Chapter Outline Template

Voice-anchored beats for Eyuun expansion.

How to Use This Template

1. Copy this structure for each chapter/prologue
2. Fill in each section's fields
3. Feed to Eyuun with eyuun_queue
4. Eyuun expands around your voice anchors, respects your tone directions

The goal: Give Eyuun guardrails + voice DNA. It expands what needs expanding, preserves what's sacred.

Document Header

# [CHAPTER/PROLOGUE TITLE]

**Type:** [Prologue | Chapter N | Interlude | Epilogue]
**Target Pages:** [number]
**POV:** [Character name or "Narrator" or "Omniscient"]
**Timeline:** [Year, season, time of day if relevant]

## Context
[What the reader knows coming into this. What they should feel.]

## Purpose
[Why this chapter exists. What it accomplishes for the story.]

## Overall Tone
[Emotional through-line. How should this chapter FEEL?]

Section Template

Repeat this block for each scene/section within the chapter:

---

## [SECTION NUMBER]. [SECTION TITLE]

**Location:** [Where it happens]
**Characters:** [Who's present]
**Time:** [If different from chapter header]
**Pages:** [Target length for this section]

### Purpose
[Why this section exists — what it does for the chapter]

### Structure
[Beat-by-beat what happens, in order. Keep it tight.]
- Beat 1
- Beat 2
- Beat 3
- [etc.]

### Voice Anchors
[Sacred lines that MUST appear verbatim. The soul of the scene.]
- "Line one."
- "Line two."

### Tone
[Emotional direction for this section specifically]

### Visual Notes
[Panel thinking — wide shots, tight shots, splash moments]
- Wide: [moment]
- Tight: [moment]
- Splash: [moment]

### Expansion Notes
[Instructions for Eyuun]
- EXPAND: [what to flesh out]
- SPARSE: [what to keep minimal]
- AVOID: [what NOT to do]

### Threads
[Story threads planted or paid off]
- PLANT: [new thread introduced]
- CALLBACK: [reference to earlier thread]
- PAYOFF: [thread resolved]

Section Types Reference

Voice Anchor Guidelines

What makes a good voice anchor:

• Lines that define character voice
• Thematic statements that carry weight
• Imagery that MUST land exactly as written
• Dialogue that can't be paraphrased
• Opening/closing hooks

How many per section:

• Short section (0.5 page): 1-2 anchors
• Medium section (1-2 pages): 2-4 anchors
• Long section (2+ pages): 3-5 anchors

Format:

### Voice Anchors
- "The exact line as it should appear."
- "Another sacred line."
- [BEAT: Description of a non-verbal moment that must happen]

Expansion Notes Guidelines

Be specific with Eyuun:

### Expansion Notes
- EXPAND: The hall's architecture — make it ancient, grand, oppressive
- EXPAND: Physical tells from Council members (shifting, avoiding eyes)
- SPARSE: Lazerin's exit — no dialogue, just the look
- SPARSE: The old mage's internal thoughts — show through action
- AVOID: Explaining the magic system here
- AVOID: Naming the old mage yet

Thread Tracking

Every section should note what narrative threads it touches:

This feeds into story_beat tracking.

Complete Example

# PROLOGUE — Before the Heretic

**Type:** Prologue
**Target Pages:** 8
**POV:** Omniscient narrator
**Timeline:** Spans Year 280-600

## Context
Reader knows nothing. This is their first contact with Athernyx.

## Purpose
Immerse the reader in the world, show the height before the fall, 
establish the tragedy that Kael will unknowingly resolve.

## Overall Tone
Warm invitation → building unease → quiet devastation → spark of hope

---

## I. THE WORLD

**Location:** Athernyx — planetary scale
**Characters:** None (world introduction)
**Pages:** 1.5

### Purpose
Orient the reader. Make them feel the world before they meet anyone.

### Structure
- Open on Athernyx from above — colors, scale, beauty
- The Network — fungal forests, mycelium, a living planet
- Mana as the pulse of all things — brief system intro
- The Alkin — humans who learned to shape this energy
- The truth: the planet doesn't need them

### Voice Anchors
- "The world of Athernyx has oceans the color of gemstones, 
   clouds that blush pink at sunset, and forests that glow 
   faintly at night — which is all very beautiful, but not 
   particularly unusual if you've lived there your whole life."
- "One rune is a word. Two is a sentence. Three is a story."
- "The Alkin are guests in their own home."

### Tone
Warm, inviting, conversational — like being told a story by 
someone who knows it well. Gently wry. Harry Potter narrator energy.

### Visual Notes
- Wide: The planet from space, then descending
- Wide: Forest canopy at night, bioluminescent veins
- No tight shots yet — we're still breathing

### Expansion Notes
- EXPAND: Sensory details of the forests (texture, sound, smell)
- EXPAND: The Network's "remembering" — make it tangible
- SPARSE: Magic system details — just enough to orient
- AVOID: Character introduction — this is pure world

### Threads
- PLANT: The Network remembers everything
- PLANT: The Alkin are guests, not owners

Checklist Before Submitting to Eyuun

• Every section has a clear PURPOSE
• Structure beats are in ORDER
• Voice anchors are VERBATIM-READY
• Tone direction is SPECIFIC
• Expansion notes tell Eyuun what to ADD and what to LEAVE
• Thread tracking is complete
• Target page counts add up

"Write the bones. Let Eyuun add the flesh."