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Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/q/6201
License name: CC BY-SA 3.0
License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/

I've just watched one part of Brandon Sanderson's lecture on writing, the section entitled [Gardeners & Architects](http://www.writeaboutdragons.com/home/brandon_w2012/lecture-1-sub/gardeners-vs-architects/) and I realised I'm a Gardener, almost exclusively. This often ends up with me writing very weak plot with no direction.

From the site:

> There are two main types of writers: “discovery writers” and “outliners”.
> 
> - Discovery writers are kind of like gardeners, growing their story from some seed of an idea and not quite knowing where it will take them.
> - Outliners can be thought of as architects, mapping their story out from start to finish before they ever write a single word of prose.
> - Gardeners should watch out for “and then I guess it ends” type of endings.
> - Architects should watch out for “world builder’s disease”.

I'm used to writing in a way that I discover the work as I go. How can I practice writing like an architect, so that when I write properly I can use both aspects to my advantage? In particular, how can I learn how to outline before I start to write?

Original score: 16