Organized Chaos: How My Writing Process Evolved from Frustration to Function

I am an organization fanatic.

Seriously. Give me some dividers, labels, storage containers, and a good color-coding system, and I'm a happy woman. I like knowing where things are, being able to access them easily, and not having to waste time searching for something I KNOW I have somewhere.

And when it comes to writing, that need for organization is no different.

But here's something you might find surprising: I wasn't always this organized with my manuscripts.

For the longest time, I was a pantser. I developed my characters, their backgrounds, and their personalities as I wrote. And while that worked just fine creatively, it eventually presented a problem.

I'd be writing a chapter and need to reference something I'd established earlier in the story. Maybe a character's physical description, a detail about their family, or something that happened several chapters back.

And there I'd go, flipping through page after page, trying to find the information.

Baby, when I tell you that got OLD!

I was spending time searching for information when I could've been using that time to actually write.

So I started keeping notes.

And that one little adjustment eventually evolved into an entire organizational system.

Not overnight. Not because I found some fancy writing method online. But through years of trial, error, frustration, and figuring out what worked for me.

Every addition to my system came from a need. Every new chart, sheet, or organizational tool solved a problem I was having.

And today, I'm going to give you a little behind-the-scenes look at how I keep my handwritten manuscripts organized, even when the actual pages look like they've been through a war.

Because listen... the organization might be pretty, but those manuscript pages? WHEW! 😂

First Things First: Yes, I Still Write by Hand!

If you've been following my blog for a while, you've probably heard me mention that I write my manuscripts by hand.

Yes, by hand. With an actual pen and notebook.

And before anybody asks, yes, I know it's 2026. Yes, I own a computer. And yes, I'm fully aware that writing software exists. In fact, I've featured my favorite writing software right here on this blog.

But there's something about putting pen to paper that I absolutely love. It's how I started writing, it's how I'm most comfortable writing, and I have no intentions of changing that anytime soon.

My preferred notebooks are Five Star spiral notebooks. They're sturdy, they have pockets, and they give me plenty of room to work. Those pockets are especially important because that's where I keep the supporting materials I need while writing.

Character information sheets, timelines, outlines, notes, and anything else related to the story stay together.

I don't want to be halfway through writing a chapter and have to search through three different notebooks, two folders, and my phone to remember a character's birthday.

No, ma'am. We are not doing all that.

And since I write whenever and wherever I have the opportunity, including during my lunch breaks at work, having everything together is especially important.

My writing materials have to be portable, accessible, and organized in a way that allows me to pick up right where I left off.

The Color-Coded Method to My Madness

Now, let's talk about my neon filler paper.

I discovered this paper during a trip to Walgreens years ago, and I've been using it ever since. But I don't just buy different colors because they're pretty. Each color serves a specific purpose in my writing process.

Yellow: General Story and Series Notes

This is where I keep important information about the story, including character relationships, locations, backstories, dates, and anything else I might need to reference later.

If I establish that a character's mother died six years ago, I don't want to accidentally write something three chapters later that contradicts that information.

Yellow paper helps me keep those details straight.

Orange: Manuscript Additions

Let's say I'm rereading a chapter and realize I want to insert an additional paragraph, a conversation, or even an entire scene.

Instead of trying to squeeze all that writing into the margins, I write the new material on orange paper.

Then I assign the addition a number and write that same number, circled, in the manuscript where the passage belongs.

When it's time to type the chapter, I know exactly what goes where.

And this system isn't limited to material I've written during the initial drafting process. Sometimes I'm incorporating something I wrote previously, such as an excerpt from a writing assignment.

For example, I wrote an opening scene and inciting incident for That's Major in my Contemporary Fiction Writing I course. I'd already decided the novel would be my MFA thesis project, and I originally intended to use that assignment as Chapter 1.

But as I continued developing the story, I decided I wanted to begin a little earlier.

So the original opening became Chapter 2.

Rather than rewriting the entire passage, I used my numbered notation system to indicate where the material needed to be incorporated.

That's one thing about writing: sometimes the words are right, but their placement isn't.

Pink: First-Round Editing and Revisions

Pink paper is reserved for additions and notes during my first round of editing and revisions.

This keeps those changes separate from the additions I made while initially drafting the manuscript.

Green: Miscellaneous Notes

Green is my catchall.

Sometimes the notes are related to the manuscript. Sometimes they're about writing software, future book ideas, or something else entirely.

It might sound like a lot, but it works for me.

And that's really the point. Organization doesn't have to look the same for every writer. It just has to make sense to the person using it.

 

Yellow sheets help organize notes and information such as locales throughout the work.

Orange sheets contain excerpts that need to be inserted into the text of the handwritten manuscript.

 

Pink sheets contain additions and corrections made during the first round of editing and revisions after the first draft is completed. (Don't laugh at my notes. You get hungry in this writing life! lol)

Getting to Know My Characters Without Flipping Through Fifty Pages

Remember that problem I mentioned earlier about having to search through my manuscripts for character information?

Well, that was one of the first things I wanted to fix.

I started documenting important details about my characters so I wouldn't have to keep searching for information I'd already established.

Over time, those notes became more detailed.

I was already using visual inspiration photographs for my characters, but that created another problem. Whenever I needed to reference a picture, I'd have to search through my phone to find it.

I also had a character information sheet in Scrivener, but accessing it meant opening the software.

And if I'm sitting at work on my lunch break with my notebook in front of me, I don't necessarily have access to Scrivener.

I needed that information at my fingertips.

So, drawing on what I'd learned through trial and error and information from one of my earlier MFA courses, I designed my own character information sheets in Canva.

These sheets allow me to document everything from physical descriptions and personality traits to family relationships, habits, backgrounds, and other important information.

I also created separate visual reference sheets where I can include multiple photographs representing how I envision a character.

And because I have a Kodak Step instant smartphone photo printer, I can print those inspiration photos and add them directly to my sheets.

No more scrolling through hundreds of pictures on my phone trying to find the one I need!

I also use visual reference sheets for important locations, including characters' homes, businesses, and other settings.

If I'm describing a character walking through their house, I want to know where the kitchen is in relation to the living room. If a scene takes place in a particular business, I want to have a consistent mental picture of the environment.

Those visual references help me maintain that consistency.

And the best part? Everything is right there in my notebook, ready whenever I need it.

These character information sheets help me keep track of information about my main characters. The gold frame is where I add a photo of the character visual.

The Secondary Character Sheet helps me keep track of the supporting cast. The Character Information Visual Sheet is where I collect visuals of the characters' environments for quick reference.

Keeping Track of Time

Another organizational tool I developed out of necessity is my timeline tracking sheet.

When you're writing a novel, especially one that spans several weeks or months, it's surprisingly easy to lose track of how much time has passed.

A character might have a conversation on Monday, attend an event three days later, and then reference something that happened "yesterday" when it actually happened a week ago.

Little inconsistencies like that can sneak into a manuscript if you're not paying attention.

My timeline tracking sheet allows me to record the chapter, month, day, amount of time that has passed, and any additional notes I might need.

For example, if Chapter 5 takes place on Friday and Chapter 7 happens three days later, I can look at my timeline and know we're now on Monday.

I originally created a hand-drawn version of this chart on my yellow filler paper. As my organizational system evolved, I eventually designed a more polished version in Canva.

But the purpose hasn't changed.

It helps me keep the sequence of events consistent without having to reread half the manuscript to figure out what day it is.

And believe me, when you've got multiple characters, overlapping storylines, and events happening in different locations, that little chart comes in HANDY!

Blank Timeline Tracking Sheet

The Manuscript Pages? Don't Judge Me!

Now, here's where things get interesting.

If you were to open one of my notebooks and look at the actual manuscript, you might wonder how in the world I manage to make sense of it.

Words crossed out. Sentences rewritten. Arrows pointing in different directions. Notes squeezed into margins. Entire paragraphs marked for deletion.

And sometimes I cross out something, change my mind, and decide I liked the original wording better.

Listen. It happens! 😂

I don't write perfectly polished chapters on the first attempt, and I don't expect to.

Sometimes I realize a sentence doesn't flow the way I want it to. Sometimes I think of a better way to describe something. Sometimes a character says something that doesn't quite fit their personality.

And sometimes I get halfway through a scene and decide the whole thing needs to go in another direction.

That's what drafting is for.

I make changes directly on the manuscript pages as I write, and when those changes get too extensive, that's when my orange filler paper comes into play.

The pages might look chaotic, but I understand my own system.

And by the time everything makes it into the computer, all those crossed-out words, arrows, and numbered additions have served their purpose.

Handwritten manuscript pages from Challenged. (Yes, I will legit scratch out entire passages, sometimes several pages at a time, and go a different direction.)

From Handwritten Pages to Scrivener

I usually write two or three chapters by hand before sitting down to type them into Scrivener.

And no, I don't just type exactly what's written on the page.

I'm incorporating all those corrections, additions, and changes I've made along the way.

Scrivener is where my handwritten manuscript begins taking its digital form, and its organizational features make it easy for me to keep everything together.

I've already written an entire Featured Favorite Product post about Scrivener, so I won't go into all its features here. But it's an essential part of my writing process.

And while Scrivener helps me organize my work digitally, my handwritten materials are just as important.

The two systems complement each other.

I can work on my manuscript away from my computer, make notes and revisions as ideas come to me, and incorporate everything when I'm ready to type.

The Numbers Don't Lie: My Chapter Tracking Chart

Here's another part of my process that might surprise you.

When I finish typing a chapter into Scrivener, I record two numbers at the end of that chapter in my handwritten notebook: the chapter's individual word count and the manuscript's cumulative word count.

For example, if you see 2,658 / 8,219 written at the bottom of one of my manuscript pages, that means the chapter contains 2,658 words, and the manuscript has reached 8,219 words overall.

I also maintain a Chapter Tracking Chart for every book.

I originally developed this chart when I started setting word-count goals for my manuscripts. I wanted a way to monitor my progress and see whether I was on track to reach my intended manuscript length.

I created the chart in Microsoft Word, and like most of my organizational tools, it evolved over time.

Initially, I used it to track chapter word counts and the cumulative manuscript total.

Later, I added two more columns.

Sex scenes and deaths.

Yep. You read that right.

I have designated spaces to indicate whether a chapter contains a sex scene or whether a character dies or is killed.

Why?

Because I write urban fiction and romance, and while those elements may be important to the story, I don't want to overwhelm readers with too much of either.

If I notice several consecutive chapters containing sex scenes or major acts of violence, I can evaluate whether the pacing makes sense or whether adjustments might be necessary.

That doesn't mean every intimate or violent scene needs to be separated by a certain number of chapters. It simply gives me a way to see how those elements are distributed throughout the manuscript.

The chart also helps me monitor my overall word-count goals.

For That's Major, I'm aiming for approximately 60,000 to 80,000 words. Keeping track of my progress allows me to see how the manuscript is developing in relation to that goal.

Of course, I won't add unnecessary material just to reach a number. But having a target gives me something to work toward.

And here's something else worth mentioning: I don't always know exactly how many chapters a book will have when I begin writing it. I don't even necessarily have a title yet!

When I started writing my Noble Trilogy, the books were simply labeled Book 1, Book 2, and Book 3.

Those manuscripts eventually became Claimed, Challenged, and Crowned, but the organizational system was already in place long before the titles were finalized.

And that's an important distinction.

Being organized doesn't mean having every creative decision figured out in advance.

It means having a way to keep track of those decisions as they're made.

Completed Chapter Tracking Chart for Challenged.

Organized Chaos Is Still Organization

I know my writing process probably sounds like a lot.

And honestly, it might be a lot for somebody else.

But I've spent years figuring out what works for me, and this is it.

None of these systems appeared overnight. I didn't wake up one morning with an elaborate plan to create color-coded notes, character information sheets, timeline trackers, and chapter charts.

Each one developed because I encountered a problem and needed a solution.

And as my needs changed, my systems evolved.

My handwritten manuscripts aren't neat. They're full of corrections, revisions, additions, and ideas that sometimes change before the ink is dry.

But the systems I've developed around those manuscripts help me keep everything organized.

My character sheets tell me who my characters are. My timeline sheets help me remember when things happen. My colored paper keeps my notes and revisions separated. My chapter tracking charts help me monitor progress and pacing. And Scrivener brings everything together digitally.

Every part serves a purpose.

My creativity doesn't always follow a straight line, but my organization gives it somewhere to land.

I don't need every sentence to be perfect when I write it. I don't need every scene to stay exactly where I originally placed it. And I certainly don't need every manuscript page to look pretty.

What I do need is a system that allows me to make changes, explore ideas, and keep track of everything without losing my mind in the process.

Because while I can absolutely embrace a little creative chaos, disorganization?

Baby, that's where I draw the line!

And if there's one thing I want other writers to take away from this, it's that you don't have to follow somebody else's writing process to be a successful writer.

Some writers outline every detail before they begin. Others sit down with a blank document and let the story unfold. Some write directly into a computer, while others, like me, prefer a pen and notebook.

There's no single correct way to create a novel.

Find the tools and methods that work for you, develop a system that supports your creativity, and don't be afraid to change that system as your needs evolve.

Because at the end of the day, readers aren't going to see all the scratched-out sentences, arrows, and scribbled notes that went into creating your story.

They're going to see the finished book.

And sometimes, behind those beautifully polished pages, there's a notebook somewhere that looks like it barely survived the experience.

Mine certainly do! 😂

Happy writing!