Use the Snowflake Method to Write a Book [10 Steps]
There are different methods to write a book. Different authors use different approaches.
While there are many ways to craft a potential bestseller, sometimes it’s beneficial to follow a common and proven method. One such popular approach, created by Randy Ingermanson, is known as the Snowflake method. Its success is evident in the outstanding books produced by those who use it.
Randy Ingermanson is a theoretical physicist and award-winning author who has written six books to date. He has taught at numerous writing conferences for years and he is also the publisher of a free, online monthly writing e-zine for advanced fiction. The e-zine is the largest electronic magazine in the world in the category of writing fiction.
The whole essence of this is to show how to write an awesome novel. To show how great books can be crafted when purposeful methodology is applied properly.
What is the Snowflake Method?
The Snowflake method is when a writer starts writing from a simple theme and then progresses over time. It is developed slowly and complexity is added along the way until it is completed.
It is a step-by-step technique that guides you from a simple concept to a fully developed and intricate narrative. The idea is to start with a small idea and gradually expand it until you have a complete story.
This method is generally used for fiction writing but one can still use this to write non-fiction with a few simple modifications.
How to Write a Book Using the Snowflake Method
If you find yourself writing books in a way that is not productive and you just can’t seem to get the job done – then you need to look at the tried and true Snowflake technique.
It has ten practical steps that will help you jumpstart your creative mind. Most good writers are good because of the use of the Snowflake method of writing to push their imagination and broaden their horizons. You can achieve the same by opting for this method.
Step #1: Write a One-Sentence Summary of Your Book
This is the core theme of your book, which you will use to hook your readers and let them know what your book is about.
There should be one sentence that serves as a pitch for your book. Remember that everything will start from this one summary, so look at it as a seed that needs to germinate and grow so that you can make progress.
This is the sentence that will hook not only your readers but even the sales force, your editor, or the bookshop’s owners. This one sentence has a lot of pressure on it, so try to make it pop.
Here is an example: “A private eye is trying to track down the Assassins of the Ottawa prime minister, but Assassins are all fortified.”
A reader will want to find out more about the story.
Here are a few tips for writing a great first sentence:
- Keep it short and to the point.
- Do not name any characters.
- Write something that leaves a desire for follow-up.
- Learn how to write something catchy and make it pleasing to the ear.
Step #2: Expand the One Sentence
The next step will be turning the sentence into a full article. This is done by describing the set of the story, the major disasters, and the ending of the story.
For non-fiction writers, this step can involve addressing significant problems depending on the topic. You can start by stating the problem, finding solutions to the challenge, and finally implementing the solutions.
Randy Ingermanson suggested using a five-sentence structure. The first sentence he suggests should be used for setup, the next three sentences should be the central conflicts, and the last sentence should wrap up everything the book is about.
Then, focus on hitting the primary targets of your book: its story, main character, and settings. As you progress, add layers of details to further develop these elements.
Step #3: Write a One-Page Summary of Your Characters
Step #2 has given you a good view of your book so you need to do a similar thing for the storyline of each character.
We all know characters are the most important part of fiction. Creating them just the way you want to – a way that fits the book – will be most beneficial in the long run.
Each one-page description summary should contain a few different things:
- The character’s name
- The character’s motivation
- The character’s goal
- The character’s conflict
- What is hindering the character from reaching said goals?
- The characters epiphany
- A paragraph summary of the character’s storyline
Use this character development sheet by Squibler to keep everything organized.
The good thing about this step is that you may realize that you need to revise the previous one-sentence summary in step one. This is a good time to do it. This shows your character’s creation stage and will open your eyes to your own story.
At this point in the process though, you don’t need to worry about perfection. The goal is to keep moving the story forward by adding layers of detail. The bulk of the editing should be left for the end when the story is completed.
Step #4: Expand Each Sentence of a Summary Paragraph Into a Full Page
This stage is just growing the already written story. Take the sentences you already have and start adding details.
You’re gradually growing the skeleton of your book. It’s okay to take some liberties on the length. It doesn’t always have to be exactly one paragraph or one page. The point here is to grow the story.
Step #5: Develop Your Characters
You are still in the developmental stage of your book. It is time to develop the character descriptions – big and small. Provide detailed descriptions for each major character, including their history, motivations, and conflicts.
You can write a one-page description for major characters but can probably stick to half the page for minor characters.
Step #6: Expand the Story to Two Pages
You will now take each section of your book to add more details to it.
You already have the three parts: the beginning, middle, and end. Pick each section and expand the story to at least 2 pages each, or write in acts.
Take each paragraph and turn it into an act. Paragraph one becomes Act 1 and so on. All you need do is to aim for a page per act.
You are expanding the paragraphs you had in Step #4 into a full-page storyline. Here you will start seeing the story come together in a logical way. You can start to identify the issues that may be arising. You can then go back and do some rearranging before you get too far into the story itself.
Step #7: Expand Your Character Description Into Full-Fledged Character Charts
This stage involves taking the characters in Step #6 and giving them the full story they need.
Here you will start to flesh out their details and backstory with things like their history, detailed descriptions, birth date, etc. You can also include how your character will change at the end of your book, this is the expansion of the work in Step #3. This will enable you to learn a lot about your created character.
Remember that most great books especially fiction books are driven by character. At this stay, if you write novels, you can also write a proposal to sell your book before writing it.
Step #8: Make a Spreadsheet Scene from Your Four-Page Plot Outline
You should know how to use a spreadsheet to aid you in this stage, Ingermanson suggests that you should make a list of all the scenes.
Create a row for each scene, list your characters in one column, and write what happens in another. If needed, add more columns for additional details, such as the expected page length for each scene.
The use of a spreadsheet is necessary because you will be able to see your whole storyline at a glance and it will be easy if you need to rearrange scenes. Once it is all set up, you can add a new column for each chapter to enable you to assign a chapter to each scene.
Step #9: Write a Narrative Description of Your Story from Each Scene
By now, your story will have started to pan out in a more complete way. In this stage, you will give more details about each scene.
You can copy a scene from your spreadsheet and paste it into any word processor to start expanding it. Describe what will happen and what its purpose is. If you have about 20 scenes, you should end up with either 20 pages or 20 separate documents, depending on how you prefer to organize your work.
Step #10: Starting Your Official First Draft
This is the final stage using the Snowflake method. You have moved systematically trying to put things in place before writing the blueprint for your book. At this stage, you can start drafting your book.
The good thing about this is that after following through all the stages above you will be able to write the book faster. You already know the plot, the main events, the conflicts, and even the ending.
How to Plan Your Book With the Snowflake Method
When it comes to using the Snowflake technique, you should realize that it is circular and incremental, so you need to follow it systematically. This makes it much easier to structure your story. You will be able to offer a better storyline this way.
Before writing, you can build your outline like this:
- What is the idea of your book? This can be a sentence.
- Who is the hero or heroine of the story? Describe in one sentence.
- What’s the setting of your story? Summarize in another sentence.
Now you go back through these points, adding five more sentences to each.
The reason this method works is because it is similar to the function of a human brain. It doesn’t need tons of details upfront before getting into the mind. It uses the process of actually working to generate more ideas so that one keeps adding to the existing work in progress.
So, before you set out to write be sure you have an idea worth writing about. The Snowflake template gets down to the heart of the book and explores your idea in-depth.
Three Phases of the Snowflake Method
The Snowflake technique works in three phases, each one building on the last.
The Beginning Phase
Being realistic, it is safe to say that writing an entire novel is difficult, but composing a single sentence isn’t quite so scary. Going by this, where you start writing a book with just a sentence, this beginning phase is all about a one-sentence summary of the story.
For example, a dog climbs on top of a cabinet and is trying to figure out how to get down. The protagonist here has no name because Ingermanson opined not to give one. You will add these details later and as needed.
The Middle Phase
This phase is all about expansion. The Snowflake method has the writer expand the first sentence from phase one. It’s like fueling that first sentence – giving it life.
You start this with a paragraph synopsis including a detailed breakdown of the main characters. It also includes a four-page synopsis of the book and a formal book proposal.
This might seem like a lot of work but it is worth the time spent. This phase is like spending time sharpening your knife before barking a tree; you spend more time honing but you will spend less time and effort cutting the tree. This is applicable in writing too.
It’s better to spend more time upfront rather than diving in and realizing too late that your story is broken and needs a lot of rewriting. So, with this second phase, you will quickly know when your story isn’t being coordinated and you’ll be able to fix it right away.
The End Phase
This is the phase where you write the book. This is where you use what you created in phases one and two to guide you through the writing process. Let the previous phases be like a roadmap of your story that will keep you on track.
The Idea Behind the Snowflake Method
Randy Ingermanson suggested that writing a book is like drawing a digital snowflake. He was fascinated by the way a snowflake shape can be built on a computer. The shape isn’t drawn but the computer engineer layers simpler shapes upon one another until they form a snowflake.
He reasoned that writing a book happens the same way, you start simple and add the details and complexity as you go along. It is about starting small and building until you have a real and complete story.
Benefits of Using the Snowflake Method
Here are a few major benefits of using the Snowflake method.
- It is a systematic method of writing. You can never go wrong with a step-by-step technique because you will be able to assemble your ideas without leaving anything out. This is what the Snowflake method of writing seeks to achieve. You write your book systematically from a simple concept until it transforms from a single sentence to a full-blown novel.
- This writing technique will help you coordinate your writing life better because you will be moving from one stage to another and building on the previous step to progress.
- The Snowflake technique of writing enables you to fire-test each scene you create to be sure it will make a high impact on your readers before you write more.
- It helps you reach a deeper level of your characters.
- This method is beneficial to writers who prefer to plan extensively before setting out to write a book. This technique requires a lot of planning.
- The method is good for maintaining motivation. The practice of starting small and working up means the writer is less likely to continue being intimidated by their own book.
- With the Snowflake method, a writer is forced to focus more on the most crucial elements of the story, which can help prevent the mind from wandering.
Why is the Snowflake Method Right for Authors?
The Snowflake template helps you be smarter and more creative when you write a novel. It is the right method for writers who want to go from basic to complex.
- The Snowflake method saves time. All important details are already laid out when the writing begins. The draft itself will be written quickly.
- Every good thing must have a foundation. If the foundation isn’t reliable, it comes crumbling like a poorly arranged pack of cards. The foundation of the Snowflake technique is stable because it forces each writer to focus more on the foundation of the story.
- You start the process by writing a sentence of the theme of your story, and you begin to build. From there, and with this, it becomes difficult to shift your attention from the bases.
- With the Snowflake method, you will be less intimidated by the volume of work. With this systematic way of writing, you don’t need to think about the volume because the method is designed in a way that you add details gradually.
- The Snowflake approach makes it possible for a writer who has a vast project to break it down into reasonable steps that can be realistic to write daily. This method can help people resurrect projects they had previously given up on.
This method is highly recommended for those who have been struggling with other ways of writing and making no headway. This might be a process that finally works for you, whereas others don’t.
When to Use the Snowflake Method
There are diverse ways in which the Snowflake method can be used.
If You’re Writing a Book
If you’re not sure how to write a book or if you’re struggling to write your first book, the Snowflake approach is for you.
This is the main reason for the Snowflake method to exist. It is to assist the writers and authors in starting their books from beginning to end using the suggested steps to get things done. From reviews online, this has worked well for a lot of writers.
When You’re Struggling With Their First Draft
If you are in a hopeless situation with your already written draft, then you need to try the Snowflake approach.
Take an hour or less and summarize your story in a sentence, this will help you clear your head and you have just completed the first step of the Snowflake tactic. Keep moving through the steps and watch as your novel transforms into the story you always wanted it to be.
If a Manuscript Needs a Rewrite
You are done with your manuscript, but it feels scattered and unfulfilled. Take a few minutes and write a single-sentence summary.
This completes the first step of the Snowflake tactic. Bring the manuscript through the rest of the steps and see if you can transform it.
When You’re Trying to Meet a Deadline
If your editor has handed you your book back and made some overwhelming suggestions, don’t panic. Set things in motion by using the Snowflake method. Start at step one and keep going.
If You Need Clarity
If you do not understand exactly what you are writing about anymore, you need a good plan for proper revision. Try going at it with the Snowflake method.
Give the Snowflake Method a Chance
No book writing process or method is ever perfect. But, some are excellent and will help a writer immensely when creating a book.
Some writers have a certain method that they love and don’t want to give up. If this is the case, you can make the Snowflake method your extra help when trying to put a good book together.
Even if you don’t do every single step, it can be a good way to flesh out some scenes and characters without making things complicated.
Frequently Asked Questions
Here are some common questions about the Snowflake method and how it can be effectively used in writing both fiction and non-fiction:
How do I start the Snowflake method?
Begin with a one-sentence summary of your book that captures the core theme and hooks your readers. This sentence serves as the foundation, from which you will progressively expand the story by adding layers of detail and complexity in subsequent steps.
How do I handle character development in the Snowflake method?
Create detailed one-page summaries for each major character. Include their name, motivations, goals, conflicts, and epiphanies. Flesh out their backstory, history, and detailed descriptions, ensuring each character’s development aligns with the overall plot.
What is the advantage of using the Snowflake method?
The Snowflake method provides a systematic approach to writing, helping you build your story from a simple concept to a detailed and structured novel. It reduces overwhelm by breaking down the process into manageable steps, ensuring no critical elements are overlooked.
Can the Snowflake method be used for non-fiction writing?
Yes, the Snowflake method can be adapted for non-fiction writing with a few modifications. Start with a one-sentence summary of your main idea, and then expand by outlining significant problems, solutions, and implementations, similar to how you would structure a fiction narrative.
