So, Larry Correia, the guy who churns out Monster Hunter International books like a machine, calls himself a “loose outliner.” Basically, he scribbles some ideas, treats them like rough sketches, and then just wings it. After 29 books, he’s now messing around with discovery writing—because why not shake things up? Here’s the deal on how this dude plans (or doesn’t) and why it’s worth a look.
A Week of Brain-Dumping
Correia spends about a week on his outlines. Sounds intense, but it’s really just him jotting down plot points and scenes, shuffling them around, and filling in gaps. The result? A couple pages of bullet points that’d look like gibberish to anyone else. He’s got a timeline, some key events, and a vague idea of where his characters need to end up. It’s not set in stone—more like a Post-it note you might lose under the couch. He’ll swap scenes around as he goes, because the story’s the boss, not the outline.
For short stories, he doesn’t even bother outlining—just dives in with a half-baked idea and sees where it takes him. Regular novels get the quick-and-dirty bullet-point treatment. But epic fantasy? That’s where he goes full nerd: 40-page outlines, Excel timelines spanning 1,200 years, and hand-drawn maps. Yeah, he’s that guy. Point is, he only plans as much as the story demands. No fluff.
His Toolkit’s Kinda Old-School
Correia’s a Microsoft Word stan, stuffing notes at the bottom of his manuscripts like a digital hoarder. Random dialogue, character names, or wild ideas like “What if Bob’s mom was a werewolf?”—it all goes in there. For big projects, he breaks out Excel to track timelines, like that 1,200-year epic fantasy saga. His Monster Hunter world alone has 40 pages of notes. When he’s co-writing with someone like Mike Kupari, he builds character databases to keep track of every rando mentioned, so nobody’s left wondering, “Wait, who’s this jerk?”
For work-for-hire gigs, like his Warmachine novels, he switches gears and churns out detailed scene-by-scene outlines to keep publishers happy. It’s not his vibe, but he’s a pro, so he makes it work.
Discovery Writing: The Plot Twist
In 2025, Correia decided to ditch outlines for his Academy of Outcasts series, going full discovery-writing mode. Guess what? The guy’s word count skyrocketed from 40,000 a month to 50,000–60,000. “It feels faster,” he says, though he’s bracing for extra editing time. Even so, he didn’t go totally rogue—still whipped up a 10-page world guide and a bonkers calendar system with seven elemental realms and 13 months. Man can’t help himself; structure’s in his blood.
Meanwhile, he’s still outlining his American Paladin series, some vigilante fantasy thing. Guy’s juggling both methods like it’s no big deal. “Depends on the genre,” he shrugs. Fair enough.
Advice That Doesn’t Suck
Correia’s not here to preach. “There’s no right way,” he says. Outline, don’t outline, mix it up—whatever gets the book done. His big warning? Don’t let outlining turn into procrastination. If you’re spending more time planning than writing, you’re doing it wrong. When he hits a wall, he skips the tough scene, writes something fun, and circles back later. The outline’s like a GPS—keeps him from getting lost, but he’s not afraid to take a detour.
He’s also got zero patience for writer’s block. Calls it “a filthy lie.” If you’re stuck, he thinks you’re either lazy or bored with your own story. Harsh, but kinda true.
How Experience Shapes the Chaos
Take Monster Hunter International: Correia had the plot mostly figured out before the characters. His main guy, Owen, was half-baked at the start, and some side characters were just vibes that grew into big deals. Holly, for example, was a throwaway who ended up stealing the show. In The Grimnoir Chronicles, he and Kupari brainstormed like crazy, even scrapping a whole finale (Mason Island) for a giant kaiju brawl in DC because the story demanded it.
He’s all about treating writing like a job. “If it’s not working, fix it,” he says. No waiting for the muse to show up. It’s about getting words on the page and making readers happy, not stroking your own ego (well, maybe a little).
Wrapping It Up
Correia’s outlining style is like a good burger: just enough structure to hold it together, but plenty of room for juicy, messy creativity. Whether he’s scribbling a few bullet points or geeking out over 40-page world bibles, he makes it work for the story. His discovery-writing experiment just proves he’s not married to one way of doing things. For a wannabe author like me, his big takeaway is dead simple: use whatever method gets the damn book written. Now, if I could just stop procrastinating and actually do it…
Works Cited
Correia, Larry. “Ask Correia #12: The Writing Process.” Monster Hunter Nation, 14 Apr. 2011, monsterhunternation.com/2011/04/14/ask-correia-12-the-writing-process/. Accessed 9 July 2025.
—. “Ask Correia 16: Outlining vs. Pantsing.” Monster Hunter Nation, 20 Mar. 2014, monsterhunternation.com/2014/03/20/ask-correia-16-outlining-vs-pantsing/. Accessed 9 July 2025.
—. Monster Hunter Nation. monsterhunternation.com. Accessed 9 July 2025.
“Larry Correia.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Larry_Correia. Accessed 9 July 2025.
“Larry Correia – Audio Books, Best Sellers, Author Bio.” Audible, www.audible.com/author/Larry-Correia/B002D68HL8. Accessed 9 July 2025.
“Larry Correia: Books, Biography, Blog, Audiobooks, Kindle.” Amazon, www.amazon.com/Larry-Correia/e/B002D68HL8. Accessed 9 July 2025.
“Larry Correia | Official Publisher Page.” Simon & Schuster, www.simonandschuster.com/authors/Larry-Correia/62734448. Accessed 9 July 2025.
WriterDojo. www.writerdojo.com/. Accessed 9 July 2025.