Take Off Your Pants!

Outline Your Books for Faster, Better Writing

By: Libbie Hawker

Narrated by: Nathan Agin

Length: 3 hrs and 49 mins

Publisher's summary

When it comes to writing books, are you a "plotter" or a "pantser"? Is one method really better than the other?

In this instructional book, author Libbie Hawker explains the benefits and technique of planning a story before you begin to write. She'll show you how to develop a foolproof character arc and plot, how to pace any book for a can't-put-down reading experience, and how to ensure that your stories are complete and satisfying without wasting any time or words. Hawker's outlining technique works no matter what genre you write, and no matter the age of your audience. If you want to improve writing speed, increase your backlist, and ensure a quality book before you even write the first word, this is the how-to book for you.

Take off your pants! It's time to start outlining.

©2016 Libbie Hawker (P)2017 Libbie Hawker

Love the Book. Hate the Narration

What did you like best about Take Off Your Pants!? What did you like least?

It is short, sweet, and to the point. It explains outlining in a clear and concise way. A very valuable instructional book on writing.

What other book might you compare Take Off Your Pants! to and why?

Write Your Book From the Middle, James Scott BellStory Genius, Lisa CronRock Your Plot, Cathy Yardley

How could the performance have been better?

I would have given the narration a 5 star review for the voice and reading style.The mispronounciations of the oft-repeated title, "Lolita," and the first name of the author of that title, "Vladimir," killed it for me. Can't listen.

Did Take Off Your Pants! inspire you to do anything?

Yes. It makes me want to be better at outlining.

Please re-record with someone who can pronounce Lolita!

He says it so many times. Does anyone listen back before these go out?
Content is good though. Might look for a paper copy.

Very Helpful

I've seen 2 negative reviews of this book, and the rest are largely positive. Heed the positive reviews. The negatives I have seen have one thing in common: a complete and utter lack of understanding as to the purpose of the book. One reviewer went as far as to say "what does pants have to do with this? I couldn't even finish it!" Well. If you got this book to help you write books, and you don't have the forethought to actually consider that if you don't know what pantsing is, you probably need to know more about the craft before attempting a novel. Another review said that they felt abandoned after the instructional for the outline, and felt they needed more help fleshing out the story. Hello...this book is literally about how to write an outline, not how to write a book start to finish. This is a comprehensive, thoughtful, insightful, ever so helpful instructional that not only helps with an outline, but literally gives so much insight into the meat of a story that it can be completely eye opening and life changing for a writer, especially a beginner, a frustrated pantser or someone with writer's block. Excellent purchase, and clearly laid out. This book made some pieces fall into place for me that I had been lacking. It is a game changer.

Narrator can't pronounce common words

The info in this book is fine. It's not groundbreaking, but it may provide you with a few new angles. However, the audio was clearly never edited. The narrator mispronounces the classic book "Lolita" over and over and over... He also mispronounces the author's first name. Who doesn't know how to say Vladimir? I think the narrator must be a robot. Not a single real human listened to the audio before publishing. Unbearable.

Narrator is UNBEARABLE

I should have noticed, but I would not have remembered his name anyway. He ruined "Foolproof Outline", and now he's ruined this one as well.
His attempt to sound pompous is terrible, and makes the full book sound arrogant, it does not let you get into the content at all, every two seconds he attempts vocalizations as if he were practicing for some role.
Please, please Audible, don't let this man ruin more titles.

Great Writing Book

Loved it. The audio though misread Lolita's name as Laatida. I had no clue the book she was writing about until I looked at my place in the Ebook. Low-li-ta. Cracked me up after I figured out what he was saying.

Narration ruined this book

The narrator reads too slowly, and mispronounces several words. After the tenth time he butchered Lolita, I had to stop listening because it was too distracting. Wish I could have my money back so I could still support the author and purchase the printed version.

Sloppy, Amateurish Writing

This is an excellent example of quantity over quality. The author claims to have written twenty novels, but if they’re written anything like this book, then she’s written twenty, awful collections of garbles.

What a mess.

Excellent book. Ridiculous narration.

This book is excellent but the narration is so irritating. I can handle mispronunciations, but could they at least mispronounce it the same way throughout the book instead of this buffet of pronunciation? Their pronunciation of the word “flaw” is SO off that I kept thinking he was speaking French. How many ways can you say Vladimir? How many possible pronunciations are there for Lolita? I think we’re up to 5.

Highly Recommend

I highly recommend this book. Prepare to read this book 1st, then follow the instructions. IMO this is not one of those books where you can effectively work ahead or work along— which the author warns. I have created my template and I’m going to try this method with my current work in progress.

Brilliant for new and old writers

This is a v simple accessible unpretentious explanation of how to write a novel. I sometimes found the reading of it a bit stiff but he was amiable and it flowed very well

Great ideas

A step by step guide for plotting your novel. I read it at one sitting and took notes as we went. Can't wait to try it out - this will certainly become one of my go to author tools.

I was a little confused towards the end regarding plotting but plan to read it again.

A simple basic way to write

This is an adequate book for those who have not read other books on structure. Its simple outline is marred by the narrator's extremely strange pronunciation of words - particularly mutilating the author Vladimir Nabokov's name and rather infuriatingly insisting on pronouncing Loilta as Low-leee-taaaaaaaaaaaaaaa. Very annoying! Especially as this reference is used throughout the book.

Terrible narration -

It's only a short audiobook, but even so, I couldn't even get half way through this due to the narration - the repeated pronunciation (as others have commented) of "Lolita" or "Lolly-tar" as pronounced by the narrator (among other things) was just too unbearable to continue!

I believe the book will be extremely useful, and so I am going to buy the hard copy version instead.