MOP Before Your Write Your First Draft

Using the MOP Framework will help make writing your book super easy.

Photo by Brandi Redd on Unsplash

One does not simply write a book. I mean, you can, but it is a lot harder without taking a few steps to turn your idea into a first draft.

And one thing that I have learned over the years of writing and publishing books is how vital the first step before writing your book truly is to creating a manuscript that will help you write and publish a bestselling book.

Today, I want to share with you the three steps to pre-work to be done before writing your book, I call it The MOP Framework and you can complete this in less than one hour before you start writing.

The 1-Hour MOP Framework: How to Prepare to Write a Bestselling Book

The MOP Framework is simple, easy, and straightforward. Most of all, it can be completed in one hour so you can get started writing your book fast. Lastly, it will be something you can rely on every time you write a book.

The MOP Framework is as follows:

1. Mind-map

2. Outline

3. Plan

As you can see, I have clever little acronym to help you remember what to do. The best part is that all this can be done in an hour. So, if you only have an hour a day to work on your book, this is only one day. If you have more, you can get started write away.

Now, let’s dive into this so you can feel 100% confident to get started, and you could even do it after this reading this post.

Mind-map: Gather Your Chapters Before Your Write

One of the most important things you can do to help yourself out is to get all the ideas for chapters out on a page without the responsibility of deciding where they should go in your book.

What I have learned is that doing this creates freedom for inspiration, without feeling like you have to make it up as you go while writing your book. Here is what I suggest you do:

1. Pick your medium for your mind-map. Use paper, an app on your iPad, or something else. But make sure you have space to put as many ideas on the page as you can.

2. Set a time for 20 minutes. I have found that no matter how much you know about a topic, after 20 minutes, you will have a really good idea of what your book chapters will be. And 20 minutes is a good marker because it takes everything that is at the front of your mind.

3. Mind-map: Now, put your ideas on the page. Main idea in the middle. Bigger ideas closer, smaller or more detailed ideas further out. If ideas come to you that branch off the other ones, point them to the other ones. This will help you understand the sections that might go with the chapters too.

Alright, when your twenty minutes us up, you have completed the first big step to preparing to write your first draft. Most of all, this will give you tracks to run on for the next step.

Outline: Organize Your Thoughts Before You Write

While this might seem pretty straightforward, I have come to the conclusion there are a lot of ways to outline and that having options is helpful to most first time and repeat authors.

After all, the way I outlined my first book isn’t the way I outline books now. And so, I want to share with you a few ways you can outline your book and then how to do it no matter the method you use.

3 Outlining Methods

1. Notecards. The way I use to outline my book is that I would take every idea on my mind-map and turn them into notecards. Then I could line them up and re-arrange them in chapters and sections.

2. Writing it out. Another way I used for years was simply writing out my chapters and sections in a note book, and then crossing them out or using arrows if I made changes after my initial outline.

3. Using AI. Some people are scoffing at this and it’s fine, but this has helped me create much better outlines as of late. I simply input my ideas via a PDF upload to AI, then I ask it to create an outline for my book on (topic), with (x) number of chapters, and (x) number of sections per chapter. Of course I play around with it afterwards, but sometimes it is right where I want to be.

3 Steps to Outlining

Here are the three steps I take to outline every book.

1. Pick your chapters. These are typically big ideas. The ones that have sub ideas under them from the mind-map. And I typically pick 8-12 chapters depending on the book.

2. Pick three main ideas per chapter. Now, you may not have enough sub ideas for this from your mind-map. This means you will put what you have under each chapter and fill in the blanks. I would refer back to your book review research to help you find the right content.

3. Review your outline. Once you have completed your outline, review it. Ask these questions: Does this flow? Does this make sense? Is there anything missing? Is there anything that isn’t needed. Update your outline based on these answers and move on.

These three steps can be done in as little as 20 minutes as well. But it can take longer. So prepare yourself. It will mostly depend on the method you choose for outlining.

Plan: Create Your Book Writing Plan

Now, you have done everything you need to assist you with writing your book. But there is one more thing you will need to make writing your first draft easy. And it is the plan.

If you don’t have a plan for writing your book, you will never finish it. Or you will draw it out for years and miss your opportunity with your book. Either way, I don’t want that for you, so I want to share with you the basic plan that I use for the MOP Framework.

1. Set the time, place, and dates you will work on your book. You need to establish these first. Then you need to calendar it and make sure people know (family included) that these are non-negotiable appointments.

2. Keep a review folder. This folder is where you will keep your mind-map, your outline, and a log of what you have worked on. Every time you finish working on your first draft, leave a note on what you go done and where you ended so when you come back to it, you can pick up where you left off.

3. Accountability Partners. You will need two to three people to keep you accountable. This means they will share your plan with them, your scheduled times to write, and they will reach out to see how they went. These need to be people who can encourage you and push you when things get hard.

4. Inspiration/motivation folder. On my computer, I have quotes or videos that I use to get me inspired to keep writing. Sometimes they are about my topic, other times, they are things that encourage me. Either way, you need on of these when writing gets hard.

5. A vision. I want you to write a three sentence paragraph on the vision you have for writing your book and what it will be like once it is published. Consider these things: How will you feel? What will it be like? Where will you see your book? Who will read it? You want to have a clear vision to help you push through hard times.

This is a simple plan, but it makes all the difference. You can put this together in 20 minutes as well. Which means, all these steps take an hour. But, the plan might be one for the most important parts of the process.

MOP Before You Write

Taking time to prepare before diving into your first draft can make all the difference between feeling overwhelmed and setting a steady path to success.

With the MOP Framework—Mind-map, Outline, and Plan—you have a powerful yet straightforward system that’s both time-efficient and highly effective.

By using these steps, you’ve organized your ideas, structured your thoughts, and laid out a clear roadmap, allowing you to approach your draft with clarity and confidence. Instead of starting from scratch, you’re stepping onto a foundation that supports you at each stage, helping you avoid writer’s block and keep momentum going.

This framework is designed to streamline the process, saving you countless hours and frustrations in the long run.

Remember, this one hour of preparation isn’t just a step—it’s an investment in the quality and success of your book. Whether you’re aiming for a bestseller or a personal project, following this pre-work will bring you closer to achieving your vision.

So take that hour, embrace the MOP Framework, and get ready to watch your ideas take shape. Now, you’re equipped and ready to start writing with purpose—let the journey to your finished book begin!

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My name is J.R. Heimbigner and I am a #1 Bestselling Author on Amazon with 16 self-published books. I have two things I want to share with you:

1. A short book to help you write books with your Substack posts called Substack Books.

2. The New Writer School on my Gumroad Store. You will find a free checklist for daily engagement, my Writer’s Starter Pack, and a sign up to have a one-hour call with me to discuss writing or self-publishing.

Also, this post may contain sales or affiliate links, so I might get a little kickback if you purchase anything. Thank you in advance!