Laura Drake
Learning how you write a book is like finding your way in a pitch black room full of furniture. You can learn by barking your shins, but there are less painful ways.
Does it make you crazy trying to locate details in your WIP? In which chapter did the dog first show up? Or the first kiss? Or harder yet, the smaller details—what kind of shoes did the old man wear the second time the heroine met him? How old was the character when she met her husband? What year was that? How many words are left to stay within genre limits?
I know I do.
I’d end up scrolling through two hundred pages. And get distracted.
Oh, now there’s a clunky sentence.
Wait, did I really use the word ‘jerk’ twenty-three times in this book?
Before I knew it, I’d be hopelessly mired in the text, and forgot what I came for.
I was an accountant by trade (ah, retirement), so if I need something organized, of course, the first place I go is Excel.
I know all you math-adverse writers have now broken into a sweat. Follow me here—no formulas are involved. You can do this, even if you’ve never opened a spreadsheet. Promise.
Decide What You Want to Track
First, I think about what information I want to capture. Here’s my list (yours may differ)
- How long each chapter is, both pages and word count
- What happens in each chapter by scene
- Track POV, if there is more than one, so I can check the balance in my novel
- Keep tabs on the romance, and where it happens
- Timeline
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When I start writing, when I finish, and when it the book is published
Create Your Spreadsheet
So I made what I call my Chapter Cheat Sheet. Here’s what it looks like for my RITA winning romance, The Sweet Spot:
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I now know how many pages each chapter is, and the word counts (if you total the word count column, you’ll have the total word count of the book).
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The pink highlights are chapters that advance the romance. I can see quickly where it is, and if it’s balanced.
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The column in the middle shows each scene, using only a few words, separated by ‘/’. This way, I can find anything I’m looking for quickly.
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The POV is shown by the color coding in the scenes – orange for the heroine, Purple for the hero.
I sometimes track dates/timelines by adding another column after the “Scene” column: March on the first line, next line, two days later, etc. I stink at tracking time, and this keeps me honest.
Add More Sheets for More Tracking
I have more than one sheet in this workbook. You can use them for a more detailed timeline, or anything else you’d like to track. I use the second sheet for details like names of towns, people, how they’re related, etc. Things you think I’ll never forget, but invariably do.
When I dive into revisions, it usually means cutting and pasting scenes in different places, so I’ll create a whole new version of my main sheet to continue to keep things straight.
This even helps down the road: I’ve done book groups years after I wrote the book, and it helps to review beforehand. It’s embarrassing to forget a character’s name!
Honestly, the Cheat Sheet has been invaluable for me. It gives me a bird’s eye view of the entire novel on one screen. I can’t imagine writing a book without one.
Hope it helps you save your shins!
Laura Drake is a hybrid author of Women's Fiction, Romance and Thrillers. Her debut, THE SWEET SPOT, won the Romance Writers of America® RITA® award for Best First Book. She’s since published 10 more romances, 4 Women’s Fiction and in 2025, a Domestic Thriller. She is a founding member of Women’s Fiction Writers Association and current Guiding Scribe. She also is a member of the Alliance of Independent Authors and International Thriller Writers. Laura is a city girl who never grew out of her tomboy ways. She gave up the corporate CFO gig to write full time. She realized a lifelong dream of becoming a Texan and is currently working on her accent. She's a wife, grandmother, and motorcycle chick in the remaining waking hours. You can find Laura at her website, on Facebook, Instagram, and Goodreads, and you can sign up for her newsletter here.