#246. Story Mapping: How to Map Your Novel With Sticky Notes (With Danyel Nicole)

What if getting stuck on your novel has nothing to do with your story and everything to do with HOW you're seeing it? Story mapping coach Danyel Nicole found that out firsthand. When Danyel's first draft started to feel off, she got up from her desk one night, grabbed butcher paper and sticky notes, and mapped out her entire story on the wall in her hallway. Within an hour, she could finally see what was working—and what wasn't. This discovery changed everything about her novel-writing process. And now she helps other writers do the same. Danyel is a Notes to Novel graduate and founder of Map Your Story Studios, where she helps fiction writers get their stories off the page and onto the wall so they can see the big picture, break through draft paralysis, and write with real momentum. In this episode, she's breaking down exactly how story mapping works, why it gets writers unstuck, and how you can start today with less than $25 worth of supplies. What You'll Learn: [03:00] What story mapping is, and why getting stuck on your novel is almost always a visibility problem, not a story problem. [06:29] What Danyel's wall literally looks like: the color-coded sticky note system she uses to map every act, scene, conflict, and character arc at a glance. [00:09:24] Exactly what to buy at Target (for $25 or less) to start mapping your story today—plus digital tool options if you'd rather work on a screen. [14:45] What Danyel found on her wall that saved her from writing a whole section of her draft that would have fallen completely flat. [17:18] The three sticky notes that give any writer, at any stage, a solid story foundation to start mapping their novel today. Whether you're staring at a blank page with no idea where to start, three chapters in and losing the throughline, or three hundred pages deep into a draft that keeps going in circles, story mapping meets you exactly where you are. 🔗 Links mentioned in this episode: Danyel Nicole's Website | Map Your Story Studios Danyel Nicole's Freebie | Map Your Story Guide Danyel Nicole's Instagram Take Author Success Quiz Learn More About Notes To Novel ⭐ Follow & Review If you loved this episode, please take a moment to follow the show and leave a review on Apple Podcasts! Your review will help other writers find this podcast and get the insights they need to finish their books. Thanks for tuning in to The Fiction Writing Made Easy Podcast! See you next week! Support the show 👉 Looking for a transcript? If you’re listening on Apple Podcasts or Spotify, scroll down below the episode player until you see the transcript.

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#246. Story Mapping: How to Map Your Novel With Sticky Notes (With Danyel Nicole) is an episode from Fiction Writing Made Easy by Savannah Gilbo.

This episode is 21:07 long.

This episode was published on May 5, 2026.

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