Have you ever written a story out of order? There’s actually no rule that says you have to write in chronological order, or write scenes in the order that they’ll be read. Many writers – both plotters and pantsers – write a story in the order that it happens, either because they’re following their outline, or because they’re discovering how the story goes as they’re writing. 

I’m a plotter – I always have at least a rough outline before I start, and I have at least a vague idea of how I want the story to end. But that’s still a lot of “muddle in the middle” that has to get written, and I’ve found that writing scenes out of order can help keep me moving on a project, even if I’m feeling stuck. 

Here are three benefits I’ve found to writing out of sequence: 

Writing out of sequence helps if you have a scene in your head that takes place later on in the story. 

This is a good problem to have – it means you’re thinking about your story as a whole, not just as random vignettes strung together. If your brain wants to work on a different scene besides the one you just started, then go ahead and write it out! Writing is writing, and any progress on your WIP (work in progress) is good progress. 

Writing out of sequence helps give you a goal or end-point to work towards. 

Writing a key event or reveal that happens later on in the story can help guide you if you’re wallowing in the middle and trying to figure out where to go next. It’s like giving yourself a goal to strive for, or an end destination on the map. If you know where you’re going (Big Important Scene that you just wrote out of sequence), then it can be easier to write the scenes that lead up to it. Even if you’ve changed things about the Big Important Scene later, when you actually get there, writing a draft of it out of sequence can get your creativity going. 

Writing out of sequence helps you get out of a slump if you’re stuck. 

If you have writer’s block or are just plain stuck, just write something on your WIP, even if it’s not in sequence. Any writing progress is good progress, and the very act of writing and thinking about your story will get your brain back in gear. 

Do you write scenes out of order? How has it helped you as a writer? 

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