The Wayward Writer | 35-Page Novel Planning Workbook & Printable Writing Planner

For stories that refuse to behave.

Some stories arrive neatly plotted and ready to write.

And then there are the other ones.

The Wayward Writer is a 35-page printable novel-planning workbook for writers whose characters develop opinions, whose plots wander off unsupervised, and whose best ideas tend to appear when they're supposed to be working on something else.

Created by The Wayward Hoard, this workbook gives all that creative chaos somewhere to live. Develop your premise, explore your world, dig into your characters, untangle your plot, track foreshadowing and continuity, and collect all those brilliant little ideas you absolutely swear you'll remember later.

Whether you're planning your first novel, wrangling your fifth, or staring suspiciously at a story that has developed a mind of its own, The Wayward Writer is designed to help you find your way without telling you there is only one correct way to write a book.

✦ Inside The Wayward Writer

The workbook includes 35 printable pages covering:

• Story ideas, premise, genre, themes & emotional core
• Worldbuilding, locations & rules of the world
• Protagonist development, goals, fears & character arcs
• Supporting characters & relationship dynamics
• Antagonists and opposing forces
• Secrets, lies & reveals
• Beginning, escalation, midpoint, climax & resolution
• Chapter and individual scene planning
• Foreshadowing & payoff tracking
• Reader-vs-character knowledge tracking
• Timeline & continuity management
• Research organization
• Dialogue and prose snippets
• Revision notes
• Brainstorming & free-writing space

And because writing a novel is rarely a dignified process, you'll also find pages like:

The Emotional Baggage Department
Because every protagonist comes with luggage.

Someone Has to Cause Problems
For antagonists, institutions, monsters, opposing forces, and other inconveniences.

Plant It Now, Ruin Them Later
Keep track of clues, assumptions, truths, and eventual payoffs.

Continuity Is a Cruel Mistress
Because that scar really should stay on the same side.

Wait... What Color Were His Eyes?
For all the tiny details Future You will absolutely forget.

Research Rabbit Holes
At least now you can pretend the three hours you spent researching medieval spoons were productive.

Plot Bunnies & Other Uninvited Guests
For the new story idea that appeared while you were supposed to be finishing this one.

✦ Made for Wayward Writers

There's no required genre or rigid plotting method here.

Use it for fantasy, romantasy, romance, horror, mystery, science fiction, contemporary fiction, cozy stories, sprawling epics, strange little passion projects, or whatever else has taken up residence in your brain.

Print the complete workbook or simply reprint the worksheets you need for each project.

✦ What You'll Receive

1 digital ZIP file containing:

The Wayward Writer — 35-Page Novel Planning Workbook PDF
README / printing & usage information

The workbook is formatted for US Letter (8.5 × 11 inches) and designed for home or professional printing.

Print at Actual Size / 100% for best results.

✦ Please Note

This is a DIGITAL DOWNLOAD. No physical book, binder, stationery, suspiciously judgmental magpie, or other physical item will be shipped.

Colors may vary slightly depending on your monitor, printer, ink, and paper.

Purchase is for personal use only. Files and printed pages may not be resold, redistributed, shared, sublicensed, or uploaded for others to download.

Plan the story. Follow the characters. Lose the plot. Find it again.

Welcome to The Wayward Hoard.