Walk into November with a plan, not a panic.
50,000 words in 30 days is 1,667 a day. That arithmetic is the easy part. Knowing what happens on day nineteen is the hard part — and that is what October is for.Read a few breakdowns, borrow a structure, then build the outline in the free planner further down this page. Start day one with a draft you already know how to finish.
Fill the well before you fill the plan.
Three free libraries to browse first. Nothing to sign up for, and nothing you have to finish — an hour in any of them makes the planner below much easier to fill in.
Plot beats
Mid-book beats by genre, each one shown in books that used it. The cure for a saggy act two.
Browse plot beats
Trope thesaurus
A trope is a promise a reader can feel in chapter one. See what each one promises, and what pays it off.
Browse trope thesaurus
Story breakdowns
Want, need, lie, realisation and stakes for bestselling novels — the same fields the planner asks you for.
Browse story breakdowns
Now plan the book.
Seven steps, in the order a story actually comes together. It saves as you type — in this browser, so you can close the tab and come back — and when you are done you can copy it with a developmental-editor prompt for an AI, download it as Markdown, or turn the whole thing into a WritingHabit project with the outline already in it.
A logline, genre and reader promise you can say out loud
A cast with a want, a need, a lie and something at stake
A framework's beats turned into chapters, each with a word budget
A daily target and a finish date that match the days you actually write
The schedule
How long the book is, how often you write, and when it needs to be done.
90,000 words
90
18
5,000
2hr 47min @ 30 wpm
A sustainable rhythm with room for a missed day.
You need 1,000 words per day, 5 days a week, for about 18 weeks. That is roughly 5,000 words a week.
Genre and comparable books
Genre sets the trope and beat libraries below — pick more than one to blend genres, like fantasy + romance for romantasy. Comparables tell you what the finished book should feel like.
Plot ideas
Scenes, twists, or images you already know you want — before there's enough shape to call it an outline.
No plot ideas yet
Add the scene, twist, or image you can't stop thinking about.
Character fundamentals
Who the book is about, who is pushing back, and the five lines that keep a long draft honest. A sentence each is enough.
About your protagonist
Tropes you want
219 tropes across every genre. 0 selected — three to six is a shelf position, twelve is a mess. Pick a genre in Premise, or browse another below, to narrow this list.
Portal to Another World
Found Family
Dark Lord/Ultimate Evil
Reluctant Hero
Hero's Journey
Chosen One
Quest/Fellowship
Prophecy
Morally Gray Antihero
Assassin/Thief Protagonist
Dragon Companion/Bond
Ancient Evil Awakening
Wise Mentor Figure
Retelling of Myth/Fairy Tale
Anti-Hero Redemption Arc
Secret Royal Heritage
Magic with a Cost
Last of Their Kind
Talking Animal/Familiar Companion
Willing Sacrifice
Fae Bargain
Tournament/Trial Arc
Court Intrigue
The Mentor's Death
Reluctant Ruler
Sentient or Cursed Weapon
Rebellion Against Empire
Magic School / Dark Academia
Gods Who Intervene
Necromancy and the Restless Dead
Leveling Up
Weak-to-Strong Protagonist
Class/Job System
Crafting/Gathering System
System Interface/Stat Screen
Isekai (Transported to Another World)
Dungeon Crawling
Skill Trees/Unique Abilities
Broken/Overpowered Unique Class
Death Game/Permadeath Stakes
Guild/Party Formation
Grinding for Power
Loot Drops/Rarity Tiers
Boss Fight Set-Piece
Evolution/Mutation Mechanic
Reincarnation into a New Body/World
Sentient Companion System/AI
Leaderboards/Rankings
Time Loop Progression
Tutorial Zone/Starting Area
Cultivation Realms and Bottlenecks
Sect, Clan, and Faction Politics
Hidden Power Level
System Apocalypse
Tower Climb
Base and Territory Building
The Arrogant Rival
Divine Patron or Sponsor
Titles, Achievements, and Records
Beast Taming and Companion Evolution
Locked Room Mystery
Amateur Detective
Unreliable Narrator
Closed Circle of Suspects
Serial Killer Hunt
Cat and Mouse
Twist Ending
Cold Case
Missing Person
Gaslighting/Psychological Manipulation
Heist
Femme Fatale
Twin/Doppelganger
Race Against Time
Red Herring
Frame-Up/Wrongly Accused
Detective's Personal Stake
Inciting Corpse
Undercover Investigation
Outsider Uncovers Conspiracy
Hardboiled Private Investigator
Cozy Village Mystery
Legal Thriller / Courtroom
Domestic Thriller
Killer's Point of View
The Long Con
Whydunit
Corrupt Institution
Locked Room Mystery
Amateur Detective
Unreliable Narrator
Closed Circle of Suspects
Serial Killer Hunt
Cat and Mouse
Twist Ending
Cold Case
Missing Person
Gaslighting/Psychological Manipulation
Heist
Femme Fatale
Twin/Doppelganger
Race Against Time
Red Herring
Frame-Up/Wrongly Accused
Detective's Personal Stake
Inciting Corpse
Undercover Investigation
Outsider Uncovers Conspiracy
Hardboiled Private Investigator
Cozy Village Mystery
Legal Thriller / Courtroom
Domestic Thriller
Killer's Point of View
The Long Con
Whydunit
Corrupt Institution
Final Girl
Body Horror
Possession
Cursed Object
Creepy Children
Doppelganger/Evil Twin
Isolated/Cut Off From Help
Found Footage Narrative
Summoning/Occult Ritual
Trauma Made Literal
The Threat Was Inside All Along
Ignored Warning
Unreliable Survivor's Account
Unseen/Offscreen Monster
Cult Recruitment
Descent into Madness
Impostor Among Us
Ancient Evil Sealed Away
Death Is Not the End
Sacrifice to Appease Evil
Haunted House
Cosmic / Eldritch Horror
Folk Horror
Vampirism
Outbreak / Infection
Home Invasion
The Forbidden Room
Nature Turned Hostile
Love Triangle
Slow Burn
Fake Dating/Marriage of Convenience
Class Difference
Friends to Lovers
Enemies to Lovers
Second Chance Romance
Forbidden Love
Opposites Attract
Grumpy/Sunshine
Secret Identity
Age Gap
Forced Proximity/One Bed
Single Parent Romance
Best Friend's Sibling
Childhood Sweethearts/Reunion
Insta-Love
Rivals to Lovers
Fated Mates/Soulmates
Miscommunication/Big Misunderstanding
Arranged Marriage
Secret Baby
Bodyguard/Protector Romance
Workplace Romance
Small-Town Return
Marriage in Trouble
Hurt/Comfort
Time Travel
First Contact
Sentient AI/AI Uprising
Parallel Universe/Multiverse
Genetic Engineering/Cloning
Simulated Reality/VR World
Alien Invasion
Robot/AI Companion
Hive Mind
Uplifted Animals
Superhuman Powers/Evolution
Memory Wipe/False Memories
Terraforming/New World Colonization
Suspended Animation/Cryosleep
Rogue AI Turned Ally
Human Experiment Gone Wrong
Dying Earth/Last Humans
Uploaded Consciousness/Digital Immortality
Alien Among Us
Simulation Theory Reveal
Generation Ship
Space Opera Empire
Corporate Dystopia
Hostile Cosmos / Dark Forest
Big Dumb Object
Utopia With a Price
Post-Apocalyptic Survival
Linguistics and Translation
Dual Timeline
The Home Front
Occupation and Resistance
Real Historical Figure in the Cast
The Servant's-Eye View
Plague and Epidemic
Dynastic Marriage
Migration and Arrival
The Buried Family Secret
Class Ascent
Forbidden Correspondence
The Woman Who Cannot Practise Her Profession
Unreliable Memory
Fragmented Chronology
The Ensemble Community Portrait
Marriage Under Pressure
Grief Without Resolution
The Uneventful Life Examined
Class and Aspiration
The Book Within the Book
Generational Divide
Illness and Care
The Withheld Confession
Place as Character
First Love
The Bully
Dystopian Selection or Trial
Absent or Failing Parents
Secret Society at School
Identity and Coming Out
The Summer That Changes Everything
The Group Chat Fallout
Performance and Pressure
Grief and First Loss
Rebellion Against the Adult Order
The Friend Group Fracture
The Gunfighter Trying to Retire
The Cattle Drive
Frontier Justice Versus Law
Homesteader Versus Cattle Baron
The Revenge Ride
The Outlaw Gang's Last Job
The Railroad Arrives
Wilderness as Antagonist
The Tenderfoot's Education
Displacement and the Native Nations
The Town That Needs a Sheriff
The Woman Who Runs the Place
Beats and events
Map out the basics (or key beats). Don't get buried in the details yet.
The plot thickens...
Keep it simple
Structure
A framework is an expressed intent, not content — picking one adds nothing to your outline. It's the skeleton to hang your beats on. Plenty of finished novels were planned without one.
13%
Length and cadence set
Genre chosen
At least one comparable
One or more plot ideas jotted down
Protagonist and antagonist named
All five core lines written
Three or more tropes
Three or more beats in the outline
Turn it into a project — daily goal of 1,000 words, 5 days a week, with the outline as chapter cards.
Copy your plan plus a developmental-editor prompt written around what it's still missing.
Download the whole thing as a Markdown file to keep.
90,000 words in 18 weeks.
WritingHabit tracks the daily goal, the streak, and the projected finish date for you. 14-day Pro trial, no credit card.
Prep in October. Draft in November.
November 1 is 27 days away. Set up your project tonight and let the planner hold the outline while you write.