Class Description

Outlining Your Story: A Roadmap to Success You would never try to build a house without an architectural drawing or put up walls without a strong foundation. Yet many writers try to write a novel without an outline. A few succeed, but more often than not, they write themselves into corners they can’t get out of or run out of steam because they’re not sure where to go next. In this two-hour workshop, acclaimed novelist Howard Shrier will share his methods of outlining and plotting the books that won him two national crime writing awards in Canada and rave reviews from critics across North America. Whether you’re writing literary fiction, a rom-com, a mystery or fantasy novel, you’ll benefit from his successes—and failures—writing with and without an outline. You’ll learn how research can build your store of character and plot ideas before you start writing. Drawing on his experience as a trained stage actor, Howard will show you how to use a three-act dramatic structure and think in terms of scenes, beats and arcs that build throughout the story. You’ll explore ways to heighten tension and raise the stakes for every character and most importantly, how an outline can spare you from writer’s block and wrong turns. You’ll emerge with a clearer plan on how to start or finish your story and the tools you need to do it. All sessions will be recorded and the recording made available to all registered participants. Instructor bio: Howard Shrier is the author of six novels and one collection of stories, including four titles in the acclaimed Jonah Geller series. His debut novel Buffalo Jump, published by Random House/Vintage Canada in 2008, won the Crime Writers of Canada's award for best first novel. The sequel, High Chicago (2009), won the CWC award for best novel. Boston Cream received starred reviews in Publishers Weekly and Library Journal and a rare five-star review in Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, while Miss Montreal was shortlisted for another CWC award. Howard’s 2025 novel The American Zone, set during construction of the Panama Canal in 1906, has been called “a masterpiece of historical crime fiction” by the Seaboard Review of Books. Howard has taught creative writing at the University of Toronto, Toronto Public Library, the San Miguel Writers Conference and Kingston Writers Festival, and runs his own online courses in the foundations of fiction.