I used to do: write plot for plot’s sake.

I would have whipped up a story premise regardless of whether it really worked or not for the character's arc of transformation or pushed them to change the way they really needed to change.

I probably wouldn't have even thought about the internal stuff! I would have simply been like, "Here! This would be cool. This is the plot," and then figured I’d somehow make it work out later.

But that's all it would have been—plot (and perhaps even a cool plot! but...).

Something that looked like a story, but no true dynamic. No internal transformation. Nothing deeper to actually connect with my young readers.

I... um... I can't do that anymore. For obvious reasons... Practice what you preach and all that! ;)

Plus, I’ve seen too many drafts fall apart from that exact approach.

And I’ve seen what happens when you do plan your story from the three core things readers want out of stories, which more than a cool plot, includes that internal character journey and how they overcome the tough stuff, making it inextricable from the plot.

It changes everything and makes a story that works.

So I did end up pushing back to gain a little more time to plan and outline these stories with more care, but the moved-up deadlines were still tight.

By book three, I was feeling the crunch, and, yes, I tried to shortcut the process anyway. After all, I created the process I was using and taught it to authors every day. Couldn’t I get by with skipping some of my own steps?

The Shortcut and the Creative Crash

You can probably guess that didn't end well.

Knowing the deadline was looming, I somewhat forced an outline into existence. Sure, I could have submitted it to my editor prior to the deadline this way. It technically fulfilled the task.

And I was so tempted to send it anyway. Just hit “submit” and move on. I mean, I could always fix it later in the draft, right?

But I wasn't happy with it. So much of what matters was still missing. I didn't have its arcs very well set up or interconnected.

The story wasn’t working.

The turning points weren’t rooted in the character’s growth. The stakes weren’t really stakes because of that.

And worst of all—I knew my editor would call out everything I’d already flagged myself… because I hadn’t done the creative work yet.

Which would just waste everyone’s time on an already scrunched schedule. And who knows if the resulting illustrations would have still matched!

So I closed the file. I waited.

And that’s when everything finally clicked.

The Breakthrough (What Actually Worked)

Wouldn’t you know—it was the next day, while I was getting ready for completely unrelated, non-work plans, that the whole story came together. In the shower.

Seriously! Shower thoughts!

I realized how I could simplify (yet strengthen) the plot to better showcase the protagonist's internal struggle.

I could rein it in closer to the right level for these early chapter books while also fixing a plot conundrum I had planned myself into.

Best of all, I knew how my protagonist could solve the plot problem in the climax in a fulfilling way—and give readers a reason to care.

And as usual, it took until I wasn’t actively working on the thing.

But I had already done the prep. I had struggled through the early drafts of that outline. I had been thinking deeply—intensely—about what wasn’t working.

So when I finally stepped away, my brain had space to do what it does best: make all the novel, creative connections to solve the problems.

It’s Not Magic. It’s Brain Science!

Doesn’t it feel like magic when this happens? I bet you can relate—because it’s no coincidence. It’s not luck.

It’s a direct result of how our brains are wired to solve creative problems. So let’s dive into the insights from brain science so we can better use this knowledge to our advantage.

It’s not just one “aha!” moment. Creativity is a dynamic process.

I had done the hard thinking in working on an outline, then hit a wall, stepped away—and that gave my brain time to do its job.

First, you generate ideas using the default mode network—that’s your imagination network. It’s activated during mind-wandering, daydreaming… showers.

And your executive control network helps you evaluate and shape those ideas into something that works. Something you can use.

The magic happens when your salience network toggles between the two—helping you move between spontaneous insight and conscious focus at the right moment.

That inspiration—the creative breakthrough—doesn’t happen without both parts.

You need the struggle and the rest. The prep work and the pause.

That’s why strategic outlining doesn’t kill creativity.

It makes it possible.

For me, during that shower, the salience network picked up on the mental work I’d already done, recognized a promising connection, and moved it into conscious awareness.

That’s its job. The salience network constantly monitors both your internal thoughts and external environment.

It detects what is most relevant or “salient”—whether that’s a new idea, an emotional response, or a sudden change in your surroundings—and determines which brain network should take control at any given moment.

While your default mode network is off daydreaming and generating ideas, your executive control network—the judgy editor part responsible for goals and problem-solving—has already defined what you’re trying to figure out.

When a particularly promising or novel idea surfaces, the salience network flags it as important and brings it into conscious awareness—this is that “aha!” moment you get.

And that’s exactly why creative breakthroughs so often show up in the shower, or on a walk, or while you’re doing something totally unrelated. You can’t force it—but you can set your brain up to make it happen.

How to Make That “Aha!” Moment More Likely

To make those aha! moments for your story planning more likely, you can use these insights. You first need a way to clearly define the problem—like what you want your story to do. That activates the executive control network.

Outlining is one of the most focused, efficient ways to engage your executive control network upfront.

It defines your story’s core problems, the purpose of the plot, and your character’s transformation arc. Which means your brain knows what it’s solving for.

Then step away from the “problem” entirely to let your mind wander. That gives your default mode network time to start forming new connections.

My favorites are taking walks or, of course, letting shower thoughts have free reign.

This is where it’s hard to stay patient, and I often have to remind the authors I work with to trust the creative process.

Then finally, the salience network compares those loose ideas against your goal and surfaces the ones that matter.

To give yourself a further creative boost for such ideas, embrace all your weird and eclectic interests, as they can help your salience network surface the less obvious connections.

My theory here is that having my wide range of interests, hobbies, or experiences can only be a benefit to the creative process based on how creativity works.

Then, be ready to capture insights as the salience network brings them to awareness—often when you least expect it.

By outlining, when you do step away—your creativity is working toward something specific. And when the insight comes, it’s more likely to be one that works.

Bonus: Why Outlining Helps You Draft Better, Too

When you try to draft without a plan, your brain has to juggle everything at once—what happens next, how it fits the arc, how to make it sound good.

That creates cognitive overload. Your working memory gets jammed, and you stall out.

But, as I’ve covered more in other articles, when you’ve already mapped the big picture, your executive control network isn’t doing everything anymore. You’ve given it a roadmap, and now your creative brain has the freedom to play.

It allows your creative and language networks more of the spotlight—so you can stay present in the scene, reduce decision fatigue, and reach flow.

It frees up your brain to do deeper, more focused creative work come drafting time.

That’s what I teach the authors I coach to do, and that’s how you can write those immersive stories with impact too.

Outlining actually helps you sort of kickstart this creative process and make it happen, even when some patience and trust in the stages of this process is still required so that your brain has what it needs.

It doesn’t stifle drafting energy or anything like that if you use it strategically and in line with the creative process.

It gets you through the problems before you can get stuck in them.

That’s what an outline does when it’s built to support that process. And that’s what makes the difference between a story that works and a story that burns you out before you can finish it.

So if you want to set yourself up for success, you’ll want to figure out a few key things about your story before you start your outline.

To help you take those steps, here’s the link to my free Word Wizard’s Journey roadmap for your story.

It’ll show you the steps to get you started, and it’ll also direct you to a resource for validating your novel’s guiding premise so you can start your outline from a strong foundation—not uncertainty.

It’s what I use with writers before we ever touch a beat sheet. Because without this guidance, structure won’t save your story. But with it? You’ll finally know what your outline needs to do.

That way, you can write a strong, marketable novel that readers will devour and remember. It all goes back to ensuring your story fulfills what I call the 3 Keys to Reader Enchantment.

Key 1: Expectations

Readers' brains are wired for prediction—and some delightful surprises within that go a long way.

A clear structure in your outline helps set and fulfill their genre expectations, narrative patterns, and actually pull off that twist you’ve been dreaming of.

Plus, it reduces your cognitive load and increases immersion. Without this key, you risk breaking reader trust and pulling them out of the story spell they want to stay under.

Key 2: Enlightenment

Your outline helps you define your story's “ley line”—its deep, universal truth or purpose.

This ensures every scene contributes meaningfully to your character's transformation and the reader's vicarious learning experience, allowing your story to resonate deeply and even change how they feel about their own experiences.

Key 3: Experience

A strong outline ensures your character's motivations and transformation arcs are clear, fostering the emotional resonance and vicarious experience that makes a story feel real to the brain.

It creates a truly immersive journey thanks to the way our mirror neurons work with story.

Far from limiting creativity, strategic outlining sets up a meaningful creative problem for the brain to solve, which research shows boosts both originality and practical output, particularly when task constraints are clear.

So shift any perceptions about outlining limiting you and instead use those limits to get more creative.

If you’ve already sworn off outlining because it never seemed to work for you—maybe it’s not because you’re doing it wrong.

Maybe you just haven’t had the right approach—one that actually works with your brain, instead of against it. And gives you the support you need to do your best work yet.

So whether you’ve given up on outlining, never outlined before at all, or got stuck in your draft and need to take a step back from the weeds to get it figured out, I’ll make sure you have a powerful way to move your story forward.

I’m going to show you the first steps to outlining in a way that finally supports your creativity—and your story—in the next article.

Categories: : creativity, manuscript stages, novel drafting, novel planning, self-editing