I gave myself a full week to relax. Do other things besides write. But it didn’t work out so well. That’s right, I lasted four days before getting back on the writing bucking bronco horse.

So what did I do to occupy myself while in Queryland today? Well, I’m glad you asked. I outlined my next book.

This time around I followed Michael Hauge’s principles of story writing. I saw him speak at a conference back on January and, you guys, it was worth every penny. His philosophy made sense to me, and I wished I had discovered his method a long time ago. Like, before  I started my first book a long time ago.

His story mastery principles can be applied screenwriters and novelists alike, and his six stage plot structure is ah-mazing. It really spoke to me. It said, “Try me on the second book and see what happens. I bet you won’t regret it.”

So far, I haven’t. So far, I have a story full of plot points that is already sparking scenes in my head. Because, yes, I’d be lying if I said part of me wasn’t worried I won’t be able to write the second book…

But, I mean, look at that roadmap! It still needs work, but the story is filling out way faster than I expected. The use of index cards makes it easy to add, delete or swap plot points, and if you’re a visual person like me, see how they all connect.

Uh-oh, is there where the other shoe drops or something? Where a cartoon anvil drops on my head and bursts my bubble? I imagine I’ll find out soon enough, when I actually sit down to write it, but until then… I’m going to try and ride this high for as long as I can.