Outlining My Manuscript

I have said before that I write by the seat of my pants but with this new idea and all the great advice on the internet, I have decided to try and outline my manuscript before I am too far into it. This new idea is more complicated and creating an outline (only partially done) is helping me formulate the idea better. I don't think I will always need one but I definitely see how useful an outline can be.

I have heard writers compare a story idea to a lump of coal that you have to excavate and polish until it shines. I am at that excavating point and I am trying very hard not to screw it up. I stopped in the middle of brushing my teeth this morning so I could write down a thought before I lost it. This story is not going to be easy but hopefully the harder it is to write means the better the final outcome will be. Thats what I keep telling myself.

Meanwhile, I am also revising and editing my other two manuscripts before sending them back out again. I realize the market is so saturated at this point that it may take a while to find an interested agent, but I am not discouraged.

Writing makes me happy. Isn't that the most important thing?