Give your next story a workable direction. This free story outline template helps you plan a protagonist’s goal, the choices that change their situation, and the scenes that carry the story toward an ending.
Download the seven-page template below. It works for short stories and novels, and you can also use it to map a draft you have already written.
Download your free story outline template
Free to download. No email signup or purchase required. Both files include the same planning prompts, an original worked example, and a review checklist.
Choose the fillable PDF for brief typed answers or a printed worksheet. Open it in a PDF reader that supports form fields, save your working copy, and reopen it to check that your answers are there.
Choose the editable Word document for longer notes. You can expand the answer spaces, duplicate scene pages, and add rows as your outline grows.
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What’s inside the seven-page template
- Story overview: establish the premise, protagonist, goal, opposition, and stakes.
- Eight turning point prompts: connect the opening situation, disruption, commitment, attempts, complications, setback, final choice, and outcome.
- Reusable scene plan: decide who wants what, what gets in their way, and what changes by the end of the scene.
- Scene sequence: use a six-row starting sheet to connect scenes through their consequences.
- Original worked example: see the prompts applied to The Missing Label.
- Review checklist and next step: look for missing causes, weak choices, and scenes that leave the situation unchanged.
How to use the template
- Save a working copy. Keep an untouched version so you can start a new outline for your next project.
- Write brief answers first. One or two sentences per prompt are enough to test the story’s direction. Begin with the protagonist’s goal and what failure would cost them.
- Connect the turning points. Ask how each attempt or choice creates the next problem. If a development happens by coincidence, look for a stronger cause.
- Plan the next few scenes. Give each scene a goal, an obstacle, and a result that changes the character’s options.
- Review, then start drafting. Choose the next scene you want to write. Revise the outline when the draft reveals a better decision or a more believable consequence.
Want a fuller explanation? Read our guide to outlining a story for a copyable outline, a complete worked example, and help expanding your plan into chapters.
A quick example: The Missing Label
In the template’s original example, collections assistant Inez notices that the bowl she is labeling does not match an old photograph. She has five days to locate the original before a replica goes on display. Her investigation puts her chance at a permanent job at risk.
Use the example to study the link between an attempt and its consequence: what Inez tries changes what she knows, which changes what she must do next. Then return to your own protagonist and ask the same question.
Make it fit a short story or novel
The eight prompts describe developments, not a required chapter count. In a short story, several developments may happen in one scene. In a novel, a single turning point may grow out of many scenes.
For a novel, expand the scene sequence and group scenes into chapters once you can see their pacing. For a short story, keep the outline compact enough to show the main conflict and the choice that resolves it.
If you prefer discovering the story while writing, complete only the premise and next scene. You can fill in the rest after drafting and use the template to check what changed.
Questions about the download
Is the whole story outline template free?
Yes. The seven-page Word document and fillable PDF are both free. The worked example and review checklist are included.
Can I type into the PDF?
Yes. The PDF has fillable fields. Use a PDF reader that supports forms and save your answers in your own copy. If you need more room, use the Word version.
Do I have to plan every chapter before writing?
No. Start with the main decisions and a few scenes. Add detail when it helps you write, and leave unanswered prompts open until you have a useful answer.
Can I change my outline later?
Yes. When a stronger idea changes your plan, update the outline and check any later scenes that rely on the old version.
Keep building your story
For more free worksheets and checklists, browse Publish Smarter’s Resources page. Romance writers who want more genre-specific planning and revision support can also explore the separate paid Romance Plotting & Revision Kit.